Focus more on internal roads, Ibadan residents urge Makinde

Residents of Ibadan have urged Gov. Seyi Makinde of Oyo State to focus more on internal roads within the city to facilitate movements in and out of the state capital.

The residents, in separate interviews with the newsmen on Tuesday, noted that many internal roads were in bad conditions and needed to be fixed by the state government.

Although they commended the governor for various projects he had embarked upon, particularly in the last one year, the residents maintained that attention should also be focused on internal roads.

The residents also commended the governor for the construction of the circular road in Ibadan and massive investments in health and security by his administration.

Mr Mustapha Adejorin said it was imperative for the state government to rehabilitate/reconstruct some of the roads linking various communities and local governments in Ibadan land.

“In Ido Local Government Area, for instance, residents of Omi, Apata and other areas are experiencing bad roads and they need government’s attention.

“Most of the roads in these areas need to be graded and tarred to enable farmers to transport their farm produce to the city.

“With the bad roads, it is as if the residents have been cut off from the metropolis or that they are not also tax payers in the state.

“It is only when elections are coming that we see politicians coming to campaign and grading roads to give them easy access to the rural areas.

“But immediately the elections are over, they are nowhere to be seen again, thus leaving the residents to be battling with the effects of the bad roads and other infrastructural challenges,” he said.

Adejorin listed the areas usually flooded during raining season to include: Omi-Abidogun road, Anisere, Aba Teacher road, Aba-Isale road, saying that all of them were presently deplorable conditions.

Mr Gbenga Atobatele, who simply described himself as a youth leader, however, hailed Makinde on performances, describing him as the ‘people’s governor’.

“Gov. Makinde is loved by the people of Oyo State, particularly youths, and I believe he will go far in politics,” he said.

Atobatele said that the governor had performed well in the area of youth empowerment, however, said that more still needed to be done, especially in the area of palliative distribution, the criteria of which, he said, was presently selective.

A community leader, Mr Joseph Aliu, also commended the governor on prompt payment of salaries to civil servants and pension to retirees in the state.

Aliu also acknowledged the construction of some major roads within the city and the circular road as well as the opening of Olodo bridge to ease the hardship being experienced by residents of the area.

However, to Mrs Olabisi Williams, the Makinde-led administration is full of policy summersault and lack of political will to enforce some policies.

Williams particularly cited the failure of the state government to enforce the road traffic law and the wearing of jackets by commercial tricycle riders to ensure adequate security.

“Though I love Seyi Makinde for the infrastructural development in the state, his approach to traffic and environmental management is not encouraging at all.

“Up till now, street trading, especially on dual carriage ways, has been going on unabated, despite the various billboards erected in some strategic points in Ibadan to sensitise the traders on the dangers of street trading.

“Go to Eleyele roundabout, Mokola roundabout, Molete and Challenge areas and you will see extreme acts of lawness, both in terms of traffic and street trading,” she said.

According to her, the ministry of environment lacks the capacity to enforce the enabling act, adding that this is very unfortunate.