. . .vows to complete roads, other projects abandoned by predecessor
Laide Raheem, Abeokuta
The Ogun State governor, Dapo Abiodun, has declared that no part of the state will suffer infrastructure neglect, noting capital projects will be evenly executed in the three senatorial districts of the state.
The governor equally expressed the commitment of his administration to continue to give priority attention to roads, hospitals and other projects abandoned by his predecessor, which according to him were funded with tax payers’ money.
Abiodun stated these while speaking with newsmen at the weekend, in Abeokuta, after inspecting some roads in the metropolis.
The governor, who had earlier inspected the l Oba Erinwole Road in Sagamu, Kuto Flyover, Elite and Fajol-Osara-Gbonagun Roads in Abeokuta, reiterated that no part of the state will be neglected in the distribution of infrastructure, saying “I have decided to make the people the centrepiece of my administration”.
“I will not leave any project abandoned by previous government. Those they funded or abandoned midway will be completed by us. When we were drawing up budget too, we asked for the people’s inputs and these are the roads and projects you chose by yourselves.
“Infrastructure, especially road will be given the right attention in order to open up the state for more economic development”, he added.
Abiodun said that the Oba Erinwole Road in Sagamu, which is an important road that serves several industries and also links the Sagamu-Ore-Benin Expressway, was in a terrible state when he took over and had become a death trap for its users.
“I went to see the level of work done on the Oba Erinwole Road. This road is very important as it leads to many factories and industries. We awarded the contract for this road in March this year; if not for the pandemic, work would have gone further than this by now. When it is completed, it will alleviate the suffering of the people,” he noted.
He added that the Kuto Flyover and service lanes in Abeokuta, though awarded by the immediate past administration, would be completed soon, as he has extracted commitment from the contractor.
The governor, however, noted that most of the road projects being executed by his administration were prioritised by the residents themselves as they were allowed to do so while government was preparing the budget.
“For instance, it was part of our inclusiveness that made the people to choose the 7.1km Fajol-Osara-Gbonagun Road. This is an Inter-Local Government road that would link Abeokuta South and Odeda Local Government Areas, as well as act as a bypass to the Abeokuta-Ibadan Road”, he said.
The governor further stated that roads were simultaneously being constructed across the state, pointing out that “similar projects are ongoing at Ipokia and Imeko” adding “construction work would soon commence on Gbenro-Isashi-Akute Road bordering Lagos.
Meanwhile, the governor has pleaded with motorists plying the Brewery-Olomore axis of Abeokuta to keep faith with his government, saying he had awarded contract for the fixing of the bad road permanently.
Abiodun disclosed that approval was just given by the federal government to the state, for full construction of drainage and the resurfacing of all the failed portions of the road.