Kehinde Akinyemi
8 November 2009
Abeokuta — Minister of Works Alhaji Hassan Lawal has appraised the level of commitment of Ogun State Government to federal road works in the state, describing it "as development partnership towards bettering the lots of the people"
The commendation came, even as the State governor, Otunba Gbenga Daniel, disclosed his administration spent about N100m in two weeks as intervention fund on the Ota road project, before the Federal government ordered the contractor handling the project back to site last May.
The Minister, who gave the commendation during a courtesy visit to the governor in Abeokuta, said that the federal government had observed "how you have mobilized the state resources on Sango-Ota bridge road, Adatan road and Aiyetoro road among others, if other Governors could emulate you, Nigeria will be better, you have shown us that you are a development partner and it is not because you are in PDP, it is in your character"
The Minister who was on an inspection visit to federal road projects in Southwest States with a view to ensuring the state of the roads and the commitments of the various contractors handling the projects lamented the poor state of federal roads across the country.
Daniel in his response said the state had to intervene on a number of federal roads to alleviate the suffering of the people, citing Ota bridge, "where the situation was so bad despite the fact that the town remained the artery of commerce in Ogun state. As a responsible and responsive government, I had to mobilized an intervention fund of N100 million naira to make the road passable and we restored it in two weeks."
The Governor also explained the frustrations he encountered on Sagamu-Ikorodu-Mosimi depot road, despite the various attempts by his government to fix the road. "While we are committed, in all these cash flow remains our problem and that is why one remain in distress when I read that N500million already appropriated were not spent and return to the national treasury whereas the total income of our state is so minimal. We must redress the situation," the governor said.
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