Members of National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), Roads Transport Employers Association of Nigerian (RETAN), Students’ Union, community leaders in lgboho, Igbeti and Olorunsogo local government areas of Oyo state trooped out enmasse, on Monday, to protest against the poor condition of the road linking Ilorin, Kwara state to Igbeti in Olorunsogo local government, Saki, Kishi, Igboho and other towns in Oyo state.
Members numbering about 300 converged on the Ohan river, a point where the bridge had collapsed for years without being attended to, thereby, causing hazard to commuters resulting to loss of lives and properties.
Various placards were displayed with inscriptions to alert government of thier responsibilities, such as ‘FG help fix Ilorin/Igbeti road’, ‘Oke-Ogun is cut off from Nigeria’, ‘Ilorin/Igbeti road is a death trap’ among others.
Speaking on behalf of other community heads, the Chairman of Igbeti Toro, Chief Alawode Fashina explained the rationale behind the protest.
According to him, motorists playing the road had been subjected to hardship following the collapse of the bridge as soon this year’s rain started.
He added that the 53 kilometers road had cut off the two communities, therefore, calling on the government to come to help the poor people.
Both chairmen of RTEAN, Kisi branch, Comrade Lukman Asirisbo and his counterpart from from Igboho, Comrade Sekoni Suleman and the head of all transport unions in Oke-Ogun, Comrade Abdulrasaq Owolabi explained that the protest of the day was just a warning adding that if government failed to respond within fifteen days to their requests, they would not hesitate to shut down all vehicular activities. “To be for warned is to before armed” he said.
