‘Roads infrastructure development in Osun aimed to transform lives’

The Osun State government says it has spent multi-billion naira on roads infrastructure development and, according to Rauf Aregbesola, the state governor, the whole idea of this development is to transform the lives of the people of the state.

The governor said his administration’s commitment to changing the face of Osun through the construction of modern road networks could be seen in the amount of construction work going on simultaneously all over the state.

The governor, who stated this at the commissioning of 15 Ilesa township roads recently, said his administration was deliberately concentrating on those roads that have direct impact on the socio-economic lives of the people.

He disclosed that the ongoing construction of the Omoluabi Motorway, a dual-carriage road from Akoda to Gbongan Junction, with its Bisi Akande Trumpet in Interchange, was to cost N29.23 billion.

Reeling out roads under rehabilitation, construction or already commissioned,the governor noted that in Osogbo, a total of 21 township roads were being constructed or rehabilitated and had gulped N4.095 billion. In Ede, 13 township roads have been repaired through direct labour, at the cost of N873,817,458.85. Most of them have now been completed.

“In the different Federal Constituencies in the state, 79 kilometres of intra-city roads are under construction and rehabilitation. Similarly, most of them are now completed. In addition to the intra-city roads, 20 other roads traversing the cities, and covering a total of 294.27 kilometres, are also at advanced stages of completion. They are worth N10.62 billion.

“We are also constructing six selected roads, covering more than 74.1 kilometres, in the six geo-political zones of Osun. They cost the government N17.5 billion. We inherited eight road rehabilitation projects of 144.29 kilometres from the previous administration, which we have almost completed,” the governor told the gathering.

Government has embarked on the reconstruction of a dual carriageway of the 36.85-kilometre road from Osogbo to Ila-Odo on the state’s border with Kwara State; the Gbongan-Orileowu-Ijebu-Igbo Road, which is also a dual carriageway, according to the governor.

“The Osogbo East Bypass Road is on the list of our major road construction undertaking. The East Bypass is a 17.5-kilometre road that will have a railway underpass at Ofatedo, an interchange at Ataoja, and two bridges across the Osun River. The government is investing N14.5 billion in the project.

“The commissioning is part of the township road development projects for Ilesa. The 15 township road rehabilitation works have been completed to the glory of God and for the greater good of the people. On these roads, totalling 29.71km, we have expended N3.7 billion,” he said.