By John Silas
Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu on Wednesday assured Lagosians, especially the people of Ikorodu division of the State that the Ijede/Itamagun Road in Igbogbo/Baiyeku Local Council Development Area (LCDA) will be commissioned in May.
Governor Sanwo-Olu who also disclosed that the Imota Rice Mill will be commissioned before middle of the year, said his administration is committed to completing all the ongoing projects and infrastructure in the Ikorodu axis before end of the year.
Speaking at commissioning of the Igbogbo/Baiyeku LCDA new ultra-modern council secretariat on Wednesday, Governor Sanwo-Olu, who was received by mammoth crowd, promised to pay the compensation that is due for those affected by construction of the Igbogbo/Baiyeku Road. He said the compensation will be paid within the next 30 to 60 days.
Governor Sanwo-Olu while expressing his administration’s commitment to meeting the needs of the people said the construction of the Igbogbo Mini Stadium will be awarded to a contractor before end of the year while the jetties around Ikorodu and Ibeshe Housing Estate will be delivered this year.
He said: “I must use this opportunity to charge and tell our citizens in Igbogbo division some of our modest ongoing projects and attempts to bring about quality good governance to your door step.
“We are working on the Ipakodo/Oba Sekumade Road being done by Arab Contractors and they have assured me that we will see tremendous improvements within the next two to four weeks on the project.
“We will be handing over the Ijede/Itamaga Phase 1 Road to you in the month of May; the six kilometers road is almost completed. But we are not leaving you to that; we will ensure that we start the Phase ll.
“I have driven and seen the state of roads in Obafemi Awolowo/Baiyeku Road. I will arrange to see how we will award these roads as soon as possible. The Igbogbo/Baiyeku Road, which is a tough one, is being run by Hitech. We have called Hitech to speed up that road so that we can give our citizens the desired relief.
“But it is not only that, I am standing before you and giving you a commitment that the compensation that is due on that road will be paid within the next 30 to 60 days. We are working on the Agric-Isawo Road. We are pushing the contractor to take it to a logical conclusion.”
Stressing his administration’s commitment to the first pillar of the THEMES Agenda; Traffic Management and Transportation, Governor Sanwo-Olu said his administration will soon address the gridlock in Ikorodu Garage Roundabout.
He said: “We are about to have a massive transformation at the Garage Roundabout in Ikorodu, which is a major source of gridlock. We have been reviewing what the best model of solving the traffic on that corridor is. The Ayangburen of Ikorodu will attest to it that we have taken representation to his palace on how best to do that road; whether there is going to be flyover or junction improvement, in the next two months, work will start on that roundabout.
“The Fourth Mainland Bridge will take effect from Badore on the Ajah axis and it would be landing at Bayeku/Aiyetoro and will move from Aiyetoro to Igbogbo before getting to Lagos/Ibadan Expressway. We are working assiduously to ensure that our PPP Model works well and we are expecting to flag it off before end of this year.”
Governor Sanwo-Olu while commissioning the ultra-modern council secretariat commended the Chairman of Igbogbo-Baiyeku LCDA, Comrade Olusesan Daini, for the courage to initiate and implement this laudable project.
He said: “The completion of this project is proof that with the right attitude to governance and a sense of purpose, we can touch the lives of our people at the grassroots level and give them a sense of belonging.
“I am confident that this elegant edifice will boost the productivity of staff and make them more dedicated to their duties, which will in turn lead to improved service delivery; a key goal of this administration.”
Speaking earlier, Comrade Daini commended Governor Sanwo-Olu and his team for the hard work and efforts directed at changing the trajectory of development in Ikorodu division and across Lagos State.
Daini said the first structures on the site where the Ultra-modern council Secretariat was built was an office and a dispensary of the then Igbogbo/Baiyeku Local Council which was created in 1955 by the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo as the Premier of Western Region.