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NAMNAI-BRIDGE: Taraba Lawyer Demands Answers Over Namnai Tragedy, Slams Federal Neglect.


By Our Correspondent, July 27, 2025

A prominent legal practitioner and public interest advocate, Tanko Kyen-Emoh Danjuma Ambi-Usi Jr., has written an open letter to the Minister of State for Regional Integration, Mr. Uba Ahmadu Maigari, demanding urgent answers and accountability over the stalled reconstruction of the collapsed Namnai Bridge in Taraba State, following the drowning of three women during a failed river crossing on July 25, 2025.

The emotional yet pointed letter, titled “Namnai Bridge: An Avoidable Tragedy and Unacceptable Silence,” condemns what the lawyer described as "willful negligence and government failure" leading to the needless deaths of civilians who relied on unsafe canoes and planks to cross the river in the absence of a bridge.

“The tragedy was not an accident,” Ambi-Usi declared. “It was the predictable result of federal silence and broken promises.”

The letter recalls that Minister Maigari had visited the site of the collapsed Namnai Bridge in April 2025 and publicly promised that construction would begin within a week. However, four months later, no construction has commenced and no contractors have been mobilized to the site.

The bridge, which collapsed in August 2024, serves as a critical federal infrastructure linking Jalingo to Wukari and Benue State, vital for trade, transportation, and regional integration. Since the collapse, residents have resorted to dangerous makeshift crossings with no government-provided alternatives.

Ambi-Usi criticized the ministry for halting efforts by Taraba State Governor Dr. Agbu Kefas, who had independently moved to commence reconstruction by identifying contractors and initiating preparatory works.

“If the state’s intervention was improper, why did the federal ministry not resume the process?” the letter questions. “Why has the project remained frozen while lives and livelihoods are lost?”

He also raised concerns about the absence of any condolence message or response from the minister following the latest tragedy, describing the silence as a “betrayal of leadership” and a stain on the conscience of governance.

“The blood of those women at Namnai cries for justice. It cries for bridges, not platitudes,” he stated.

Ambi-Usi demanded the following:

  • A public explanation from the Minister on why the project stalled
  • A timeline for the resumption and completion of the Namnai Bridge construction
  • A formal investigation into the drowning incident
  • Compensation to the families of the deceased
  • Consequences for any public officials whose negligence contributed to the deaths

He gave the ministry a 14-day deadline to respond, warning that failure to do so will trigger legal action, civic mobilization, and a public campaign to demand accountability.

“This is not just about a bridge—it is about justice, dignity, and the value of Nigerian lives,” the letter concludes.

As outrage grows, the federal government is now under intense pressure to break its silence and provide immediate answers to grieving families and a state feeling increasingly neglected.

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