Lagos-Ibadan Expressway: Jonathan admits failure, begs Nigerians

President Goodluck Jonathan  yesterday admitted failure over the bad conditions of the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.
He also apologised to commuters and motorists for the sufferings they have gone through  on the  dilapidated  road, vowing that the hardship  would soon become history.
The  bad state of the road, the recurring fatal accidents, incessant traffic jams, security breaches which compromise free movement and safety  are problems which his government  cannot ignore, he said as he flagged-off the reconstruction of the highway at the Sagamu Interchange.
The 127-kilometre road will cost N167 billion.
  He said the  hardship  experienced by users of the road, especially those from the South West, was  not intentional on the part of the Federal Government.
He explained that government had to terminate the concessionaire agreement  with Bi-Courtney for the rehabilitation of the road after  four years  of alleged  non-performance.
He said: “Let me appreciate Nigerians, especially more than the 50 per cent users of the key economic players in the South West from Lagos to Ondo State that use this  road for the pains witnessed over this period.

“It was  not the intention of the Federal Government but because of the contractual arrangement that the  government  entered  into with  Bi–Courtney.”
He also said  the reconstruction was expected to  accelerate the economic development of Nigeria.
He said government would mobilise the necessary funds to ensure  the completion of the project in 30 months, although  the contractors (Julius Berger and RCC Limited) have been given a 48-month timeline to complete it.
He pledged that  the Federal Government would not relent in its efforts to embark on projects that would make life better for Nigerians.
The President said he was impressed by Governor Amosun’s efforts to  boost  infrastructural development  in  the state  and lauded him for  rebuilding the state.
 Governor  Amosun   thanked the President for responding to the series of letters written by South West governors to him to urgently fix the road.

He asked  the Federal Government to  also intervene in the Sagamu-Ogijo-Mosimi- Ikorodu Road, which he said is key, given its relevance as the corridor where over 70 per cent of petroluem products in the country is transported, and the Sagamu-Papalanto- Olorunsogo Road, which he said is the link road to the first independent power plant in Nigeria, in which government has invested  huge funds.
He urged the President to consider factoring the roads in the next year budget, as urgently fixing the roads would alleviate the pains Nigerians experience navigating through such corridor.
Speaking in an interview, Presidential  Special Adviser on Niger Delta Matters, Hon. Kingsley Kuku, said the flag-off of the roads’ reconstruction was evidence of the seriousness the government attaches to key infrastructure, including roads.

Kuku said the flag-off ceremony was a demonstration of the fact that Jonathan is conscious of meeting the yearning of Nigerians.
He said: “The Lagos -Ibadan Expressway is very central and fundamental to the socio -economic  development of Nigeria.
“Goods and passengers are moved from the Lagos sea and  airports and various markets to other parts of the country through the road on a daily basis.
“Secondly, it connects the country to other countries in the West African subregion and to other countries in North Africa, thus making  it  the busiest highway in West Africa.  ”

July 06, 2013