Erosion/Landslide: Imo community protest sitting of borrow pit in Amazi, sends SOS Uzodinma

The people of Amazi, Umunakanu Ama in Ehime Mbano Local Government Area of Imo State on Tuesday took to the streets to protest peacefully against the prospects of avoidable environmental degradation of their community.

The protest followed what the people described as unsolicited invasion of their ancestral home in what appears to be a politically backed siting of borrow pit along the only major but neglected road connecting the village to the rest of the other villages/communities.

The borrow pit from where sand is being excavated by a contractor from a neighbouring community linked to the Governor Hope Uzodimma administration in the state poses a major environmental threat to Amazi, Engr. Uche Okafor, a member of the community bemoaned.

Part of the angst of the people of Amazi is that for the past two weeks, the villagers have made spirited efforts to reach out to the Chairman of Ehime Mbano Local Government, Hon. Francis Uche Nwodu by sending a delegation led by the Chairman of the village and President General of Umunakanu Ancient Kingdom to explain to him the dangers that the excavation poses on their road, farmlands and houses and the pervasive state of insecurity in the area. However, all the efforts to get a favourable intervention have remained futile.

Consequently, the general congress of the people of Amazi both at home and abroad undertook the peaceful protest to bring their plight to all concerned authorities and people of goodwill to come to their rescue.

“We have reached out to the Local Government Chairman to put a stop to this and up till today (Tuesday, May 6, 2025) nothing has been done and we are using this opportunity to call the attention of the Imo State government led by distinguished senator Hope Uzodimma to look into our plight and intervene on time.

“The peace loving community of Amazi has been invaded; it has been intimidated; and its people pushed to the wall. However, we have remained peaceful in the face of all these tribulations and deliberate efforts to compromise the peace for which we are well known for and thereby instigate crisis in our community,” Nze Lucius Nnorom, a prominent member of the community said.

He lamented that what the people of the community is currently going through is a double jeopardy considering that the community when compared with others, lacks infrastructure provisions, including access road, water and electricity.

“All the communities bordering us have asphalt roads and electricity. The tarred roads actually ends at the beginning of entrance into our community,” he added.

He called on the Senator Hope Uzodimma to not only come to their aid in stopping further excavation and undertaking remedial actions to mitigate the danger of erosion and landslide in Amazi but to provide basic infrastructure like access roads, water and electricity to the area.