VZCZCXRO4089
PP RUEHMA RUEHPA
DE RUEHUJA #1959/01 2091402
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 281402Z JUL 06
FM AMEMBASSY ABUJA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 6608
INFO RUEHZK/ECOWAS COLLECTIVE
RUEHYD/AMEMBASSY YAOUNDE 0157
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RUEKDIA/DIA WASHDC
RHFMISS/CDR USEUCOM VAIHINGEN GE
RUFOADA/JAC MOLESWORTH RAF MOLESWORTH UK

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ABUJA 001959 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ELTN PHUM KCOR ASEC NI
SUBJECT: THE ROAD TO CALABAR 
 
¶1.  Summary.  Emboffs recently took an overland trip from 
Abuja to Enugu, and then onward to Calabar, traveling on 2 of 
Nigeria's 3 "national roads."  Poor road and vehicle 
conditions, appalling standards of driver conduct, and a lack 
of signage all provided challenges throughout the journey. 
This was compounded by severely restricted fuel availability 
and the continuous presence of overtly corrupt police 
checkpoints.  While these problems present a challenge for 
Embassy travel, they are a daily fact of life for Nigerians 
and restrict both business development and the delivery of 
government services throughout the nation, perhaps a 
significant issue as the 2007 national elections approach. 
End summary. 
 
Road Conditions 
--------------- 
 
¶2.  Most of the travel from Abuja to Enugu was done on the A2 
and A3 "freeways."  While the A3 freeway--the Enugu-Port 
Harcourt road--was mostly "dualized" (a divided highway), the 
A2 freeway was mostly "face you, face me" (two lane road). 
Even where each road was dualized, significant portions 
existed where one side of the road was in such poor repair 
that only the other side was used for traffic in both 
directions.  Neither the start nor the end of these 
diversions were marked by signs, and drivers seemed not to 
adapt their driving to the changed traffic condition. 
 
¶3.  From Enugu to Calabar, travel was again on the A3 freeway 
until Aba (the road then continues on to Port Harcourt), and 
then on a primary road to Calabar.  This road was the only 
overland route into Calabar, and was heavily trafficked by 
large trucks (often too large for the road) taking goods in 
and out of the city.  As the terrain turned more coastal, 
more bridges were necessary along the road, and were often in 
poor repair--most with at least one hole in the guardrail and 
a truck or two in the creek below. 
 
¶4.  The primary roads, almost exclusively of the "face you, 
face me" variety, were in horrible condition.  There were 
areas of the roads that were so cratered that they were 
almost impassable by cars with insufficient ground clearance. 
 Even SUVs with more appropriate ground clearance were forced 
to slow to less than 20km/hour to pass many of these defects. 
 The only road repair projects ongoing were impromptu by 
local "entrepreneurs" who, as they filled holes with soil dug 
from the side of the road, would beg for some show of 
appreciation from passing motorists. 
 
¶5.  Road signage was almost non-existent, and there was 
frequent confusion about which turn to take.  More than once, 
Emboffs had to rely on the kindness of strangers to direct 
them to their destination, and--owing to this confusion--even 
took an unexpected detour through Uyo .  Maps of Nigeria are 
also rather rare and tend to be of a scale too large to be 
useful for most.  A recently produced road atlas of Nigeria, 
the first of its type, proved invaluable on the trip, though 
distribution of this product is seemingly limited and it will 
thus not benefit most Nigerians.  The price tag is equivalent 
of twenty days wages for the average Nigerian, further 
limiting its distribution. 
 
¶6.  The poor condition of many of the vehicles on Nigeria's 
roads, especially of large trucks, significantly increases 
the danger of overland travel.  The sides of the roads were 
littered with the broken down and burned out skeletons of 
vehicles, and faster moving vehicles frequently cause as much 
problem as their slow moving counterparts.  Pedestrians, 
merchants, and cattle are all also frequent roadway 
obstructions as are disabled vehicles left in the middle of 
the roadway. 
 
 
Fuel Availability 
----------------- 
 
¶7. Between towns, there were many gas stations along the 
roads, but almost all were closed--and most appeared to have 
been so for some time.  In Enugu, the privately-owned gas 
stations were selling gas for 75 Naira/liter, but most had no 
fuel.  The publicly-owned (NNPC) station was selling fuel for 
72 Naira/liter, with limited availability, and there was a 1 
km queue down the road with drivers waiting for a fuel 
delivery.  The Embassy driver was forced to buy fuel on the 
black market, the only readily-available source, paying 116 
Naira/liter.  In Calabar, fuel was readily available at both 
NNPC and privately-owned stations at 69 Naira/liter. 
 
ABUJA 00001959  002 OF 002 
 
 
 
Security 
-------- 
 
¶8.  Perhaps the most striking element of the trip was the 
constant presence of police roadblocks, including the 
Nigerian Police Force (NPF), Police Mobile Force (MOPOL), 
Federal Highway Patrol, Federal Road Safety Commission, and 
the Customs Service (with an occasional soldier mixed in at 
some roadblocks).  On the return trip to Abuja, Emboffs 
counted 40 roadblocks in the 5 hours (339 km) from Calabar to 
Enugu.  If the roadblocks were evenly distributed, this would 
mean a roadblock every 7-8 minutes, but the roadblocks were 
far from evenly distributed.  In the 9 km through Aba, there 
were 11 roadblocks--when stopped at one roadblock, Emboffs 
could often see the next one just down the road.  Corruption 
was so overt among the police at these Aba roadblocks, who 
had cargo pockets stuffed full of cash, that the officers 
were even seen making change for bribes if their victims did 
not have small enough bills (note:  the Embassy driver 
informed Emboffs that the price of a bribe has recently risen 
from 20 Naira to 50 Naira, about 38 cents. End Note). 
 
¶9. Despite the overtly corrupt nature of these roadblocks, 
several interlocutors in Calabar said that the police 
presence made the road safe from armed robbers, a serious 
problem throughout Nigeria.  Despite their complaining, most 
Nigerians at this point seem to have accepted these hasty 
extortion points as a way life if they want to travel around 
their own country, and many seem to have accepted at least a 
limited value for crime deterrence, though most are still 
hesitant about traveling these same roads during hours of 
darkness. 
 
Comment 
------- 
 
¶10.  Overland travel in Nigeria will remain a significant 
barrier to commerce, investment, and governance for the 
foreseeable future.  Until significant investment is made in 
improving the roads and fuel distribution and an even more 
significant effort is made to reduce police corruption, 
Nigeria will suffer.  The cost of operating a business rises 
as transportation time, fuel cost, and vehicle repair costs 
climb, and these same factors limit the ability of the 
federal and state government services to reach their targets. 
 This limit on the ability of government to reach out to the 
people could become significant during 2007's national 
elections. 
 
¶11.  The lack of basic road safety, as well as other travel 
challenges throughout Nigeria, also provides a significant 
restriction to the Mission's ability to travel throughout the 
country.  Airlines do not reach many areas of the country, 
and air travel presents a whole different set of challenges, 
dangers, and restrictions.  Other diplomatic and development 
missions in Nigeria as well as the few NGOs present recognize 
this same set of problems in their efforts to travel the 
country. 
 
¶12.  Interestingly, in the Calabar Museum, there was a 
statement by Louis Edet, Nigeria's first indigenous Police 
Commissioner, from around the time of independence saying his 
two priorities for the Nigerian police were to improve the 
force's public image and to reduce corruption.  Fifty years 
hence, the mission remains the same. 
FUREY