For residents of Magboro in Ogun State, there are more to worry about beyond the hardship and economic recession experienced in the country, as their access to the outside world in the fast-growing community is hampered due to the deplorable state of the road.

In spite of repeated attempts at getting both federal and state governments’ attention to their plight, no action has since been taken, leaving residents feeling dejected and abandoned, especially after several promises where made a year ago during the electioneering session.

All through the year, there is no respite for the hundreds of thousands living in Magboro, as each season comes with its own challenges. The dry season brings with it dust and catarrh; while it gets worse during the rainy season as any drop of the rain floods the entire road, which takes weeks to dry up.

Speaking with The Guardian, the Baale of Ajegunle Basha town in Magboro, Chief Alao Mustapha Yeko, said: “There is no drainage in this community. The few streets, which was started by the government has since been abandoned. Presently, whenever it rains, we find it difficult to go out. The distance from Makogi to the express road without hitches is five minutes, but due to the bad road, we spend between 40 to 50 minutes to navigate the road.

“As a community, we have been trying our best to fix this road every year, but our efforts are only palliative measure, because whenever it rains, the materials used to refill the road is washed away by the flood.

“At this point, it seems all our efforts are in vain and there is a limit to what we can do with communal efforts. We, therefore, appeal to the Ogun State government to come to our rescue and repair our road,” he said.

Another community leader, the Baale of Magboro Shofolarin Land, Chief Akeeb Sanni Shofolarin, said the abandoned road rehabilitation is the cause of the power outage in the community for over four years now.

“The abandoned road project was the reason some electric poles were shifted. We have been living in darkness because the poles can’t be erected again until the road and drainage are fxed and accurate metres allowed for right of way to be determined. We appeal to the state government to live up to its promise.”