The State Project Coordinator of Ekiti State Rural Access and Agricultural Marketing Project (RAAMP), Sunday Adunmo has attributed the deplorable conditions of federal roads in the State to past neglect by the federal government and failure to provide timely and comprehensive intervention on the roads.
Adunnmo therefore cautioned those who have politicised the deplorable condition of federal roads in the State to desist from the Pull-him-down syndrome; adding that the state Governor Biodun Oyebanji has performed well and should be supported to continue the good works.
According to the Coordinator: “the state government had in 2012 requested for the complete reconstruction of those roads particularly Ado-Aramoko-Itawure road which was originally designed for vehicles not exceeding 20-tonnes capacity but now plied by articulated vehicles with over 60-tonnes capacity.”
Adunmo, who stated that the roads would have been salvaged if the federal government had undertaken reconstruction in tandem with current realities instead of casual repair works that were done in the past by the Federal Road Maintenance Agency (FERMA), said “the state government is incapacitated to take over the construction of the road since the federal government had warned that it would not reimburse States which carry out construction works on federal roads.”
He said the state government consequently decided to embark on the construction of alternative routes pending the construction of the federal roads by the federal government.
The project coordinator stressed on the commitment of the Governor Biodun Oyebanji-led administration in Ekiti to ensuring good road network expressed worry that about 50km of federal roads has been delisted following the intervention of the state government on the affected roads.
On Ado-Ijan-Ikare road, Adunmo pleaded with Ekiti people to be patient as the state government is already in talks with the contractor handling the road on the possibility of fixing the Ado axis of the road in order to ease the discomfort that commuters face while plying the road.
He expressed surprise that some politicians who do not even know the name of their party unit chairman are boasting of defeating Oyebanji; stressing that the governorship seat is not for sale.
Reacting to claims that RAAMP roads do not exist in Ekiti State, the Project Coordinator said:
” work is ongoing on all the 18 RAAMP project sites in the State even as one of the road is almost completed while 2.6km of asphalt has been laid on another road.
“A total of 132km of rural roads are currently being constructed and some of them will be commissioned before the year ends while 80km of spot improvement and 45km of backlog maintenance will soon be awarded,” Adunnmo said.
