The Darkside & Road building

this time i had planned to write about the bad side of my hosts. i have been searching for something to write for over a year now. i’m not sure if i’ve found it . let’s see, there’s also corruption in government (nothing compared to naija). the teens wear their trousers around their bums, the decent ones showing their boxers; the crass ones showing the crack of their behind. yes and ecg (their nepa) has increased the frequency of light taking to about once or twice every weekend. i’m still thinking. don’t get me wrong its not that this country is perfect but in comparison to naija this guys are in heaven period!

i have heard of road repair and maintenance. this happens when a road is ridden by pot holes and the government finally wake up to their responsibility and give one of their cronies the assignment of patching it up. that is maintenance. repair occurs when the road has become un-motorable for years on the end and the government now issues a fat contract to julius berger (if they really want it repaired) or one of their cronies. over here i think they have a totally different idea of maintenance. else why would there be people checking on the status of the road when i cannot see any pot holes?

the tema motorway which i hear was built during nkrumah’s time (meaning its approximately 50 yrs old) is by all standards a highly motorable road. no cuts, breaks or pot holes exist on it. no bumps either and yet there was a team of road workers checking up on the status of the road. clearly companies like julius berger wont be making much cash in this country. why can’t they wait for a road to spoil before trying to maintain it. haba! to worsen it, they build their own roads during the rainy season so they can see how water flows will affect its durability. i think that is taking it too far. in naija we build in the dry season when its cheaper. if the rains come and erode most of it, it simply means a fresh contract all in the spirit of chop – i – chop.