Tunde Sanni
10 October 2008
Lagos — Ibadan, the capital of the much-touted pacesetter state and one of the largest cities in Africa, is setting the pace not in the area of developmental projects, but in infrastructural decay.
A first time visitor to Ibadan, the capital of Oyo State dubbed the pacesetter state would not hesitate to notice filths and dirt of assorted shapes and sizes that lay ambush at the entrance of the ancient town from whichever angle one enters the state capital. The noisy environment at Olodo/Iyana Church end and the Iwo road/Egbeda of Osun/Ilorin/Abuja border signed out the town as a rowdy environment. The Moniya/Ojoo terminus of Ilorin/Oyo border and the semi dirty environment posted the place as a disorganised entity while the entrance through the Lagos/Ibadan expressway, the Challenge as well as Apata which paired the town with Lagos/Ogun States show sign of a rudderless political enclave.
A further push into the town from the Ojoo end through Iwo road would witness a traffic snarl created by a deep gash on the highway not far from the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) mega station in the town. The deep cut on the road had claimed about four trailers which had fallen apparently in an attempt by the trailer drivers to avoid the pothole.
Worried by the sudden diversion of traffic to their areas, the residents of Gbelekale recently sent an SOS to the Oyo State Government to come to their aid by repairing the road but the appeal as it were, had fallen on deaf ears, as the government cashing on the highway as a federal Government responsibility ignored the people's call.
The Gbelekale/Iwo road/General Gas end of the Iwo road/Ojoo expressway is not the only highway suffering from neglect. There are also the Oke-Ado/NTC road, JoyceB/Mobil road, Monatan/Olodo road, Sango/Eleyele road, WAEC/Apete road, Ashi/Bodija/Bashorun road as some of the roads which are suffering from years of neglect. A worried opposition political party, the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) recently criticised the Alao Akala Government following its window dressing on some of the existing roads as the party accused the government of merely expending the N27 billion windfall which the government received in June to execute shoddy road repairs within the Ibadan metropolis. The government had in June took received the N27 billion comprising of N13billion which accrued to the state from Paris Club accumulation and the N14billion oil windfall from the Federal Government.
The All Nigeria's Peoples Party in a statement signed by its chairman, Alhaji Rasaq Folorunsho, in Ibadan, condemned the poor roads repair being carried out within the state capital. The ANPP said, "beyond the façade of the ongoing patchwork on the Awolowo/Bodija roads with Asphalt is a poorly executed job that will not last this raining season. If Chief Obafemi Awolowo had adopted the same approach in the 1960s when the roads were constructed, they would not have lasted for these decades. We expect their avowed monumental facelift of the roads would include the desilting and construction of drainage where they are lacking to elongate their lifespan."
Aside from the opposition party criticism, some other residents have accused the government of being selective in the road repairs, pointing to Ashi/Oluwokekere/Ikolaba road which has been bad for years and which government has refused to repair, despite government generosity in repairing some other roads.
Mr. Bankole Oluyinka, a resident of Ikolaba area, accused the Akala government of being selective in its roads rehabilitation exercise, pointing out that roads that lead to the areas of perceived opponents of the government were not rehabilitated. Oluyinka said, "The state government was not being fair to us in Ikolaba. Even if they are not adopting the best method to carry out their current roads rehabilitation, they should not leave out our area. He explained that the reason for the government action could be traced to the private residence of the gubernatorial election on the platform of the Action Congress (AC), Prof. Taoheed Adedoja, which is located in the area.
Madam Bimpe Oluwonla also told THISDAY that the state government was trying to deceive the people by hurriedly embarking on the road rehabilitation works which cannot last and alleged that it was a cheap way of spending the N27billion windfall. The woman wondered why government should approve the repair of Awolowo road without reconstructing the damaged drainage and said that the bad roads had blocked the drain which would not allow the road to last during the raining season, fearing that flood might wash the asphalt away.
Ibadan is not only about bad roads as there are also heaps of garbage that appear to be threatening the health of the residents. The filth is especially noticeable around the Bodija abattoir; Ojoo end of the Lagos/Ibadan expressway, toll gate end of the highway and along the Ogunpa river canal which experts said may raise the fear of another flood disaster which last ravaged the town in August 1980.
Residents around the Ogunpa channelisation project in separate chats with THISDAY were unanimous in their blame on the state government for apparently abandoning its roles on waste disposal around the river which they feared could over flow its banks again if government decided to be indifferent. Besides, they cried out against indiscriminate defecation around and inside the canal stating that they are helpless in controlling the human traffic of defecators on the river. The stench of the defecation, they noted, has been constituting health hazards to the residents of the area.
An artisan in the area, Mr. Sunday Olakunle, a panel beater, whose workshop is located behind the channel at Omitowoju junction lamented that many times, he is abused by people dumping refuse into the channel when he attempts to stop them. He said he is always frustrated when they ask him to provide an alternative bin.
