By Mike Ebonugwo & Olasunkanmi  Akoni

For residents of different communities in Lagos Sate, the rainy season is   always a period to dread. It comes with many challenges and mishaps, ranging from flooding, building collapse, eroded roads, traffic chaos, among others.

Company vehicle being loaded with granite at a flooded spot on the road

When these happen, people are given to lamentations and telling tales of woes, especially as many roads become impassable for motorists, homes are flooded, property worth fortunes are destroyed and human lives  lost in some cases.

The early rains this year have given a clear indication that there will be no exception as the attendant problems are already being felt in different parts of the state. In particular, the rains have exposed the  poor state of  roads across the state.

Forecast of down pour, flooding

Earlier in the year, the then Commissioner for the Environment and now Secretary to the State Government, Mr. Tunji Bello, had alerted residents on the high volume of rainfall expected to be accompanied by strong winds.

Weather forecast indicated that strong winds would be experienced during the onset and cessation of every rainfall.

The state government, therefore, called for caution on the part of residents, urging them to take care of drainage channels. Advertising and telecommunication agencies were also advised to ensure that bill boards and telecommunication masts are properly placed or mounted to prevent them falling and causing disasters.

“Emergency agencies, traffic agency, road repair, Power Holding Authority and all related bodies must endeavour to put in place safety measures to reduce accidents on our roads which may be as a result of flash flooding and strong winds within and around the state,” the state government said.

But as part of measures to reduce traffic gridlock and prevent avoidable accidents on the roads, the management of the Lagos State Public Works Corporation, LSPWC, recently embarked on massive rehabilitation of about 100 identified bad roads in the state.

 Gov Ambode’s directive on roads rehabilitation

The exercise was based on the directive of the Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode, who stressed the need to provide a sort of palliative measure for motorists along bad roads.

It would be recalled that LSPWC, early in the year announced that the corporation would rehabilitate 1,400 roads in the state this year.

Last Thursday, Ambode, accompanied by top officials of the state government and security agencies, visited major traffic points in the area to have an on-the-spot assessment of the perennial traffic chaos in the Rainbow, Mile Two, Berger and Coconut axis of the Oshodi-Apapa Expressway which seemed to have defied all solutions.

Failed access road: Vanguard to the rescue

The Governor assured residents that roads in deplorable state in Apapa would also be given attention.

While waiting for government to make good its promise in this regard, Vanguard Media Limited, Publishers of Vanguard Newspapers, last weekend  embarked on partial rehabilitation of the heavily eroded Vanguard Avenue, off the Oshodi-Apapa Expressway. Before now it was always  difficult driving through the  road due to potholes on several failed sections of it. The direct labour rehabilitation effort, according to the newspaper outfit, is a palliative measure intended to make the access road motorable and easy for staff, clients and other visitors to connect the expressway.

The first major tarring of the road was done on the directive of the then Military Administrator of Lagos State, Brigadier-General Mohammed Buba Marwa (retd). It was re-tarred by the state government during the administration of  Governor Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

Palliative repairs of road

Since then Vanguard had always taken it upon itself to carry out palliative repairs each time the road went bad. This is in spite of the fact that the road is also used, and even more so, by some multinational companies, including a construction outfit.

Last weekend, defying the mid-day downpour, Vanguard staff rolled out trucks and building materials to fix major portions of the bad road with granite and cement.

It was gathered that the company has already spent substantial funds in the  rehabilitation of the road.

Govt intervention for proper rehabilitation

The Administration Manager of Vanguard Media Limited, Mr. Victor Gotevbe, lamented that the company and staff had suffered a lot due to the bad road.

According to him: “Most of our clients who come here to do business with us complain bitterly on account of the bad road which they said cause serious  damage to their vehicles.

“Most importantly for us, our effort in this regard is a way of giving back to the society. It is a way of demonstrating Corporate Social Responsibility, despite the fact that we are not only the company on the road.

“But we expect the new administration of Governor Akinwunmi Ambode to promptly intervene by ensuring proper rehabilitation of the road through relevant authorities in the interest of the general public.

“Honestly, we appreciate Governor Ambode’s intervention which led to the easing of traffic jam on the expressway. But we are also expecting him to intervene on this road.”