Oyo State government, on Tuesday, approved the commencement of the Light-Up Oyo State project, which is to cover 70 roads and 223.42 kilometres across the five geopolitical zones of the state.
The state’s Commissioner for Public Works, Infrastructure and Transport, Prof. Rapheal Afonja, who made the disclosure while briefing newsmen at the end of the state’s Executive Council meeting, said that 70 roads across the five zones of the state will be captured in the second phase of the Light-Up Oyo Project.
He also added that the state’s executive council has approved the award of the contract for the rehabilitation of two dumpsites in Ibadan as part of the new Solid Waste Management Architecture launched by Governor Seyi Makinde recently.
A statement by the chief Press Secretary to Governor Makinde, Mr. Taiwo Adisa, also quoted the state’s Commissioner for Environment and Natural Resources, Hon. Kehinde Ayoola, as stating that the selection process for the Private Sector Participants (PSPs) that would drive the waste management project had already been concluded.
The statement disclosed that the executive council meeting was held via video-conferencing, adding that the council was adhering strictly to the social distancing rule.
It further quoted Afonja as stating that the second phase of the Light-Up Oyo Project is expected to further spread the gains of the project already recorded through the first phase in the area of security and socio-economic sectors in the state.
According to the statement, the state government has also approved the Operation Zero Pothole Initiative, in line with the desire of Governor Makinde to immediately fix all potholes in state starting from Ibadan, the state capital.
It also stated that the Operation Zero Portholes initiative will be driven through the decentralisation of the Oyo State Road Maintenance Agency (OYSROMA) by Governor Makinde, which it said had taken effect.
Afonja said: “The Executive Council approved the expansion of the streetlighting project, Light-Up Oyo, which started late last year. We will start the phase two, which has been extended to other zones in the state. About 70 roads have been captured for the installation of this LED streetlights and majority of roads in the state will feel the impact.
“One of the reasons the decision of His Excellency came about was the fact that he believes in the security of the society. So, the initiative came up for security reasons. Also, we believe the project will have impact in socio-economic terms as we saw in the first phase. People can feel secure coming from their homes or going to office, places of business, hospitals or wherever they are coming from.
“The second project is the zero-pothole initiative that the governor has embarked upon. He believes there is the need to quickly fix the potholes before the rain starts, starting with Ibadan metropolis. As we all know, most traffic congestions experienced in the past have been due to people being extra careful when they are driving because they don’t want to hit the potholes.
“So, the Executive Council approved the commencement of patching of potholes, starting with Ibadan metropolis.
“Also, another thing that has been done recently is the decentralisation of OYSROMA so that it can have offices in five zones, which will allow the effectiveness in terms of fixing most of these potholes that have been observed across the state. So, we are being pro-active about it, while OYSROMA will take the lead. You would have been seeing them one or two time in the news visiting different zones.
“There are other initiatives when it comes to potholes fixing that will follow this, which will go all the way to the grassroots. Initially, people think it is only in Ibadan but we should thank His Excellency because it is now expanding to other zones in the state.”
In a similar vein, the Commissioner for Environment and Natural Resources, Hon. Ayoola said: “His Excellency launched a new solid waste management architecture recently and what the architecture entails is the proper collection, storage and conveyance of solid waste from the point of generation to the point of disposal, which is the dumpsite.
“Part of what that entails again is, collection, storage and transfer to dumpsite will be largely private-sector driven. I am happy to report to you that the selection of Private Sector Participant (PSP) for solid waste has been concluded and because they have to dump the waste in a place, the dumpsite has to be made ready and comfortable.
“Pursuant to that, the Oyo State Executive Council has approved contracts for the rehabilitation of two waste dumpsites in Ibadan. There is one at Ajakanga, Oluyole Local Government and the second one is at Awotan near Apete in Ido Local Government. The contractor has, as I speak to you, moved to site and work has commenced.
“The idea is to expand the capacity and enhance the efficiency of our solid waste collection and disposal efforts.”
