James Ojo Adakole
Theirs are tales of neglect, near-survival, dashed hopes and perennial fear. For residents of Ijeododo, a suburb in Iba Local Council Development Area (LCDA), Ojo Local Government Area of Lagos State; going out of their homes to their places of work has always been a nightmare.
The untarred road, which connects the area from Ijegun is in shambles, constituting death trap to those who moseyed through it daily to eke out a living.
Pathway of death
At about 3:18 p.m on Monday, an eight-seater bus conveying this reporter and other passengers from Ijegun to Ijeododo screeched to a halt at the last bus-stop after a tumultuous, tiring ride. As the passengers disembarked from the bus and made for their various destinations, the anger on their faces and their frail posture as they trudged in different directions captured the agony of an area lacking basic amenities. Investigations into the area by Sunday Sun showed that the only major road leading to the community was nothing to write home about. At strategic portions of the road were various dumpsites oozing out putrid smells, which pose health hazards to passers-by.
Aside heavy presence of dumpsites along the road, the untarred, swampy route leading to the community was impassable. Motorists were seen swerving in different directions as they struggle not only to navigate through the pot-ridden aspect of the road, but also ensured their vehicles come out unscathed. This reporter, like other passengers, aboard the vehicle had to firmly hold some parts of the bus to avoid injury while the journey lasted.
“This is what we go through on a daily basis, it is really bad that government has abandoned us for long,” a passenger aboard the bus muttered with chagrin, kick-starting a discussion that further exposed the pains of commuters on a daily basis.
“What I do anytime I get home is to either use balm or any other pain-relieving product to massage my body thoroughly. If I don’t do that, I won’t be able to go out the next morning,” another passenger bellowed in support.
True to their words, the community itself looks shambolic. With no proper drainage system in sight, the streets in the area had stamps of deadly havoc wreaked on the community by flood whenever there was a downpour. As a palliative, most of the landlords and shop owners slung a makeshift bridge made up of planks across threatening canals to be able to connect the road from their homes.
The sad tales of residents
Some residents who spoke with Sunday Sun recounted their ordeals while calling on the administration of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu to expedite action on alleviating the pathetic situation of the community.
A clergy with the Celestial Church of Christ, Mr Niyi Emmanuel, said that the residents of the area live in perpetual fear of death as a result of the poor state of the roads and heavy flood that comes whenever it rains.
His words: “The situation of people in this area is really pathetic because of our road. We are always in pain anytime we go out to other neighbouring towns. Most times, we use paracetamol to simmer the attendant pains that come with such journey. We are really suffering here. Even the teachers who travel down here from various destinations also bear the brunt. We’ve had several cases of teachers falling off motorcycles into dirty, stagnated waters on the road. We’ve also had cases of teachers going back home to change their dresses after getting themselves stained on their way to the school.
“So, the situation is really embarrassing. This is despite the fact that the road is strategic as it connects many communities. This road links Ijagemo, Obadore, Abule-Ado, among others. Therefore, if the government at any level can come to our aid, we would be happy and be at peace. This has been our prayers for long now. But for the philanthropic gesture of some community leaders who rose to help us with temporary levelling, we would have worst of situations, given what we went through last year. While the levelling has helped us navigate the roads for sometimes now, erosion has washed off most part of it again and we are back to where we used to be before.
“Most times, motorcycles and buses plying the road often get spoilt while trying to avoid pot holes. When it rains, the situation becomes even more terrible. What we do during such periods is to alight from the bus or Okada as the case maybe and then trek some distance before continuing the journey. We are appealing to the state governor and other concerned stakeholders to fix the road from Ijegun to Abule-Ado. This would ease movement of people.”
Also speaking, Yusuf, a motorcycle rider, popularly known as Okada, stated the road is a ticking time bomb for motorists and commuters, enjoining the government to weigh in.
“This road is a big problem for us. We ply everyday with fear etched on our hearts, given the number of mishaps we’ve witnessed before. We want the government to come to our aid.”
Corroborating Mr Yusuf position, a driver who preferred anonymity observed that most of his colleagues now grapple with fixing damaged parts of their vehicles on a daily basis due to the bad state of the roads.
