•Warns protesters to be wary of blackmailers •We have made progress in curbing HIV, AIDS, says Coker
Ogun State Government, yesterday, reiterated its commitment to rehabilitating major roads in the Ota axis of the state.
The state government gave the undertaking at a meeting convened by the state Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Oluwasina Ogungbade (SAN), to discuss the concerns that led to a protest by members of the Ota branch of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), led by its Chairperson, Kelubia K Ajose, on October 25, 2025.
The Attorney-General was joined at the meeting by the State Solicitor-General and Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Justice, Olusegun Olaotan; Special Adviser to the Governor on Media, Kayode Akinmade; Permanent Secretary of the State Ministry of Works, Dr Oladimeji Yusuf, and other aides of the governor.
According to Ogungbade, the Ogun State government is seriously committed to enhancing road infrastructure in the state generally and in Ota in particular, especially considering that since its inauguration, the Dapo Abiodun-led administration has constructed or rehabilitated over 1,500 kilometres of roads in the state, the first stretch of which was, incidentally, in Ota.
The state government, therefore, encouraged the Bar to be mindful of dishonest political actors and controversy merchants who had been mobilised to smear the governor and the government.
The NBA delegation emphasised that the protest was the result of pent-up frustration among the entire Ota populace, not just lawyers, adding that the branch embarked on a peaceful protest to draw the government’s attention to the deplorable condition of the roads in the area, and that the people did not distinguish between state and federal roads.
It assured that the NBA was acting on its own merit and had been conscious, during and since the protest, to ensure that no person outside the Branch hijacks the branch’s initiative.
Also responding, Akinmade thanked the NBA delegation for the visit and assured them that their demands would be communicated to the governor.
He, however, urged them to be conscious of the fact that some political adversaries of the government could cash in on the peaceful protest for their personal aggrandisement.
Meanwhile, the state said it had recorded significant improvement in its efforts at reducing the prevalence of HIV and AIDS in the state.
Commissioner for Health, Dr Tomi Coker, stated this yesterday, when she delivered a keynote address to mark the 2025 World AIDS Day celebration themed “Overcoming Disruption, Transforming the AIDS Response”, held at the Olusegun Osoba Press Centre, Oke-Mosan, Abeokuta.
According to the commissioner, over 30,000 people are currently receiving free anti-retroviral therapy in health facilities, while HIV testing and counselling services have been made available in the 20 local councils of the state to bring care closer to the people
Coker also disclosed that 96 per cent of the people tested for HIV infection in the state know their HIV status, just as there is significant expansion on the prevention of Mother-to-Child Transmission (PMTCT) programme, resulting in more mothers giving birth to HIV free children.
