Residents and motorists plying the newly constructed Ojumele-Ajegunle road in Makun area of Sagamu have decried its collapse barely two months after it was commissioned by the Ogun State Governor, Dapo Abiodun.

They called on the government to urgently fix the road to allow for free flow of traffic in the area. A resident, Taju Bamikale said the road failed during the rain last week, which flooded the community, destroyed the road and properties in the area.
 
Another resident, Sunday Olarenwaju, expressed shock that the two-month-old road constructed with taxpayers money could be destroyed with just less than two hours rain. He called on government to investigate the incident and sanction the contractor for a shoddy job.
 
Also, a civil engineer and former chairman of Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE), Apapa Branch, Dr Ombugadu Garba, has question the competence of the contractor.
 
Garba wondered why a road that was paid for, constructed and just commissioned could collapse so easily. He said: “When it comes to construction, there are specific standards that a contractor must follow.
 
“First, you look at the drainage that links to the road. There are possibilities that the drainage was poorly designed, the reason water can easily wash off the road. If there was a good drainage system, it would be able to control the flow of water.

“Secondly, if you look at the depth of the asphalt, you will see that the road is not properly compacted and the asphalt is not up to standard.
 
“Another reason is poor workmanship. Sometimes, quacks are contracted to do the work, not experts. Even the asphalt is not up to the standard expected of a good road,” he said.

Reacting, Special Adviser on Media to Governor Dapo Abiodun of Ogun State, Hon. Kayode Akinmade, said the damage on the newly constructed road at Ojumele-Ajegunle in Makun-Sagamu, Sagamu Local Council of the state was the result of human error and not project deficiency.

Akinmade, in a statement made available to newsmen, explained that the collector drainage for the storm water in the area was silted up due to indiscriminate refuse disposal, causing the water to overflow during the downpour on Sunday.

He added that in the same vein, a car wash owner ignorantly built a cover slab on the drain without adequate engineering guidance and advice from experts, thus impeding the flow of water into the drain during the heavy rain.

According to him, appropriate authorities had swiftly moved to the area for prompt repairs, even as the government was very sad about the unfortunate development and regretted the inconveniences this might have caused the residents.

He said: ” Our attention has been drawn to the report of a damaged part of the newly constructed Ojumele-Ajegunle Road, in Makun-Sagamu, Sagamu Local Council of Ogun State.

“While the State Government is greatly saddened by the development, going by the inconveniences it will cause to the residents and given resources expended on the project for the benefit of the inhabitants; we, however, want to categorically state that the damage has nothing to do with the quality of the road, contrary to what some sections of the media mischievously reported.

“The reason for the damage was simply that the collector drainage for the storm water in the area was silted up due to indiscriminate refuse disposal, which made the water to overflow during the downpour of Sunday afternoon.

“In the same vein, a car wash owner ignorantly built a cover slab on the drain without adequate and proper engineering guidance and advice of experts, causing water not to flow properly into the drain during the heavy rain.

“Meanwhile, the appropriate agency of government has promptly responded and repair work is already ongoing on the road, as the area will be cement-stabilised at the end of the day to prevent future occurrence.”

Responding to the development, the Special adviser to the governor on media, Information and strategy, Mr. Kayode Akinmade  said immediately the government got the information, the ministry of works sent a team to work on the damaged road to ease the stress of the residents and motorists in the affected area.