Students of Ogun State origin have appealed to the federal government to hurriedly expedite action towards ensuring that the completely collapsed Lagos-Sango Ota-Abeokuta Expressway is rehabilitated.
The students, under the aegis of National Association of Ogun State Students (NAOSS), particularly called on the Honourable Minister of Works, Dave Umahi to urgently activate all necessary machineries in his ministry towards ensuring that his promised federal government’s intervention at rehabilitating the expressway materialised.
These were contained in a statement issued on Monday and signed by the NAOSS National President, Comrade Kehinde Thomas, copy of which was made available to journalists.
Kehinde in the statement said the appeal becomes exigent in view of the horrible experience which residents, commuters, as well as other motorists were subjected to followed the downpour witnessed in the state which rendered the entire Sango Ota/Idiroko expressway junction till Ali Isiba Bus Stop completely impassable.
Kehinde in the statement lamented the harrowing experience which travelers and other pedestrians had to undergo while passing through the completely flooded expressway at the early hours of Monday before they could continue their journey to their respective offices.
The NAOSS National President declared that the current condition of the expressway is totally unacceptable not only to the Nigerian students who have to return to their respective institutions, but also speake volumes of the insensitivity of the Nigerian government which appeared careless about the welfare of investor whose businesses are located within the Sango Ota axis of the state.
It would be recalled that the Minister of Works, Umahi had during his working visit to the state in September 2023, assured the state governo, Prince Dapo Abiodun of the readiness of the Tinubu led administration at completely rehabilitating the 42-kilometer Lagos-Sango Ota-Abeokuta Expressway.
Umahi had during the visit, promised a joint reconstruction of the expressway between the federal and Ogun State governments which has been in a bad state for many years, in line with the Federal Government policy in the Highways Development and Management Initiative.
10 months after the Minister’s assurance however, nothing has been done.
NAOSS National President however, appealed to the Minister to not only remember and respect his words, but also match his words with action in the interest of the entire people of the state, particularly the industries in Ota axis which have to move in their raw materials for production.
Kehinde maintained that a quick federal government’s intervention would also go a long way towards ensuring that captains of industries, whose businesses are near comatose because of the bad condition of road in the axis would not relocate their investments away from the country.
