Ogun State government has commenced palliative work on the failed portion of the Sagamu-Ore-Benin Expressway, to address the current traffic logjam being experienced by motorists on the road.
The state Governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun, who paid an unscheduled visit to the bad portion of the road, stated that as a major road linking Lagos to the state, South-East and South-South regions of the country, its deplorable condition had caused untold hardship to those who ply it on a daily basis.
Governor Abiodun mentioned that though the reconstruction of the road was awarded by previous administrations, the contractors executed the project from the Benin end to the outskirts of Ijebu-Ode but could not complete it at the Sagamu Interchange before abandoning it, due to lack of funds.
“What we are seeing today is what our masses are suffering from. In the last three to four days, this road was totally impassable because, for some reason, there is drainage that goes underneath this road that is meant to drain water coming from a canal. That drainage is completely blocked, and that is the cause of this problem”, he said.
The state’s helmsman stated that officials from the state Ministries of Works and Infrastructure, as well as Environment were currently working to create another drainage that would channel water away from the road, while the bad portion had been filled with hardcore to make the road motorable.
He disclosed that the Minister of Works, who had been informed about the condition of the road, promised to look into how to award a contract for its rehabilitation and other intervention to salvage the situation.
“Let me confirm to you that I also brought the issue of this road to the attention of Mr. President. For the avoidance of doubt, let nobody think that Ogun State has not been responsive.
“Knowing fully well that the Federal Government has many critical roads to deal with, and as a responsive state government, we deployed our Ministries of Works and Infrastructure, as well as Environment to this site. What they have done is identify the immediate cause; they found out there is a construction that has blocked the drain.
“I have requested from Mr. President that the Ministry of Works can immediately award this road to a reputable contractor, and I know they are working on it.
“However, Mr. President has also instructed me that if we do not get the attention as quickly as we want, the Ogun State government should go ahead and take ownership of this section and repair it”, he added.
Governor Abiodun promised that his administration would take ownership of the section of the road and carry out a total reconstruction if there is no tangible reconstruction work on the road from the Federal Government within the next few days.
