The Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, on Friday, flagged off the dualisation of the 8.3km Akobo, Ojurin/Odogbo Barracks, Olorunda Abaa Junction road, in Ibadan, the state capital.
The road, which was awarded for N9.6 billion, is to be funded by the Lagelu Local Government Area.
The Governor also named the entire 15.5km stretch from Idi-Ape Junction to Olorunda Abaa ‘Governor Nyesom Wike Road’ after the former governor of Rivers State, during the ceremony attended by government functionaries, traditional rulers, community leaders and party faithful, among others.
While reacting to speculations about his recent constant visits to the Presidential Villa in Abuja, Makinde wondered where he should have gone when he knows where he could get a refund for the Federal Government projects carried out by the state government.
He stated: “I will continue to go to where they will be able to refund Oyo State the monies we have spent on Federal Roads. So, I will continue to go to Aso Rock to plead for a refund. So, Mr Chairman of Lagelu Local Government Area, as soon as I collect my refund from the Federal Government, you too come and meet me to have your refund.”
Justifying the dualisation of the road, Governor Makinde said he would have just tarred the single lane but had to consider the volume of people within the Olorunda Abaa axis and its environs, noting that the need for dualisation would have come up in another three to four years, hence his decision to dualise once and for all.
He charged the residents to pay their taxes on time and into the right account so that money would go to the government and not individuals, and government would have more resources to work with, saying that is the only way the government could meet up with its responsibilities.
The Governor assured the residents, whose property would be affected by the construction, of prompt payment of compensation, urging the people to cooperate with the contractors handling the project.
Explaining the measures taken by his government to tackle the challenges of the subsidy removal which had caused further increase in the cost of transportation, Makinde disclosed that he had set up a committee to look into what could be done about increasing the salary of civil servants.
He stated: “But I know that everyone in Oyo State is not a civil servant. So we have decided to deploy more Omituntun buses to ease up the transportation worries. I have also directed that there should be no increase in the fares paid on these buses.
“Furthermore, school children and our senior citizens will board these buses at half price. We will continue to look into other ways to ease the burden we bear,” Makinde revealed.
The Governor also gave an update on the Light Up Oyo project, which he said is one of the ways his administration is ensuring economic security for the people, noting that when the lights are on, the people would be able to stay out longer and carry out more economic activities.
He said: “As promised, we carried out the audit and we have reached an alignment with the contractors. So, I assure you that in the next two to three weeks, all the lights will be back on and we will continue to expand the project.”
Various speakers, in their goodwill messages, applauded the government, saying the road is an answer to years of yearning and aspirations of the residents for many years.
PIAK
