Residents of the Ajebo route Housing Estate, Kemta, in Abeokuta, on Tuesday urged the state government to step in and ensure the safety of its roadways for pedestrians in response to the frequent accidents on the Kemta-Somorin route.
The call came after a careless hit-and-run driver killed Oladipo Ademuyiwa, a lecturer in FUNAAB’s Biochemistry department, on Prof. Wole Soyinka Road in the Kemta-Somorin road on Sunday.
The death of three of their colleagues by a truck driver in the Kemta region was also protested by members of the Nigeria Automobile Technicians Association in Ogun State, according to the DAILY POST.
The technicians vowed never to let truck drivers to use the newly built Ajebo/OGTV freeway again unless a concrete solution is found to address the continuous death toll on the road.
But according to Ayo Ajasa, the chairman of the Ajebo Road Housing Estate, no real steps have been done to put speed breakers and other essential safety measures on the road, even after numerous requests to the government and pertinent authorities.
Ajasa claimed that if the state government took action, the frequent and preventable accidents might be stopped.
“It is discouraging that no tangible steps have been taken to install speed breakers and other essential safety measures on this road, despite numerous appeals to the Ogun State Government and pertinent agencies,” he stated.
“The government ignored our repeated requests to protect lives in the Ajebo Road Housing Estate, but they installed speed bumps on the Ilugun end of the road without hesitation.”
In order to warn drivers against careless driving, the chairman demanded that speed breakers be installed along Prof. Wole Soyinka Road, that lorry barriers be put in place, and that there be clear traffic signage.
He believed that more stringent regulations should be put in place to stop excessive speeding on the estate.
“It is intolerable that a group of law-abiding citizens must endure a string of mishaps, close calls with death, and now the passing of a distinguished professor because of the government’s inaction.”
Within 24 hours of this terrible event, there was another collision, demonstrating that this route is still a death trap. But before more people die, we demand that the governor of Ogun State step in and hold the administration responsible.
“To further spread this call for justice and safer roads in our community, we also call on the media, civil society organizations, and well-meaning Nigerians,” Ajasa continued.
