The controversial Federal Low Cost housing estate by pass road, one of the 114 inner roads built by Ambode’s government in 2016 is again in the news for the bad reasons.
The hurriedly executed road which was commissioned even when it was not completed is now giving way, as some portions of it are caving in. It will be recalled that youths in this area wanted to protest the day the road was commissioned but were placated by some officials who promised that the road would be properly completed after the event.
Several months after the commissioning nothing seems to have happened. When Oriwu Sun contacted the commissioner for local government, Alhaji Muslim Folami he said that the government would not pay the retention fee to the contractor handling the project.
Several calls placed by Oriwu Sun to the contractor were not answered. Even when Oriwu Sun sent appeals through the former Ikorodu North LCDA chairman, Hon. Banjo to the contractor, the man refused to respond or to come back to site.
The street lighting of the road which was a vital part of the contract is also abandoned as the road is in the dark at night making the place unsafe for users who are most likely to be robbed by criminals.
The contractor who is alleged to be fronting for a government official, located a generator for the street light but could not complete that part of the job fueling speculations that the contractor has abandoned the contract and smeared the good job and intention of Governor Ambode to build this road.
However, when Oriwu Sun inspected the road on Wednesday January 11, 2017, after few minutes of inspection, lighting suddenly emanated from the street-lights, for the first time; the situation that caused a great surprise for the residents of the area.
Some mechanics working in the area and other residents said although not all the street lights were able to be powered, there is need to ensure that all the street-lights function and power supply constant at night in the area.
A technician working for the contractor told Oriwu Sun, when this reporter met him and other men working on the generator which powered the street lights; that they were not mandated to ensure that the street lights supply light to the area every day.
With this his statement one can only ask who has been collecting the stipends being paid by the state government for fueling and smooth operation of the street-lights since the road project had been commissioned?