After what looked like “waiting for Godot” or spending eternity watching the weather, the Lagos State government has swung into action with its graders and rollers for the repair and rehabilitation of roads within the metropolis. And they have, at the moment, touched many roads.
Before now, the condition of roads infrastructure in the state was bad and no location, including the highbrow areas, was spared. The situation was really dire and the need to save both the environment and the residents, who were already edgy, was urgent.
Like most residents of the state, what we have seen so far gladdens our heart and we are, therefore, commending the state government for the work well done. For us, what is being done is for the collective interest of the state and its residents whose wellbeing and prosperity should be the concern of the state and vice versa.
We also commend the state government for the serious attention two major projects in the state are receiving after their apparent abandonment by previous governments. These are The Pen Cinema flyover and the Lagos Badagry Expressway.
As at Friday, January 3, 2020 when Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu went on an inspection of the Expressway and Pen Cinema Flyover, the Agboju to Commerce Honest part of the former had been accomplished whereas there’s an assurance that pen Cinema Bridge shall be delivered in six months.
The social and economic impact of projects like these can hardly be over-emphasised. The Expressway, particularly, has the potential to facilitate regional trade and commerce, increase real estate activities in that axis, create jobs and, by extension, increase government revenue and grow its economy.
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This explains why we are happy with the special consideration given to roads infrastructure in the state’s 2020 budget allocation where N117 billion have been planned for the sector. That, in our view, is forward-looking given the multiplier effect that expenditure on toad projects has.
We, however, have our concerns. The pace of work on the roads and other project sites is too slow for the enormous work that needs to be done. The rot is deep and that is understandable in a state where for whole two years governance gave way for politicking, leaving the environment in the hands of destructive scavengers.
Governor Sanwo-Olu is hereby reminded that time is running out and there is still so much to be done, especially in the hinterland where life is difficult and miserable for lack of good roads infrastructure.
With its over 20 million population, Lagos is a very small state landmass-wise. This large-size population is crammed into an estimated 3,577 square kilometres, which is just 0.4 percent of Nigeria’s 923,768 square kilometres total land area. This is why Lagos environment is choking, especially at the city centres where everybody wants to live, work and play.
We are calling on the state and its authorities to move faster, higher and stronger. They need to do more and do so with greater urgency. It is pertinent for us to tell the governor that the excuse on rainy season does not hold and will no longer serve. Time is now for him to act before another bout of rains.
It is pertinent for us too to remind the state government that while it is true that Lagos needs new roads, it should do well by evolving a culture of maintenance which, in our view, is even more important.
The state should prioritise roads infrastructure, considering that its economy is a function of the ease, duration and cost of movement within the state. Expectation is that motorists and commuters alike should not spend all their day’s income on transport fare.
Motorists don’t have to spend quality man-hour commuting from their residences to their work places because that affects productivity and, by extension, the GDP and economy of the state.
