By Staff Writer
On the expense of the State Government, the Kajokeji County authorities on Saturday launched the grading of the 7.2 km road linking the County Administrative Area to the main hospital, the airstrip and the army barrack as the areas were becoming impassable due to poor road network.
Speaking from Kajo-Keji via phone yesterday, Commissioner Phanuel Dumo confirmed the launch of the process of grading the main feeder road.
“We launched the road yesterday,” he confirmed.
And that he was headed to the site to witness the process as their agreement mandates the operation through Sundays.
Last year, due to the poor road network, a pregnant woman died with the unborn baby as they sought to reach the main hospital.
The Commissioner futher clarifies concern over other feeder roads that are vandalised and may need to be worked on.
Commissioner Dumo also highlighted that the road has for long been neglected by the state government that forced them to mobilise resources voluntarily to fix the county roads.
“This is a community project run by the daughters and sons of the soil that raised a contribution (to fix the roads within),” Commissioner Dumo echoed.
He added that the project rose up as a result of last year’s heavy rainfall that has worn off the road connecting the key areas of life in the county that prompted them to gather the resources for fixing up roads within the county.
The initiative was then started by the then Commissioner Erasto Kenyi Michael who begun by mobilising the locals to work on the road bare hands.
The Commissioner on the other part urged both local and international agencies working in the county to help in the process for them to easily run their programs within Kajokeji county.
Meanwhile speaking at the launch yesterday, the Chairperson of the community initiative named as Kajokeji Roads Self-Help Project (KKRSHP) Mr. Evans Lou Lopita Binyason commended the efforts reached by the local authorities and others who voluntarily and wholeheartedly devoted to the project to yield its result.
Last year, a resident and youth of Kajo-Keji Mr. Wani Richard had explained that the initiative is a good one that came out of frustrations following the conditions of the road that makes it hard to access the county hospital which is partially operational and under renovation.
The total cost estimated for the project is 43,255 United States Dollars in which three quarter of it has been paid to the company contracted to work on the road.