Residents and road users in the Oke-Ogun zone of Oyo State have applauded the ongoing road rehabilitation in the area, describing the initiative by the Federal Roads Maintenance Agency as a major relief.
Speaking with PUNCH Online on Monday, a resident and trader in Ago-Are, Atisbo Local Government Area, Madam Lawal Falilatu, commended the Federal Government for the road rehabilitation.
“We are grateful to the government for rehabilitating our road. It is quite thoughtful of the Bola Tinubu administration.
“The road had been terribly bad and had caused many avoidable accidents in the past, but we are happy that with this rehabilitation, such incidents will become things of the past,” she said.
Another resident of Ago-Are, Olalekan Ibrahim, also appreciated FERMA for embarking on the rehabilitation exercise, noting that the initiative would facilitate the smooth transportation of farm produce to urban markets.
“We thank President Tinubu and FERMA for this people-centred step. I strongly believe the rehabilitation will reduce the frequency of accidents on the road and facilitate the easy transportation of farm produce to neighbouring markets for income generation,” he said.
He, however, appealed to FERMA to address a junction near his shop as a permanent solution to frequent accidents in the area.
Also speaking, Mrs Janet Olasiji, another resident of Ago-Are, expressed gratitude to FERMA for rehabilitating the road.
“I want to thank the Federal Government for remembering us through the rehabilitation of the road in our area. I pray that God Almighty will reward the Tinubu administration and FERMA for putting an end to the hardship faced daily by residents and road users,” she said.
A commercial driver in Ago-Are, Adewale Olaitan, described the development as timely.
“This is a timely intervention by FERMA and the Federal Government. It will save vehicles plying this road from frequent visits to the mechanic. May God bless the Federal Government and FERMA for this commendable effort,” he said.
Another commercial driver, who identified himself as Wale Saliu, said the rehabilitation would ease the burden on motorists.
“For a long time, I have been paying heavily for the many potholes on this road through frequent breakdowns of my vehicle. I thank FERMA and the Federal Government for this rehabilitation,” he said.
A resident of Kishi, Abdulraman Abiola, also commended the agency for rehabilitating some deplorable sections of the road while urging it to extend repairs to other failed portions to ease vehicular movement.
Also speaking with PUNCH Online, the Federal Roads Maintenance Engineer at the Oyo State Field Office in Ibadan, Engr Olutunde Adepoju, said many of the roads in the Oke-Ogun area were constructed between 1979 and 1980 and had deteriorated due to poor maintenance.
“Most of those roads were constructed around 1979 and 1980 during the Second Republic. One of the major challenges we have in Nigeria is a poor maintenance culture. This affects not only roads but also other infrastructure such as buildings and public facilities that have been neglected for years,” he said.
Adepoju added that the present administration was making efforts to address the problem and ensure that infrastructure was properly maintained.
According to him, FERMA is currently carrying out rehabilitation works in several parts of the Oke-Ogun area, although security concerns have limited major operations along some sections.
“In the last two years, we have not been able to carry out major work along some axes because of security challenges. Recently, there was a kidnapping incident along the corridor due to the nature of the terrain,” he said.
He explained that rehabilitation work was ongoing in Kishi town, covering about 1,110 square metres of road surface.
“Our focus is to make the roads motorable for commuters through sectional repairs along the corridor,” he said.
Adepoju added that the agency would later move to the Ago-Are axis, which connects Iseyin and spans about 306 kilometres, although the current rehabilitation covers selected failed sections of the road.
He emphasised that improving rural road networks was critical to supporting agricultural activities in the state.
“We want to ensure that roads in major agricultural areas of Oyo State are motorable for farmers and traders. Agriculture remains a major part of the state’s economy, particularly in Oke-Ogun towns such as Saki and Iseyin, which are known for producing yams and other farm products,” he said.
On whether FERMA plans to extend the rehabilitation to other parts of the state, Adepoju said funding remained a major constraint.
“Funding remains the major challenge. However, members of the National Assembly committees overseeing FERMA are already working on ways to increase the agency’s allocation,” he said.