Some people defecate here but I can't fight them because government did not provide public toilet. At any rate, it is wrong to challenge them because there is no other place they could do so. People argue with me over dumping of refuse. They ask if the channel belong to my father," he said.
Mr. Rauf Adelegan lamented that since the inception of the Akala government in the state, it was as if the people had been left to take care of themselves, as the presence of government was not felt, especially in refuse disposal and roads as well as other infrastructure while the government carry on is if not bothered by the people predicament. He argued that it was the responsibility of the government to tackle the problem of filth, which could be done right from generation as the people were willing to cooperate with government in having a clean environment.
According to him, "What is the essence of having a government that cannot come to the people's aid whenever there is a problem? There are mountains of refuse everywhere with its attendant odour which epidemic effect cannot be toyed with. It is like we don't have a government in place.
However, ANPP gubernatorial candidate in the last election, Senator Abiola Ajimobi at a recent workshop "Snatching Oyo State from filth", lamented the sorry state of things in the state which he described as an eyesore. He posited that no meaningful infrastructural development has taken place in the state since Akala assumed leadership of the government. He urged the people of the state not to dissipate energy on seeking the present government's assistance on anything as it was not possible for the government to give what it did not have - planning.
He however tasked the people to be self-disciplined as one of the best ways of fighting filths in the state, maintaining that citizens of the state must first of all maintain a clean environment and leave the rest to the government to handle. He said it was the responsibility of citizens to make sure that their surroundings were kept clean every time as cleanliness was next to godliness. He said the state government knowing full well that the citizens were concerned about a clean environment would not shirk its responsibility in ensuring that the refuse generated was disposed or even turned to wealth as it's done in some states of the federation at present.
He however said he was not surprised on the non-performance of the PDP government in the state, adding that it was disheartening that a government that claimed it had come to serve the people could not find any solution to the problem of filth in the state. He said, "you need to move round Ibadan metropolis whenever it rains to appreciate the predicament of the people. The entire road will be littered with refuse as the present government has shirked its responsibility of not caring what happens to the people. At times the refuse will be on the main roads for days or weeks."
But as residents around the Ogunpa canal continued to nurse fears of possible flood disaster as the rainy season progresses, the Deputy General Manager (Hydronet) at the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NIMET), Alhaji Shehu Olayanju at a stakeholders summit organised by the South-West Zone of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA} in Ibadan corroborated the fears of the residents on the looming danger of a flood disaster. He noted that the current season is prone to flood disasters, adding that his agency provides information that can guide the government on preventive measures.
The NIMET boss stated that dumping of solid wastes into the Ogunpa channel poses a dangerous threat to the lives and property of people in the city and advised the state government to emulate states such as Lagos by involving the private sector in refuse management and control so that the people would have an alternative means of disposing their waste.
He insisted that flood hazards forms a major threat to socio-economic development of the country, pointing out that the 1980 Ogunpa flood disaster claimed no fewer than 200 lives with over 40,000 others displaced. Olayanju said: "It is hereby recommended that solid waste generation should be properly managed by the government to avoid indiscriminate dumping in stream channels. Floods, like all other natural disasters do not only impoverish the affected communities; they can also accentuate land degradation, and cause serious retardation of sustainable development."
Apparently scandalised by the heaps of blame from political and human rights activists recently, the state government bared its fangs and dared any resident to dump refuse into the Ogunpa canal. At the flagging-off of sensitisation campaign against indiscriminate dumping of refuse in Ogunpa River channel and violation of environmental laws in the state, the state Commissioner for Environment and Water Resources, Alhaji Majekodunmi Aborode said it was now mandatory for all households in Ibadan to have toilets and other essential facilities for waste disposal.
He spelt out jail terms for anybody who engages in indiscriminate dumping of refuse along the stream. Aborode who spoke to THISDAY stated that the deployment of the skip pings which has commenced would be sustained as it was meant to enable the government embark on proper enforcement of environment laws and regulations.
According to him, the state government was determined more than ever before to prosecute to the logical conclusion anybody who engages in the illicit act of indiscriminate refuse dump, particularly into the on-going Multi-billion naira Channelisation of Ogunpa River. The procurement of 20 skip pings along the Ogunpa embankment, he noted was part of concerted efforts towards proffering permanent solution to the problem of flood and filth along the stream embankment.
He stated that the state government would leave no stone unturned towards making Ibadan in particular and the state at large one of the cleanest in Nigeria, adding that efforts were on top gear to change the rating of Ibadan as the dirtiest city in Nigeria.
Apart from the dirty environment and the snarling traffic situation, there is also the growing army of miscreants in the rusty city of Ibadan. A council boss recently confirmed the illegal activities of the Ojuina Boys. "Traders are being harassed by area boys day and night and the security agents are stressed beyond limit. So, we thought that the best solution is to re-plan the entire place. If we re-plan the entire landscape in a sane manner, there won't be any room for miscreants to do their things. But in a confused atmosphere all manner of people would do whatever they like. So, that is what we want to prevent," he stated.
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