The condition of road network in Ogbomoso township has become a source of concern for both the residents of the town as well as the commuters and passengers plying the trunk A road that transverses the town as well as the inter township roads. In the past, Ogbomoso is primed as one of the towns in Nigeria that has best network of roads. However, that has become a lost glory.
According to the 1963 Nigeria census figure, Ogbomoso was about the fifth largest town in Nigeria. Today it is the second largest in Oyo State.
However, township roads in Ogbomoso are nothing to write home about. The destruction of the trunk A road began about three years ago when the road was being rehabilitated. The ancient asphalt on the road was removed to give way to a new overlay. That was the mistake committed by the construction company. The overlay did not last for one year before it gave in. Not only that, during the rehabilitation, vehicles, especially articulated ones, were diverted to ply the township roads. In this wise, most of the township roads were destroyed ever since and no efforts have been made to fix them.
Today, at the time of writing this letter articulated lorry drivers are having difficulties on the road. The queue of these trailers is more several kilometres. The queue has equally made life difficult for the residents who find it extremely difficult to go to their different destinations within the town.
This avoidable nightmare should not have happened if the construction company that handled the trunk A road rehabilitation did a decent job.
Another factor is the failure or inability of the Federal Government to finish the work on Ibadan-Ilorin expressway, especially Ogbomoso/ Oyo section of the road.
It is a thing of concern that the work on expressway started in 2001 and 23 years after, the work is till ongoing.
Governor Seyi Makinde needs to use his good office to see to it that Ogbomoso people are safe from the menace of trunk A road and the damaged roads in the town.
Kudos have been given to him over Iseyin road, but he has to do something urgent to rehabilitate major roads in Ogbomoso. These include Federal Government College Ogbomoso road built by Abiola Ajimobi government now caving in mostly because of the shoddy jobs done on it. In addition, the Federal Government has to expedite action on the the Ibadan-Ogbomoso end of Ibadan/Ogbomoso/ Ilorin express way. These are my suggestions to him and I believe, as a listening governor, results will follow.
Adewuyi Adegbite, [email protected]
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