Ogun to spend N30.7bn on roads in 2018

Ogun Government says it will spend N30.7 billion on the construction of roads across the state in 2018. The state’s Commissioner for Works and Infrastructure, Mr Olamilekan Adegbite, stated this on Monday while defending the ministry’s 2018 budget before members of the House of Assembly Committee on Finance and Appropriation, in Abeokuta.

Adegbite said that part of the amount would be used to settle the bill of contractors of ongoing road projects in major towns of the state, adding that some roads would be constructed through direct labour. He disclosed that N5 billion had been budgeted for continuous maintenance and repairs of new roads in the state. He explained that the main objective of the 2018 budget was the completion of the 20 ongoing road projects, covering about 357.11kilometres across the state. “The government will construct additional 500 kilometres of durable asphalt roads in major towns of the state. I want to apologise for the delay in the work done on Ijebu bridge; initially funds were very tight but I can tell you categorically that contractors have gone back to site on the bridge.

“Also, the Sagamu-Ogijo road, contractors are also on site and work has commenced on the road. The government has commenced the process of the establishment of one asphalt plant in the state,” he said. The commissioner said that the ministry had proposed N38.9 billion as capital expenditure for 2018, saying that N445 million was earmarked for recurrent expenditure.

He said that N345 million was expected revenue for the ministry. The Chairman of the committee, Mr Olusola Bankole, advised the ministry to ensure that there were good road network across the state. Bankole urged the ministry to liaise with the Federal government to fix major roads in the state. Other lawmakers who spoke decried the deplorable state of Lagos-Abeokuta, Sagamu-Ogijo and Owode-Ilaro and Emuren road, and called on the ministry to find a lasting solution to the roads.

(NAN)