Residents of Ogun Community Rally for Road Repairs

Residents of Oke Sefu community in Ibafo, Obafemi Owode Local Government Area, Ogun State, are calling on the state government to fix their bad access road. They say the poor state of the road has made movement hard and affected their daily lives.

Business owners and motorcycle riders told PUNCH Metro that the road is especially hard to use during the rainy season. Flooding, potholes, and slippery areas make travel difficult.

They asked the government to act quickly, saying the road's condition has made transport difficult and raised travel costs and time.

Our reporter visited the area on Sunday and saw motorcyclists struggling on some parts of the road. Some passengers had to get off at different points to avoid falling.

Abigail Damilola, a resident, said the road becomes almost impossible to pass during the rain. She said, “Concerning our Sefu Road, the road is very bad. There is too much galloping, especially during the rainy season. Once it starts raining, everywhere becomes messed up, and there is water all over the road. The road becomes very difficult to pass through.

“We are pleading with our governor to help us renovate this road because people are really suffering. Even for a pregnant woman, passing through this road is very uncomfortable because of the excessive galloping. It can cause serious body pain and make the journey very stressful.

“It is especially difficult for those of us who work around this area. Transport is very poor, and even taking a bike from where we live to this area is uncomfortable and inconvenient.”

Usman Sanni, a motorcycle rider, said the bad road makes their work harder and puts both riders and passengers at risk, especially when it rains. Sanni said, “We, Okada riders, are suffering because of this road, especially the road from Sefu to Ibafo. Whenever it rains, we suffer a lot. When you carry passengers, they complain from the point where you pick them up to where you drop them because there is no good road.

“Look at the condition of the road. Everywhere is filled with potholes. Some areas are very slippery, and you can easily fall, especially when you are carrying something or a passenger. Even if you are trekking, you will still suffer. So, imagine when you are riding a motorcycle and carrying somebody.

“We have been complaining about this road for a long time, but there has not been any response or action to address the problem. We are really suffering.”

Another rider, who only gave his name as Adeola, said the bad road has made transport take longer and cost more. He said, “The road is so bad, and the water that gathers on it during the rainy season damages our bike engines. Because of this, we have to take another, longer route to avoid the waterlogged parts of the road.

“A journey that normally takes about seven to 10 minutes now takes between 10 and 15 minutes because of the bad condition of the road.

“The condition of the road is really affecting us as Okada riders because we have to spend more time and fuel using the longer route just to avoid the bad portions of the road.”

Another resident, Folasade Anike, asked the government to fix the road and improve electricity in the community. She said, “The road is really affecting us, especially during the rainy season. We don’t enjoy using the road during the rainy season.

“We also have bad light in our area. Our electricity supply is unstable. It is not stable at all. So, we want the government to please help us with both the road and electricity.”

But the Ogun State Government said it cannot fix all the roads at once because of limited funds. The Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Kayode Akinmade, said the government knows about the road conditions in the state and is focusing on road projects based on available money.

Akinmade said, “When you look at where the local government is, we’ve done a lot of roads. We’ve done some roads in Ibafo itself, some in Mowe and many other areas.

“There is no government that can complete all the roads in a state in its lifetime. If successive governments had done that, some of these places would not have remained the way they are today.

“This road has been bad for a long time. What government does is to ensure that, based on available resources, we put roads in the budget. This is based on the revenue available to the state government.

“You will recall that even about a week or two ago, the State Executive Council approved some roads, including roads in that local government. There are also other areas in Lagos and across the state that require attention.”

The commissioner said the Dapo Abiodun government has made progress in road construction and repair since it took office but admitted that more work is needed. He said, “There is no way the government can complete all the decay of several decades in just seven years. But the people should be assured that their concern is noted and it will be addressed in due course.