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Motorists, commuters decry Berger’s insensitivity in handling Lagos-Ibadan Expressway

By Bertram Nwannekanma
29 August 2022   |   4:05 am
After days of untold hardship along Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, occasioned by unending construction work by Julius Berger, motorists and commuters, yesterday lamented that the contractor is insensitive and intentionally inflicting pains on them.

Trapped commuters pushing broken down vehicle on the earth road along Ibadan-Lagos expressway.. yesterday PHOTO: BERTRAM NWANNEKANMA

• Firm is inflicting pains intentionally on commuters’
• Task FOWH on monitoring, supervision, best practices’ 

After days of untold hardship along Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, occasioned by unending construction work by Julius Berger, motorists and commuters, yesterday lamented that the contractor is insensitive and intentionally inflicting pains on them.  

   
Some Sections of the expressway along Kara and Magboro have recently been experiencing heavy gridlock due to ongoing rehabilitation.
But commuters are worried that despite several suggestions made in the past to lessen their woes, the firm has not listened.
   
A resident at Ibafo, who experienced Friday’s traffic madness that made many sleep on the road, left his house   yesterday’s morning to attend a church service, but was trapped in traffic on the Long bridge.
 
He angrily wrote in a residents’ platform yesterday: “Even on Sunday morning,  Julius Berger is messing things up seriously. What is all this now?
   
“It’s bad ooo,  I have been here since 5:00a.m. just to go to church, the long bridge is blocked. The traffic started from Mikano and it’s not funny at all.”

A commuter, whose car was trapped on the earth road yesterday,  Oyeyemi  Adeosun, said there is no part in the world where  such construction  is going on, without alternative routes.

 
According to him, rather than fixing the failed portions or grade the existing earth road beside the Long bridge to ease movement on such an important road, the contractor is even closing the alternative routes.
   
Adeosun also expressed worries that rather than the supervising Ministry of Works and Housing , monitoring  activities of the contractor, they seem to be supporting them by always telling motorists that there is no gain without pain, which is a tacit support for the contractor’s insensitivity to road users’ plight.
 
“Should we all die in the name of waiting for the gain? Who will use the road if the motorists do not live for tomorrow? He queried.
Another commuter, Mrs. Emmanuella Uduak, who was returning from a trip to Ibadan yesterday, wondered how people, who work in Lagos, but reside at the surrounding communities manage to go to their respective work places.
 
“If I can complain for just a day, what of those who must pass through this road everyday?” She queried.  A motorist, John Uzaru, tasked the Federal Government on creation of  a committee to monitor the activities of Julius Berger daily and ensure that the firm works in line with international best practices.
   
He also urged the Federal Government to ensure that the contractor is mobilised to site only when funds are available so as to stop the snail pace of the project.
   
Uzaru reasoned that  the same contractor worked  with speed when it handled the Abuja airport runway and delivered before schedule, but wondered why it could not maintain such speed or increase the tempo.
   
Another angry resident, who gave his name simply as Kinglsey, said there is information that the contractor is slowing  the pace to ensure that commuters cry out to the Federal Government, to get  funds released for the completion of the project.
 
Reacting, a top official of the Ministry called on motorists to exercise patience. The official affirmed that the contractor is being monitored and will ensure that it deliver in record time.  

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