Abia restarts dredging of Aba River

By Ijendu Iheaka

Abia Government has re-started dredging of some stretches of Aba River flanked by Aba Waterside Market (Ahia Udele) which the government demolished on Feb. 4.

The Abia Commissioner for Works, Mr Bob Ogu, made the disclosure on Tuesday in Aba.

He said that the dredging was aimed to free the river from refuse and residues that had accumulated over time, to enable free flow of run-off water from the city.

According to the official, after dredging the stretches of Aba River within the city, the government may continue the dredging if needed.

Attempts had been made to dredge the river by previous administrations in that state.

Chief Theodore Orji‘s administration approved the dredging of the river in September 2012 but the project did not take off until 2015 during the administration of Chief Okezie Ikpeazu.

The dredging was later stopped.

In July 2018, an effort by the Niger Delta Development Commission to dredge the river from Okpulor Umuobu in Osisioma LGA, in Abia, to Akwa Ibom and Rivers states in order to recover abandoned waterways did not sail through.