By Maduka Nweke
Residents along the Lagos-Badagry Expressway axis came in mass last weekend to join the inspection tour of the Lagos-Badagry Expressway project by Federal Ministry of Works team.
Stakeholders in are happy that the work is moving speedily, however they regretted that the work was delayed owing to reason they were not aware of.
They decried the state of the road that made Badagry a no go area as a result of 250 per cent hike in transport fare and capability of rendering new vehicles unmovable after a one-direction movement. PropertyMart gathered that NNPC tax credit fund became the oil fast tracking the Badagry expressway project of recent time.
Speaking on the construction, Mr Babatunde Hunpe, the lawmaker representing Badagry in the House of Representatives, urged Federal Government to continue funding the project so that the work would finish on time.
According to the lawmaker, there are tremendous changes on the pace of work on the road in the last few months. “I am sure that if this continues the way it is going by December this year, the residents and the people passing through the expressway will have cause to smile and thank the government more. I am appealing to the residents to cooperate with the construction workers so that the project will continue without an issues,” he said.
Also speaking, Oba Israel Okoya, the Onibereko of Ibereko land, said in the past, residents spent between five and six hours from Badagry to Mile 2 in Lagos. “But today we thank the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari and Mr Raji Fashola for tremendous changes we have seen on the road.
“We want to implore the government to continue the good work so that by next year the project will be completed,” he said. Abdulsalam Ashade, the Coordinator, National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYC) Olorunda LCDA urged the Federal Government to construct pedestrian bridges for the residents crossing the road.
Fielding questions from the press on why the project witnessed speedy run, Director of Federal Highways in South West, Mr Adedamola Kuti, said the N15 billion NNPC Tax Credit funding is speeding up construction works on the Badagry expressway project. He said this during the inspection of the section three of the Lagos-Badagry Expressway project which spans from Agbara to Seme Border being supervised by the Federal Ministry of Works.