OGUN: Ilese Residents Cries Out, Plead With Governor Abiodun Over Bad Road

On his electioneering campaign to Ilese, in Ijebu North East local government area of Ogun State, on February 15th, 2023, Mr Dapo Abiodun made a landmark executive declaration. He upgraded the then Ogun State College of Health Technology, to Ogun State Polytechnic of Health And Allied Sciences.

The governor declared that upgrading the institution had become imperative because of plans to reposition the institution and expand its academic horizon.

While engaging the students, Abiodun stressed that he had only done what the law empowered him to do, saying; “i am the only one that could make such a pronouncement.”

Making the declaration, the governor said, “I, Prince Adedapo Abiodun, the Governor of Ogun State, hereby pronounce that this institution, formerly called Ogun State College of Health Technology, is hereby renamed Ogun State Polytechnic of Health and Allied Sciences.”

The governor also apologised for the poor condition of the Ilese township road and promised to fix it.

He said, “I want to apologise for the deplorable condition of this road, but as you can see, work has started on the road, I have re-awarded that contract to a reputable contractor and very very soon, you will see this road wearing a good look.”

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All this happened in February and when our correspondent visited Ilese recently, only the upgrade of the school had been achieved as the road is worse than when the governor promised “the road will wear a good look.”

Our investigation revealed that successive administration especially since the return to demacratic government in 1999, have made concerted efforts to make sure the road is pliable for both the residents and visitors alike.

However, the road, as important as it is, appears to have fallen into disrepair thereby making life difficult for those who live in the town and those who eke out a living plying the road daily.

Consequently, when the governor made the promise of putting the road into shape, residents were happy and hoped for a better experience on the road.

Nonetheless ,what respondents told our reporter was a tale of deception. They admitted that truly some work was done after the governor’s promise but the contractor disappeared without achieving anything significant.

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With the new Polytechnic status, students enrollment will increase with concomitant effects. The road is particularly horrible around the school entrance and this has caused commercial motorists, Okada riders, keke riders to jack up fares to make for wear and tear of their vehicles.

This has brought untold hardship on the students who have chosen to pursue career in health sciences. The feeding allowance they get from home which is hardly enough to feed them is further eroded by transport fares.

Speaking to our correspondent, Muyiwa Odeniyi, a student lamented the poor state of the road saying the students always pray for rain not to fall because according to him, the aftermath of heavy downpour is always harrowing.

He said, “Governor Dapo Abiodun should please come to our aid. He should fulfill his promise. We are seriously suffering. Our upkeep allowances from our parents barely keep us up. The money we spend on transport is too much. Okada taking you from Lagos garage to this place is 500 Naira. And if it rains, the fare will go up and we don’t have a choice. So we pray, it doesn’t rain much.”

Another student, Bimple Erinfolami lamented the spate of accidents people suffer as a result of the bad road. According to her, many students have suffered multiple injuries inside mud water after falling off Okada.

She lamented, “Picture dressing up in the morning with all enthusiasm to face the day and you don’t even make it to the school because along the way Keke or okada miscalculate the depth of the puddle and you end up bathing with mud water. That happens very often due to the bad road.”

Ajasa Muraina, a commercial keke rider who spoke with our correspondent exonerated the operators for charging high fares saying they too are barely making ends meet explaining that all their perceived exorbitant fares go into repairs and hospital bills as they encounter constant mishaps as a result of the horrible condition of the road.

A community leader, who does not want his name in print after condemning the neglect state of the road appealed to Governor Dapo Abiodun to come to their aid saying the suffering undergone by the community daily especially the students who must keep to timetable and deadlines is too much emphasising that this will impact their academics negatively. He called on the governor to fulfill his promise he made during his reelection campaign.

When our correspondent was returning, it was raining and he almost fell victim of the bad road as his Okada barely escaped a hit by another Okada rider who was trying to manoeuvre a ditch that had been leveled by mud water.

The daily experience on the road is horrible. It is believed that the governor will redeem his promise made during electioneering campaign by investigating why the firm abandoned the project and then do the needful to ameliorate the suffering of the residents, as soon as possible.