.Says state-owned airport to be fully operational in July
Ekiti State Governor, Biodun Oyebanji, has said that the deplorable condition of some federal roads in the state is a source of concern to him.
He, therefore, expressed the hope that the reconstruction of the roads would be realised in the 2024 Federal Government’s budget.
Oyebanji, who said that the Federal Government’s no-refund-to-states policy was the reason the state could not invest heavily in the federal roads, promised to provide alternative roads that would give the commuters respite while travelling across Ekiti State.
The governor also declared that the state’s airport would become fully operational by July and would aid transportation and economic development of the state.
Oyebanji raised this concern and promise during his inaugural appearance in the monthly programme, ‘Meet Your Governor,’ aired across all radio and television stations in the state.
He added that his government had leveraged substantially on the support of eminent stakeholders to attract alternative development windows to the state.
The governor said that as a relief to the suffering of the citizens over bad federal roads, the state government had commenced the Ado-Ekiti Ring Road construction to give commuters a thoroughfare in and out of the state.
He also allayed the fears of landownersover compensation for damaged crops, saying that adequate compensation would be paid to affected individuals and families.
“I am indeed worried by the deplorable state of our federal roads. Our people must get this right. We can’t construct these roads because there will be no refund. But I have sat with our federal lawmakers and they have included some of these roads in the 2024 budget. I have seen evidence that this has been done.
“Within the next few months, our people will start seeing changes. I have got the assurances of the leader of Ekiti State Caucus in the National Assembly, Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele, that efforts are being made to call attention to these roads,” he said.
Oyebanji, who spoke on the N15,000 wage award approved for workers, which critics branded as paltry because of the parlous economic situation, said it was just a temporary measure to buffer the effect of economic crunch on workers pending the final decision on minimum wage.
He said that the wage award had led to an additional N500 million monthly expense for the government.
