Olabode Omoyele demands Ondo inclusion in Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, wants FG attention on Aboto-Atijere, Ugbonla-Erunna Bridge
A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ondo State, Mr. Olabode Omoyele, has called on the Federal Government to ensure Ondo State’s coastline is not excluded from the Lagos-Calabar Coastalw Highway project.
Olabode who is also the founder of Olabode Humanitarian Foundation(OHF), specifically urged government to give priority attention to the Aboto-Atijere Road and the Ugbonla-Erunna Bridge in Ilaje Local Government Area.
He made the call on Friday in Lagos while speaking with reporters on infrastructure development in Ondo South.
According to him, the coastal highway, originally conceived as a road linking communities along Nigeria’s Atlantic coastline, must reflect its name by passing through Ondo State’s coastal corridor.
Olabode said stakeholders in Ilaje and Ondo South in general had expressed concern over the alleged diversion of the route from the Ondo coastline. He noted that the allegation is that the alignment was altered to run from Oke-Upare in Ondo State through Ovia North and Ovia West in Edo State to Gelegele before linking Warri in Delta State, instead of maintaining the coastal alignment.
He listed affected coastal communities of Ondo South to include Ugbonla, Ilowo, Ilepete, Obe-Enikanoselu, Obe-Rewoye, Ikorigho, Jinrinwo, Awoye and Igho.
“It is not in dispute that Edo State does not have a single coastal community that abuts the sea,” Olabode quoted stakeholders as saying, questioning why a coastal highway should leave the Ondo coastline.
The APC chieftain said Ondo State has between 80 and 100 kilometres of coastline, the longest in the country, with Ilaje communities occupying virtually the entire stretch.
He said while the Federal Government extended the project from 700km to 750km to accommodate Edo State, the extension should not come at the expense of Ondo’s coastal communities. 4dcd
“More than 60 percent of the coastal communities in Ilaje Local Government Area have been bypassed,” he said, adding that the original drawings and mappings appear to have been jettisoned.
Omoyele Olabode further appealed to the Minister of Works, Senator David Umahi, to revisit the alignment and restore the coastal route through Ugbonla to Escravos.
On the state of infrastructure in Ilaje, he said the 28.5km Aboto-Atijere Road and the Ugbonla-Erunna Bridge remain critical to opening up the riverine areas, boosting fishing and oil-producing communities and tackling coastal erosion around Aiyetoro.
He commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway initiative, describing it as a legacy project, but stressed that its economic impact would be better felt if Ondo’s coastline is fully integrated.
“Mr President has shown inclusive approach to development. We are only appealing that Ondo should not be sacrificed. The Aboto-Atijere Road and Ugbonla-Erunna Bridge should also receive urgent federal intervention,” Olabode said.
