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Dickson Okafor
Some respite was provided for residents of Kirikiri Town, Lagos, and motorists plying the area, especially operators of trucks, tankers and other articulated vehicles, recently, as a businessman, chairman/CEO, Great Danyduke Ventures Nigeria Limited, Mr. Francis Achonye, procured granite and filled the bad portions of the road at Berger Cement Junction, which links the area.
For a long time, the bad portion of the road has been causing gridlocks, leading to loss of man hours for motorists and people living in the area. Some residents and motorists who spoke with the reporter said the deplorable condition of the road had brought pain not only to road users, but also to people living in Kirikiri Town trying to access the area through Berger Cement. The situation, they noted, consistently obstructed traffic and caused many accidents as trucks carrying containers had fallen severally and had in most cases claimed lives. They lamented how their sources of livelihood were affected negatively due to gridlocks caused by the poor condition of the portion of the road, which brought them great pain and anguish, as commercial activities in Kirikiri Town became stagnant for many months.
However, relief came their way recently when the yawning pothole was filled, courtesy of Achonye. There were tears of joy and jubilation as the people trooped out and volunteered to help fill the gully.
Many of residents thanked God for using Achonye, who is also the president of Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria (RTEAN), Kirikiri chapter, to give them succour. They said his gesture had saved innocent lives and helped in reducing the many hours spent by motorists and commuters in trying to access Kirikiri Town, container terminals and the industrial estate, where most industries and companies were sited.
While recounting other good gestures of the businessman and philanthropist, many of the residents also commended Achonye for donating branded canopies, which serve as shelter for security agents controlling traffic at strategic positions in Apapa and Kirikiri axis. The canopies, they noted, were positioned at Otto Wharf, Berger Cement V-Junction, Dillon, Freedom and SCOA container terminals.
On what motivated him to come to the aid of the people in the area, Achonye said he saw it as part of his corporate social responsibility and an avenue to also give back to the society that gave him the platform to be what he has become today. He noted that, as a stakeholder in the maritime sector, he had always felt the people’s pain. He noted that the deplorable state of the portion of the road was a big problem not only to residents in the area, but to all road users.
He also praised security agents who he said have been working tirelessly to ensure free flow of traffic within Apapa and Kirikiri. Their hard work, he said, was the reason he provided the canopies, which he said was his little support to enable security agents control traffic in the roads leading to the two major seaports in the country.
“I have sympathy for residents of Kirikiri Town, where my office is situated, and also for truck and tanker drivers for the pain they go through daily due to poor condition of the portion of the road which has posed a great challenge for the movement of goods and services,” he noted.
He said the reason for providing the canopies was his contribution to community policing, improve service condition for security agents who are at strategic points ensuring free vehicular movement in the area.
On his part, Alhaji Tunde Olawale, one of the community leaders in Kirikiri Town, applauded Achonye for easing the hardship they faced as a result of the deplorable condition of the particular portion of the road leading to Kirikiri Town from Apapa. He recounted the difficulties that motorists faced in trying to access other parts of the state, especially Apapa-Oshodi Expressway, being the major road linking the area.
He called on other well-meaning Nigerians to emulate Achonye, even as he thanked God for using Achonye to end the sufferings of motorists.
He also expressed happiness that commercial activities were gradually returning to the area with the ease of the gridlock on the road, stressing that the people would forever remain grateful to Achonye for his kind gesture.
