The Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide praised President Muhammadu Buhari for completing the Second Niger Bridge before the end of his tenure.
This was in a statement released by its national publicity secretary, Dr. Alex Ogbonnia.
Ohanaeze said the bridge is “a key national infrastructure, with immense socio-economic benefits not only for the contiguous states but for the entire nation”.
According to Ogbonnia, the bridge has been a major source of concern to the Igbos for over fifty years and they were grateful for its completion.
“The clamour for a Second Niger bridge became necessary shortly after the Nigerian Civil War. The first Niger Bridge was commissioned in 1965, and shortly after, the Nigerian Civil War broke out in 1967.
READ ALSO: Reaction As FIFA Reveals Plan For Women’s Football Tournament
“The bridge was therefore not exempted from the devastating effects of the war. The Second Niger Bridge has been a major concern to the Igbo for over fifty years because of two major reasons: apart from the traffic jam on top of the bridge, the greatest fear was that the bridge had evidence of cracks such that the stress of weights on the bridge could collapse all the vehicles and their contents into the River Niger with untold consequences.
“Based on the general clamour for a Second Niger Bridge, the former military president, General Ibrahim Babangida, in 1992, challenged the Nigerian engineers to come up with a design of the second bridge.
“It was believed that upon completion, the bridge will ease traffic flow, allay fears, improve road safety and create greater road user confidence among the commuters,” Ogbonnia said.
It added, “When President Buhari promised that he will complete the Second Niger Bridge, not many believed, especially when he could not conceal his lopsided political appointments and other resource allocations against the South East.”
