By Abimbola Joseph
CITIZENS COMPASS – Some residents and landlords of Wood Island Estate in Yewa community at Igbo-Olomu area of Ikorodu, Lagos State, have pleaded to the State Government to repair their deplorable road.
They made the appeal in separate interviews with Citizen Compass on Tuesday.
Citizens Compass reports that the road connected about 10 communities such as Olorunsogo, Greenland, Accord Estate, Ire Akari, Oju Oro and others.
Mr Sunbo Owolabi, Chairman, Wood Island Estate Community Development Association (CDA), said that the bad road had led to loss of property, extended travel time and high transport fare for residents.
According to the chairman, the deplorable conditions of the roads has contributed to low commercial activities in the area while many communities are often cut off for several days whenever there is rainfall.
“We have filled the road several times, but due to overflowing of water from the canal, the road becomes impassable.
“We are appealing to government, if the government can assist us in channeling the canal, we will be very happy.
“We have been going through this problem for more than eight years, in fact there was a year when a child drowned,” he said.
Also speaking, the Secretary to the CDA, Mrs Bimbo Olaoluwa, appreciated the state for the completion of the first phase and embarking on the construction of the second phase of Agric-Isawo road.
She appealed to both the local and state governments to pay attention to Wood Island Estate, adding that the deplorable state of the road had caused untold hardship to people living in the community.
“We are always in a sorry state anytime there is flow of water from the canal, we trek most of the time to our houses while coming or going out.
“Government has done well on Isawo road but we need more interventions to reduce the hardship in our community,” she said.
Mr Sunday Ukor, a landlord, urged Gov. Babajide Sanwo-Olu to urgently intervene to prevent property and buildings from flooding.
Ukor lamented that the cost of transportation had increased to more than 300 per cent due to the state of the road and this, he said, had added more burden on them.
“Sanwo-Olu is a listening governor, we need drains where water from the canal can pass in order not to destroy our property,” he said.
Also Mr Olayiwola Adeniyi, a motorist, called on the government as a matter of urgency to intervene and repair the Wood Island Estate road because “criminals use it to perpetrate their evil act because it is bad.
“Most of us who ply this route have stopped due to unabated criminal activities on the road,” he said.
Mrs Ajike Onasanya, a resident, also pleaded with the government to intervene on the condition of the road, adding that she had been robbed on many occasions on the road.
