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Why Lagos can't repair all roads, by official
From Seun Adeoye, Osogbo
INADEQUATE funds and a lack of assistance from the Federal Government have been cited by the Lagos government as the reasons it cannot repair all the roads in the state.
While speaking with reporters in Ilesha, Osun State at the weekend, Lagos State Commissioner for Works and Infrastructure, Alhaji Rauf Aregbesola, said that it would require a huge sum of N1 trillion to properly repair the 5,000 kilometres of roads in the state.
"To get all those roads to be in full acceptable trafficking standard, you need not less than N1 trillion. So, where is the resource to do it? Afterall, roads are not the only engagement of any government.
"So, it is totally out of tune for anybody to think that any government can within five years, rehabilitate or develop all the roads. Whoever advocates that is either not competent or is simply ignorant of the fact," he said.
The commissioner disclosed that the state government had to shun rehabilitation of some
Federal Government's roads in the state because of huge indebtedness of the Federal Ministry
of Works to the state.
He gave the total amount the Federal Government was owing the state as about N5.5
billion.
"In 1999, when we assumed office, we found all the roads in Lagos in terrible condition,
especially the major highways were in critical condition. And between 1999 and 2001, we
repaired all the major highways without any support from anybody," he stated.
Aregbesola claimed that throughout the four years of President Olusegun Obasanjo, the
Federal Government did not rehabilitate a single road in Lagos State.
He noted: "There are facts and evidence to that. We, therefore, asked the Federal
Government for re-inbursement because these (those rehabilitated) were its roads. They did
an assessment and agreed with us to an indebtedness of about N1.7 billion on that alone. What we were paid was just N200 million."
The commissioner said that apart from routine rehabilitation, the state re-developed Agege,
Idi-Oro, Ilupeju junction, Awolowo Way in Ikoyi and Akin Adesola in Victoria Island (VI).
"These are critical capital works. All amounting to between N4 billion or thereabout, we have not received a kobo," he said.
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