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The Oyo State Government has embarked on a massive maintenance works on major roads within the state. In the project tagged “Zero tolerance for potholes in Oyo state”, staff of the Public Works Department have been directed to carry out road repairs and rehabilitation works day and night including weekends.
Special Adviser to Governor Abiola Ajimobi on Infrastructure, Mr. Gbenga Akintola while addressing a press conference in Ibadan on Wednesday at the Ministry of Information, apologised to residents for the discomfort they may encounter due to the repair works.
Akintola who addressed the press in company of the Commissioner for Information, Culture and Tourism, Toye Arulogun, explained that the government wants to maximise the dry season to achieve a lot. He said the primary aim was to ensure that roads in the state, whether federal, state or local government, were safe and free of potholes.
According to Akintola, some of the roads undergoing routine maintenance are:
- Command-Apata-Odo Ona-Dugbe-Mokola-Sango-UI-Ojoo-Moniya Road networks
- Molete-OkeAdo-OkeBola-Dugbe-Ekotedo Queen Cinema
- Mokola-UCH-Gate with spur to parliament road,
- Secretariat-UI-to Government House,
- Customs, Awolowo, Osuntokun, Mary hill
- Challenge -Molete-Beere-Oje-Gate Roads
He said that the department has completed the routine maintenance of:
- Asphaltic Improvement of Beere-Oranyan-Orita Aperin road
- Asphaltic Rehabilitation of Ogbomoso High School – Baptist High School Road (Phase I)
- Reconstruction of failed existing double 3m x 3m x 11m Box culvert on Akoko stream along Ilero-Iganna Road
- Provision of informatory Traffic Signs around the State High Court at Ring Road and Iyaganku, Ibadan
- Asphaltic Rehabilitation of Oroki – Emmanuel Alayande College of Education, Oyo (Phase I)
- Asphaltic Rehabilitation and underpinning of eroded concrete base of existing culvert outlet near Heritage Bank Iyana Church and Oyeniyan B/Stop along Iwo Road, Olodo Road
- Asphaltic rehabilitation of Ariyo Box culvert Approaches, Olorunsogo/Akanran road, Ibadan
- Asphaltic Rehabilitation of Idi Arere-Popo Yemoja-Oke Ado with spur to Bode Market
- Asphaltic Improvement of Iyaganku – N.T.C Road; Asphaltic Improvement of Eleta – Odinjo-Muslim Overhead Bridge
- Repair/Reinstatement of vandalised Steel Barricade under Mokola Flyover at Mokola, Ibadan
- Asphaltic Construction of Ologuneru Junction – Abanla – Alafara Junction
- Asphaltic Rehabilitation of Oje Ibadan – Mobil, Yemetu Junction with spur to Adeoyo Hospitral, Yemetu Road among others.
Akintola urged members of the public to contact his office as well as that of the Public Works Department if they notice any road that needs fixing. He said phone numbers and emails have been given out for the benefit of the public.
His words: “We are very strategic about our work and we have injected feedback mechanisms. We get enquiry and treat same with the utmost urgency the enquiry might require. We are on the road to make our roads better and we know there will be discomfort during this period but the discomfort is time bound.
“We want to maximize this dry season to cover a lot of grounds and the routine maintenance will be carried out across the state. Where we cannot engage in routine maintenance, we might resolve to palliative measures. We appeal to our citizens to bear with us and get it touch with us in case our attention is needed”.
Akintola also explained that it would soon begin training of staff in the maintenance departments of local government areas and local council development areas in the state.
According to the Special Adviser, “by doing that, we are empowering those maintenance staff to be able to carry out the maintenance work themselves. This is because they are the ones closer to these roads and have the equipment as well”.
He added: “The government provided them with graders and bulldozers so some of these roads, even when they are graded, can become more motorable. That proposal has gone to the Commissioner and he has endorsed it. So, we are partnering with local government to ensure that quality of the work carried out is improved upon.
“And where they have challenges that they cannot handle, they refer that to us and we have been able to assist them. It might not be in all cases because we have roads that we cannot attend to as we would have loved to due to the paucity of funds”.