“No driver will derive joy plying a road as ours. We spend a larger chunk of what we make in a day to repair our vehicles. Most vehicle owners are scared using this route. In a situation where you are spending all you have repairing vehicles, how are you going to take care of yourself and family?” he queried, boiling with rage.
The Youth Leader of the area, Mr Balogun Kehinde, lamented that various efforts taken by the community to generate awareness have been met with little progress.
Narrating the plight of residents of the area, he stated that most people take longer alternative routes to avoid the trauma that comes with using the community road.
He urged the Lagos State government to address the situation, contending that such would go a long way in further reducing the trademark logjam in the state.
“We are basically at the heart of Lagos, but we are isolated because of the poor states of our roads. If our roads are properly done, it would help address the traffic situation in Lagos State. “When you see people going through Ikotun and Oke-Afa, the congestion there is too much. But if this road is in good shape, it would ease transportation of people and goods. We appreciate what they have done in the past, but we want more from them so we are appealing to Governor Sanwo-Olu to come to our aid.
“We have been trying to fix the road for long with nothing much to show for it. What has been sustaining us till now is communal effort. If you were here last year, you’d understand what we are talking about. We had a situation where the thought of going out alone leaves you depressed because of what you are going to pass through on the way. Sometimes, for two or three days you can’t go out because of the poor state of the roads.”
On his part, a prominent political figure in the area, Abu Jelili Ododo stated that beyond providing good road networks, the administration of Governor Sanwo-Olu should provide the community with modern health facilities, noting that the whole area presently lacks a hospital.
According to Ododo, who is a chieftain of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), most pregnant women in the community go through hell before putting to bed.
He explained that women are normally ferried to neighbouring towns such as Ijegun and Ikotun, which according to him, is a deadly practice due to the state of the roads.
His words: “We have a lot of challenges at the moment, especially as it regards our roads. Whenever it rains, it is always a big problem for us because we cannot go out with our cars. When we eventually managed to go out, we usually park them at Ijegun and then take Okada to our homes. This year has been better because after the governorship election in the state that brought in Governor Sanwo-Olu, I constructed a drainage from Ijegun to Ijedodo, which we managed till this point. Regardless of what we have done, we still don’t have good roads because we need standard roads.
“Therefore, we want Governor Sanwo-Olu to remember us in this area. Most of the facilities we are presently enjoying were the efforts of successive administrations especially Bola Tinubu and Babatunde Fashola. It was Tinubu, for instance, that brought electricity to this area while Fashola renovated the already existing primary school in the community and also introduced secondary school. Fashola also constructed canals for us from Ijegun then, but because they were not properly done, they didn’t stand the test of time. So, we need proper drainages, so that we can also appreciate him.
“Aside good road networks, we need good health facilities. In the whole of this area, we don’t have a single hospital where pregnant mothers who are due for delivery can put to bed. Most of the time, we often rush them to Ijegun and neighbouring towns where there is hospital for them to put to bed. This is very dangerous, especially considering the states of our roads.”
Similarly, the Chairman, School Based Management Committee (SBMC) of Community Nursery and Primary, Ijeododo, Mr Isaac Fakemi, called on the state government to look into the completion of abandoned projects within the only government school in the area.
According to him, the need for completion of about six-classroom projects initiated by the Fashola-led administration was long overdue, with available classes insufficient for the present population of students in the school.
He also called for increase in the staff strength of the school, lamenting that the school presently lacks sufficient teachers.
“We are appealing to the government to come to our aid because the available classrooms are no long sufficient for the teeming population of the students. The teachers are also not enough. I’m a retired teacher and know the importance of teachers in schools, therefore, we need more teachers in our school. So far, they have tried for our educational system, but we need more considering the importance of education to nation-building. Not long, Hon. Ododo provided some chairs for our pupils after sitting on the floor to learn for long in this school. He gave us 120 desks and benches. They also upgraded the doors, as well as plumbing materials to ensure the pupils get potable water for drinking. But we need more to ensure standard in the kind of education our pupils are getting,” Fakemi said.