30th November, 2020
Mr. Babatunde Fashola, SAN
Honorable Minister of Works and Housing,
Mabushi,
Abuja.
Sir,
STATE OF FEDERAL ROADS UNACCEPTABLE
We are One Love Foundation, a civil society group based in Benin City, Edo State. Our activities are domiciled in the schedule of Federal Government of Nigeria, Amnesty International and other international civil society groups.
We write to counter the statement credited to you that “the state of our roads is not bad”. Certainly, the deplorable state of roads in Nigeria has become a national shame and an unnecessary embarrassment as there is hardly any part of the country that can boast of motor-able roads. Most all the roads are in terrible state even after over 20 years of uninterrupted democracy in the country.
By our assessment as a civil society group, these bad roads are consequences of poor leadership and woeful planning, existing railway system is not only dysfunctional, it is under-developed.
Sadly, you once boasted that any serious government should be able to fix electricity in six months; Are you now telling us that you’re not a serious person? This is because you haven’t been able to fix our roads in over six years.
The state of our bad roads is a national tragedy that does not shock anyone anymore that scores of innocent people are killed daily in avoidable accidents on account of bad roads. The same poor road network has resulted in poor productivity as immeasurable man-hours are lost in traffic. The national economy suffers incalculable losses as a result.
It is high time government at all levels treated road infrastructure as a priority to enhance economic development and secure life and property.
This is also where corruption has dealt another devastating blow on Nigerians. Since 1999, a whopping N1.4 trillion ($8.5 billion) has reportedly been spent on road construction or maintenance with very little evidence of the money spent.
Without a functional railway system, roads are the only means of movement for people and goods. And so when the roads are not in good shape as is seen all over the country, the nation’s economy is sure to be the first victim.
Specifically, some of the worst highways include the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Shagamu-Ore, Onitsha-Enugu-Port Harcourt road, generally believed to be the most strategic economic routes in the country as Lagos seaports are the only viable ones. Others include Ikorodu-Shagamu road, Okene-Lokoja-Abuja and Rijau-Kontagora road in Niger State, Calabar-Itu Road, Ikom Calabar Road, Aba Owerri Road, Aba Port Harcourt Road, Benin, Ore, Lagos Road, With a few exceptions, indeed, virtually all the highways in the country are in terrible state.
What is more traumatic than travelling through Nigerian roads, especially, my last experience travelling from Benin City to Abuja was not only nightmarish but depressing. A journey of five hours took me thirteen hours.
After 60 years of independence, it is indeed a shame that Nigeria, despite the huge revenue earnings from oil, is yet to develop a good transportation system. From 2008 to June 2014 alone, Nigeria reportedly earned N44.655 trillion. Add this to another N2.5 trillion reportedly earned by Nigeria in the last quarter of 2015. That is why it is quite pertinent to ask the kind of premium government places on roads as economic assets that should aid national productivity!
There are very few African countries with Nigeria’s shameful status with regards to roads. The Lagos-Badagry highway, for example, which links Nigeria with the Republic of Benin, underscores this ugly narrative. Whereas the Nigerian side of what should be a super highway, linking the whole of West Africa, is dilapidated and impassable, the Republic of Benin’s portion is not only in good condition, it advertises a certain irresponsibility on the part of Nigeria.
In every respect, we sympathise with the agonising road transporters. The Nigerian authorities are culpable and they should show responsibility.
It has been said often that the building of concrete roads with cement, especially in the southern states where erosion is rife is the way to go. This is what experts have been recommending as a solution to uncertain durability of asphalt roads. But it appears that no one listens or cares about this. Such insensitivity nurtured by corruption, of course, explains a situation in which roads are still being built at prohibitive costs without considering quality. Whereas, the World Bank’s benchmark for building a kilometre of road is N238 million, the same one-kilometre is built for about N1 billion in Nigeria.
The maintenance of roads in Nigeria must improve or else the nation’s development objectives will remain unattainable. The federal and state governments should enunciate a policy that will involve private sector operators in a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model that can also attract foreign investment. Already, the Federal Government has launched a road concessioning scheme that accommodates private sector participation. There is a commission responsible for this and should be made functional to serve public interest in this regard.
Thanks in advance as you act urgently in fixing this ugly tragedy of bad roads.
Yours faithfully,
Chief Patriot Patrick Osagie Eholor
Democracy Observer General & President,
One Love Foundation.
CC:
His Excellency,
President Muhammadu Buhari
President and Commander-In-Chief
Federal Republic of Nigeria
His Excellency, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo
Vice President, Federal Republic of Nigeria
Distinguished Senator Ahmed Lawal,
Senate President, Federal Republic of Nigeria
Rt. Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila
Speaker, Federal House of Representatives
Federal Republic of Nigeria
Permanent Secretary,
Federal Ministry of Works and Housing,
Mabushi, Abuja.
