Gov Adeleke Planning To Demolish Olaiya Flyover…He’s Out To Erase Oyetola’s Legacy-Osun APC

Osun State APC on Wednesday accused the Governor Ademola Adeleke administration of planning to demolish the Olaiya flyover bridge in Osogbo, the state capital.

APC, which is the main opposition party in the state, accused the Adeleke administration   of whipping up sentiment to discredit what it called ‘the life-changing legacies’ of his immediate predecessor , Mr Gboyega Oyetola, who is currently the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, adding that he is doing this for political reasons.

The party insisted that the  flyover in question was constructed with quality materials that can never be faulted anywhere in the world, submitting that it remains one of the best legacies bequeathed to the state by any government since  its creation .

Osun State APC said this during the press conference that was  held at the Tinubu/Shettima Campaign Office, Ogo-Oluwa, Osogbo, which was jointly presided over by the  Chairman of the party in the state, Alhaji Tajudeen Lawal, former Commissioner for Works and Transport, Engr. Oluremi Omowaiye; former Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Prince Adebayo Adeleke; and former Special Adviser on Education, Alhaji Jamiu Olawumi.

The party  sent a strong warning to the state government to desist from actions capable of undermining the gains of the former governor and getting Osun State exposed to socio-political unrest.

Tajudeen Lawal, who was represented by the State  APC Treasurer, Femi Kujembola, described the  government’s plans as disruptive, capable of brewing bad blood among citizens of the state along political divides.

Engineer Oluremi Omowaiye, talked about the concept behind project, explaining that the bridge was constructed in line with the international best practices and standard. 

According to him, the flyover passed all prescribed tests and it was built to last many years while adding  that the project was awarded to a renowned contractor with impeccable track records.

He said the construction of the bridge was a product of due process and a child of necessity to eliminate road mishap and reduce traffic congestion in the area.

Omowaiye explained further that the state government didn’t put the flyover at the junction for the fun of it but rather to ensure free flow of vehicular movement in the area which  was achieved throughout the period the  Oyetola administration was in charge and even till present moment. 

‘Precisely in December 2020, there was a ghastly auto crash at the Olaiya roundabout  that claimed lives and this informed the decision of the state government  to erect flyover bridge in view of the similar situation in the area.

The essence is to eradicate road mishap, traffic congestion and bring aesthetic values to the center which our administration did successfully. We carried out an Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) and we did traffic count to look at the vehicular movement and congestion strength and we were very empirical as that later informed the decision to erect the flyover. We did all this to reduce auto accidents there. 

We equally approached the Federal Ministry of Works before the project was carried out knowing full well that the road is a federal government road. We equally approached a renowned consultant that supervised the project. We also gave the project to the contractor with verifiable record not the fertilizer distributors and cyber cafe operators that the state government is currently using that could not boast of any successful work they have ever done in the past before undertaking contracts in Osun.

We carried out various capacity tests to ensure the standard and sustainability of the project. We carried out various material tests, including plate loading test, at the University of Lagos laboratory, FUTA laboratory, Lagos State Material Testing Lab, the best laboratory in the Nigeria’ he added.

Also speaking, Prince Adebayo Adeleke said the state government under Governor Ademola Adeleke is bent on destroying all the legacies of the previous administration for petty political motive.

Prince Adeleke, who bemoaned the  alleged shoddy jobs being done by the state government contractors on many of the ongoing roads infrastructure and bridges in the state, said it is disheartening to note that the Adeleke administration  is not serious with governance as ‘it had shown clearly that he was not prepared before taking the mantle of leadership of the state’. 

He alleged that the ongoing Okefia and Lameco flyover bridges were awarded to quacks as the projects were allegedly given to ‘cybercafe operators and fertilizer suppliers’.

Alhaji Jamiu Olawumi said  the current government in the state lacks moral right and integrity to condemn any job done by the immediate past administration, submitting that  it is troubling that the ongoing Okefia flyover has already failed integrity test even before completion.

According to him, the state government had on several occasions dismantled the erected pillars, a signal to the impeding failure of the project in the engineering parlance. 

While calling on the people of the state to disregard any statement from the government that can hinder them from having a smooth ride on the flyover, he also said all the Adeleke administration  has been doing is to prepare their minds against the looming default on the ongoing Okefia flyover bridge and other road construction projects  embarked upon by the current government.

He said there is nothing wrong with the flyover adding  that the state government lacks administrative right to condemn the bridge, as only the federal government, who is the rightful owner of the road, could issue a technical report to fault the current status of the flyover. 

Former Commissioner for  Information, Hon. Sunday Akere; APC Director of Media and Publicity, Chief Kola Olabisi; Mr. Akin Adeyi; former SSA on Students and Social Mobilization, Comrade Kehinde Ayantunji; State Women Leader, Alhaja Kudirat Fakokunde; Comrade Waheed Adediran; Elder Adebayo Adeyemi; Lukman Rafiu; Deaconess Adesola Ayangbile among others attended the press conference-Team@orientactualmags.com  Do you have any information you wish to share with us? Do you want us to cover your event or programme? Kindly send SMS to 08059100286, 09094171980 or get in touch via orientactualmag@gmail.com.  Thank you