Councillor: Roads in rural areas need regular maintenance

By EREBIRI ZURENUOC
ROADS in rural areas need to be regularly and properly maintained to keep them in good condition, a ward councillor says.
Worinu Samanam, ward councilor in the Wain-Erap local level government in the district of Nawaeb in Morobe said roads were important to farmers who want to transport coffee and other cash crops to buyers.
Samanam said for example, the road from Torowa to Rabisap built in 2004 had never been upgraded.
“The road connects more than 300 coffee farmers in Rabisap, Nimala, Yangalang, Lowai and Kapola villages, plus villages in Wain/Erap,” he said.
“Other farmers are from Siara in the Wampar local level government of Huon Gulf where many have joined the Fafo Coffee Cooperative of Nawaeb.
“For years, the people themselves have been fixing this road to make sure that vehicles can use it to transport coffee. Beyond Rabisap, there is no road. Villagers use bush tracks.
“We usually mobilise farmers who have spades and tools to dig, to fix the road so that land cruisers can make their way to Rabisap village.”
District authority chief executive officer James Neapukali who drove to Rabisap village on Friday said the road had been upgraded thanks to Nawaeb MP Kennedy Wenge.