27th August, 2015
Cyriacus Izuekwe
The residents of Ejigbo, a suburb of Lagos State, western Nigeria, have hailed the determination of the state government led by Governor Akinwunmi Ambode to construct the their major road in the area.
They said the ongoing construction which is near completion has shown that Ambode was determined to transform the state.
The busy Ejigbo-Ikotun road had been neglected over the years which had caused the residents untold hardship due to traffic congestion.
The residents had pleaded with past governments to come to their aid to no avail.
But a few weeks after Ambode was sworn in as governor, he went and inspected the road and promised that work would commence the following week.
True to his word, he deployed men of Lagos State Public Works Cooperation, LSPWC, to the area and work commenced.
When our reporter visited the road, the workers of LSPWC were busy grading the road and constructing the drainage channels. .
Some of the workers who spoke to our reporter said Ambode gave them a deadline to complete the road and move to other areas.
They said the Governor had been busy monitoring the progress of work and would like them to complete the road within the time frame he gave them.
Some of the residents who spoke to our reporter expressed their happiness and thanked Ambode for responding to their plight.
A resident, Mr Kayode Williams, said when Ambode made the promise that he would commence work on the road, he did not believe him and when the workers of LSPWC brought their equipment, he did not also believe until they started to construct the culverts.
He said the men have been working daily and striving to complete the work on schedule.
He thanked the state government for their prompt response.
Another resident who identified herself as Dayo Omowunmi said she was impressed about the progress made so far on the road.
She said, initially, she did not believe it will be a reality, adding that with the determination of the workers and the governor to complete the work, their plight will soon end.
She recalled her experience on the road, saying due to traffic congestion caused by bad road, it usually takes the residents several hours to get to work.
Emeka Ibeh, a trader at Ladipo market who resides in Ejigbo, said because of the deplorable state of the road, he usually wakes up around 5:00 am to prepare for work.
He said even when he wakes up early, he still gets to his shop late because of traffic jam.
He hoped that after the completion of the road, movement from Ejigbo will be easier and commended Ambode for fulfilling his campaign promise.