'We dey like blind pipo' - Di community for Enugu wia pipo dey live inside lack

Ugba Edogori Amorji Nike na small community for Enugu State, South East Nigeria.

Di pipo bin settle for di area afta di Nigerian civil war. Some of di old pipo for di community say dem don dey for Ugba Edogori Amorji Nike since 1972

Di pipo for dia na mostly farmers wey dey live for small small mud huts.

Di community no get any basic social amenity. Pregnant women gatz travel several kilometers to born dia pikin, and many of di children for di village dey sick sake of di bad water wey dem dey drink from one stream for di village.

"Na divine help and traditional methods we dey rely on if woman wan give birth becos we no get any maternity facility for here," Ngozi Anyamalu wey be woman leader for di community tell BBC Pidgin.

She also tok say dem dey find am difficult to feed sake of lack of farmlands for dem to cultivate.

Di Enugu state goment claim say di pipo of dat community na illegal settlers from Ezza for Ebonyi state.

"E dey important to clarify say dis pipo na illegal immigrants wey go settle for dat place. To tok di truth, dis pipo na labourers wey dey move from one place to anoda dey find how to survive," Aka Eze Aka, di Enugu state commissioner for Information tok.

Anoda resident of di community, Awu Chibueze, narrate how e lose im sight becos of disease wey e no know.

"Na farm work I bin dey do bifor I go blind. If we bin get hospital for dis community, my eye condition no for worse reach like dis," Chibueze tok.

"I for go hospital dat early stage and maybe dem for give me treatment and di disease for go."

Oga Chibueze now dey struggle to fend for imsef after im wife also die.

Chibueze story dey similar to dat of Ejiofor Anselm, wey dey permanently disabled afta e seek medical treatment from one unqualified nurse becos di village no get any health centre.

But despite im condition, Anselm say e still dey determined to kontinu im shoe making work if e fit procure di necessary equipment.

For December 2023, di govnor of Enugu State Peter Mbah bin tok say im administration go build 260 Primary Healthcare Centres for evri electoral wards for di state, promising to make sure say "evri child, mother, di elderly, and Enugu citizen get access to better healthcare".

But promises like dis from Nigerian goment officials no be new tin.

"Dem dey usually come here to campaign for votes and promise us things, and after everithing, wen we vote dem into power, dem go forget us," Cyprain Obasi wey be di community leader tell BBC News Pidgin.

"To di goment we just be like pipo wey don die."

And as no school dey for di area to give di children access to formal education, Obasi say e be like say no hope dey to break di cycle of poverty.

Anoda community leader, Agu Charles, tok say dia major challenge na water.

E say dia major source of water for drinking and cooking na di Awuri stream wey no clean.

Enugu State get perennial problem of water supply even for di urban areas of di state. Successive govnors for di state don promise to solve di water issue but di problem persists.

Oga Eze Aka say di pipo no too sabi say pipo dey live for Ugba Edogori Amorji Nike or weda dem dey vote.

"Some of dem tok say goment dey forget dem afta dem don vote finish but we no sabi say dat kain place dey. Not even during campaigns.

E however assure say "di goment of govnor Peter Mbah dey determined to develop evri area of Enugu state to di level of agriculture. We get programs to ensure say pipo wey dey live for those kain places go benefit."