Olayitan Owolabi, 45, sells bread at Moniya-Ijaiye road under the Iseyin local government area of Oyo state. She used to have issues displaying her wares during the rainy season due to heavy pours that led to flooding, which occupied shops in her area.
Mrs Owolabi recalled how residents would walk barefoot, as cars and tricycles found the road impassable.
The Moniya-Ijaiye-Iseyin road became a floodplain during the rainy seasons, making life unbearable for traders like her.
“We cried out to the government many times because better roads meant more customers for us,” she explained.
But everything changed after the state government intervened and constructed the 65-kilometre Moniya-Ijaiye road.
“Before, our major problems were bad roads and floods during the rainy season. But now, we have a newly constructed road and drainage. That is why whenever I see people coming into our community there is this joy in me, because if it was before I can’t even stand beside the road selling bread,” she said.
Data from Dataphyte’s Anfani portal shows that the N9.9 billion naira road project was allocated to Kopek Construction Limited for the construction of a 65 kilometre road. The road project was completed in November 2021.
Intervention Brings Unity
On a visit in July, Dataphyte found a newly constructed road with drainages flanking the two sides of the road. Cars and tricycles were seen passing through the road without hassle as opposed to the previous conditions.
The community head of Moniya-Ijaye, Monsuru Hamzah, said the road has reunited the people and transformed the community into a better place to live, do business, and accommodate visitors.
“You see, in this community, we lacked good roads and drainage to control the floods. Those who have houses couldn’t stay in their houses because their houses got flooded, and the flood destroyed their properties, people from other communities also found it difficult to visit due to the road not being motorable, we couldn’t move our agricultural products to town because no car wanted to come around our community due to the bad roads,” he said.
Samson Adewale, an Okada driver, said the road and drainage will prevent floods they had always experienced in the area.
“You see, in the southwest here, it is always raining, so everything we are experiencing in terms of weather is cold. Now, during rainfall, floods will not destroy our property, or enter our houses again. Likewise, we do not have to worry about our cars or Okada breaking down, and our level of income has also increased,” he explained.
Fatima Waliyu, who plies the road to and from work every working day, said the road makes her commute easy.
Similarly, another resident, Amina Usman, shared a new experience of ease.
“You see, the truth needs to be told. You can’t compare our community to yesterday and today. We have experienced change. Now you can come into your house anytime, whether it’s raining or not,” Amina explained.
Mrs Usman said she was encouraged to build a shop in her house after the construction. “As you can see, it is because of this completed road that I built a shop at the front of my house,” she said.
Another resident, Alaba Taiwo, a 40-year-old resident, said the new road brought back those who had left the community.
People who had abandoned their properties are now returning to complete their buildings. He noted how this development has united the community.
“You see, in my area, the completed houses are not many, but now there are more completed houses where the owners are living. The challenges we faced before were bad roads and drainage in the community. The situation has changed every day. People are coming to buy land and build houses,” he stated.
Government Official Reacts
Chief of Staff to the Iseyin local government chairman, Ridwan Adeosi, lauded the project, explaining that it has significantly boosted the local economy.
“Farmers can now easily transport their produce to the city, and commercial drivers find it much more efficient to ferry passengers from Iseyin to Ibadan in no time. Previously, many farmers struggled with the poor road conditions, making it difficult to move their goods, and some of their produce was lost due to accidents caused by the bad roads,” he explained.
“There are some roads that need to be considered by the state government for construction to bring more comfort to the people, most of the roads that lead to the farm where farmers pass through or commuters, are in poor condition. Our hands are tied at the local level because we are not receiving allocation to execute projects in the community,” he added.