Good motoring experience underway as Oyo begins Saki Road dualization

For commuters and sundry businesses on Saki township road in Oyo State, good motoring experience and improved commercial activities are underway as the state government flags off the dualisation the 9.7-kilometre road linking the town to other areas of the state.

At the flag off event signaling the commencement of construction work on the road, the state governor, Abiola Ajimobi, disclosed that disclosed that the state was yet to collect its share of the Paris Club over deducted funds given back recently to some states by the federal government.

The governor explained that the state was initially excluded in the disbursement of the funds, saying the state was reconciling accounts with the federal government in order to get its own share of the fund.

The governor, who also addressed the people at a town hall meeting at Harmony Garden, Saki town after the flag off of the dualization of the road, said the government would make use of the arable land in Oke Zone for agriculture with assurances that his administration would make Oke Ogun zone the centre of agricultural revolution in the South West.

He pledged that the state government was not relenting in its efforts at food security in the State through its Agric-Oyo programme, adding, “agriculture is the foundation of the development of Oke Ogun and I urge our people to fully utilize the land in the zone for agricultural produce. We want our traditional leaders to point to their cassava farms, maize farms, yam farms, rice farms amongst others”.

Governor Ajimobi said that the importance of road transportation in any developed or developing country cannot be over-emphasized, stressing that free flow of traffic on the roads was very important for the efficient delivery of goods and services.

According to him, “one of the cardinal programmes of my administration is to dualize the major entry points to towns within the state to give them an unprecedented facelift. We have started in Ibadan, Oyo, Ogbomoso and Iseyin. We assure our people of good governance through basic infrastructure and people oriented programmes. We are ready to restore the acclaim of Oke Ogun zone as the food basket of the state and to also contribute significantly to the improvement of the socio-economic activities in the zone.”

The governor said the road, which was awarded to Adolf Engineering Development Company at a contract sum of N8,239,875,839.47 and expected to be completed within 18months, would be funded from the Federal Government Infrastructure Intervention Fund and consequently charged the contractor to deliver an excellent job by working round the work and ensuring good traffic management to reduce the hardship that the project might cause the populace.

Governor Ajimobi assured that the government would continue to give updates on its programmes and policies to the people, promising that it (government) would be transparent and accountable to the entire populace in order to ensure that the dividends of democracy were delivered equitably to the citizens of the state.

The governor further explained that one of the fastest ways to develop a state is through agriculture and this was why the state had started its pilot agricultural programme through the 10 local governments in Oke Ogun area of the state.

Akinremi Feyisipo