Edo State Governor Senator Monday Okpebholo has explained why his administration is taking up the responsibility of fixing federal highways across the state.
He said the decision is to reduce the hardship faced by residents and travellers, and that the state will seek reimbursement from the Federal Government for funds spent on the road projects.
Governor Okpebholo gave the explanation during an inspection of the Ogheghe Ologbo section of the Benin Sapele highway. He lamented the level of neglect of the road for several years, describing it as a death trap that must be prioritised for the safety of road users. He said he could not watch residents continue to suffer daily because of the poor state of the federal roads.
Speaking during the inspection, the governor said the situation demanded urgent intervention by the state. He stated, “You can see for yourself how terrible this place is. This place looks as if there has never been a government here. On Saturday, a trailer fell and got burnt here. A lot of people lost their properties as a result of that incident.” He added that the previous administration failed to address the issue.
Okpebholo stressed that the best approach was for the state government to carry out repairs first and later seek refunds from the Federal Government. According to him, “The best way to go is to fix this road ourselves and later revert to the Federal Government for reimbursement. What we are doing is to keep this place safe for our people to ply.” He added that the contractor continued work on the site even on a Sunday due to the urgency.
The Special Adviser to the Governor on Project Implementation and Monitoring, Williams Bello, disclosed that the Federal Ministry of Works recently handed over a 10.15 kilometre section of the Benin Sapele road to the state government. He said the contractor, who was already handling a 23.2 kilometre stretch, had extended operations to the newly assigned section and had begun excavation and drainage work.
Bello added that the area had unsuitable soil that could not absorb water, making the construction of a major drainage channel necessary. He explained that a 7.5 metre wide water channel was being built to redirect stormwater to a discharge point near the bypass. He said that with the dry season now in place, work would progress rapidly, including building the road structure and laying stone base to strengthen the route.