By Comrade Akido Agenro
The scorecard of the political leadership in every society can be gauged from the state of the roads in that country. A good network of roads across a national enclave, presupposes an efficient, vibrant and dynamic leadership.
The deplorable condition of the roads all over Nigeria is an index of the poor political leadership of the last eight years. Just one example will suffice here. A short drive from the seaport at Apapa bears out this claim.
Apapa is home to one of the major and busiest sea ports in Nigeria. It also has a good number of petroleum depots located there as well as various manufacturing industries, hence the numerous heavy duty trucks conveying various imported products, fuel and manufactured products from Apapa and the ones coming into the same to deliver agricultural produce for export or load products.
However, movement into this important economic hub, the traffic gridlock apart, is fraught with danger. A little distance away, moving towards Ijora and across the bridge, the appalling condition of the road at this section gives a nightmare to road users.
One is at once confronted with the monumental neglect that important federal roads across Nigeria are left to suffer for several years without attention.
Many long distance journeys from Apapa Port on the way to the hinterland several kilometers away have been disastrously and abruptly terminated here only five kilometers into the trip with colossal losses to the transporter, importer and Customs agent, the collateral damage apart. Ditto the trucks going to the area.
This unfortunate experience has been the order of the day for the past several years with no intervention from the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing to maintain the road.
On Thursday night, October 12, 2023 a fuel tanker fell on this horrible portion of the road and emptied its 33000 liter content all over the place. The spill resulted in an inferno that claimed 11 vehicles and the loss of several lives. The charred bodies of the tankers, trucks and cars are still being cleared from the road as at the time of writing this piece.
A few weeks back a truckload of glass panes imported from China tripped over on this same failed section and had its full load shattered. Before then there was the container of toilet wares that had its entire consignment destroyed upon its fall. The list of disaster that occurs here is endless.
The occasional patchwork hastily made with sand or granite can hardly stand the pressure from the heavy duty vehicles of mostly petroleum tankers and articulated trucks that ply the road.
Again, the poor condition of the road has provided an avenue for hoodlums to attack motorists even in broad daylight. This part of the road has thus become the nemesis of motorists in this part of Nigeria.
One is constrained to wonder why the federal government of Nigeria will fail to accord this road the deserving attention considering the huge revenue generated from the Apapa Port that is touted as Nigeria’s premier port. If this is not accounted irresponsible and dereliction of leadership, then what is?
It’s worrisome that Nigeria’s political leaders are quick to condemn killings and the destruction of property elsewhere in the country and around the world but consistently turned a blind eye to the equally objectionable but redeemable situation here. This is an unpardonable oversight.
Many Lagosians were terribly disappointed that a past governor of Lagos State, Mr Babatunde Raji Fashola failed to give the road the urgently needed attention during his four years tenure as the federal minister of Works and Housing.
Now that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is at the helm of affairs at Abuja, one is of the hope that this road will be given the much needed attention, Lagos State being his primary constituency as the first governor in this 4th Republic.
If the carnage which occurred on that Thursday night with a potential to destroy the adjoining bridge could be glossed over as the previous unfortunate incidents on this road and fails to prick the conscience of the concerned authorities to wake up to their responsibility and get this road fixed, then one is left to wonder what will.
• Agenro writes from Iju-Shaga, Lagos