Landlords and residents of Itesiwaju Omu Arogun Area Community Development Committee have lamented hardship over the deplorable state of the Mowe-Ofada Road, in the Obafemi Owode Local Government Area of Ogun State.
The residents, including leaders in the community, while speaking with our correspondent, said the construction of the road started during the administration of the former governor of the state, Ibikunle Amosun, adding that the road had been abandoned.
They also said the palliative work done by the state governor, Dapo Abiodun, did not assuage their suffering, adding that the deplorable state of the Mowe-Ofada Road had become a death trap for residents plying the route to navigate their destinations in the community.
It was learnt that during the rainy season, floods usually submerge the road, and the situation worsens the experiences of road users including transport workers plying the axis.
A resident in one of the communities under the association, Emmanuel Akande, while lamenting over the hardship experienced on the road, said the situation worsened during the rainy season.
He said,
“The rainy season has made this road bad to go through; we have been appealing to the government but nothing significant has been done. We have had enough deaths recorded because of the bad road.”
Speaking with our correspondent, the Chairman of Arigbawonwo Area CDC under the association, Adekanye Adetola, who appealed to the state governor, Dapo Abiodun, to intervene in the matter, said construction work on the road was being done at a snail’s speed.
He said,
“We want the government to help us fix Mowe/Ofada Road of which the construction has been on for about seven years now. The first part of the road which is a dual carriage was done by the former governor, Ibikunle Amosun, while the present governor, Dapo Abiodun, did palliatives on it before the election.
“We need more of governments’ presence in providing basic infrastructure for the community. We have not been having it good when it comes to government infrastructural facilities. We do provide everything by ourselves including the roads.
“The government did not even realise that our community really existed, thinking it was farmland. During the last election, the government got to know how populated this place was when they saw the voters’ registration,” he said.
In his reaction, the Chairman, Itesiwaju Omu Arogun ACDC under the association, Yemi Adebisi, said the poor state of the road had been causing accidents that claimed the lives of residents.
He said, “It is sad that because of the bad state of this road, several lives have been lost to accidents. Government should please give this a priority. Once it rains in Mowe and its environs, it is usually difficult for children to go to school because of the flood on the road.
“Also, commuters from Mowe cannot travel to Ofada. Most of the residents will have to navigate through Lagos Ibadan Expressway to go to Abeokuta because the Owode-Ofada Road had been sacked. We want the government to help us fix the road.
“Though we learnt that the governor has already awarded it, and work will commence after the rainy season, we want him to help us follow up. We are confident that our governor will do it for us because he is a man that acts on his words.”
