IBADAN RESIDENTS KICK AGAINST EXTENSION OF LAND FOR CIRCULAR ROAD

Scores of residents of Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, have kicked against elongation of already marked lands meant for construction of Circular Road.

The residents kicked against the development during a peaceful protest at the entrance of Oyo State Government Secretariat on Monday.

Report says that between 2003 and 2007, the Oyo State government then led by Rasidi Ladoja marked some lands for the construction of a Circular Road in Ibadan.

The project was not executed by late Adebayo Alao-Akala who took over from Ladoja. It was eventually executed by the immediate past governor, late Abiola Ajimobi who started the construction of the road when he was in the office between 2011 and 2019.

The residents, during Monday’s protest, appealed to the current administration in the state not to extend the Circular Road beyond the already marked areas.

The protesters, who are mostly from Akinyele Local Government Area, noted that many people had already been affected in the existing arrangement.

They paraded placards with inscriptions such as ‘150 meters is enough’, ‘150 metres is enough for Circular Road’ and ‘Our people are dying on a daily basis’.

The residents appealed to the state government not to extend the Circular Road beyond the 150 metres.

Ismail Qamardeen Abimbola, who spoke on behalf of the protesters, noted that residents of many communities in the local government area are already panicking over the planned extension.

He said, “We are here to appeal to the government to consider us on the issue of the corridor they want to embark upon.

Our prayer is that the government should consider us, they should not to take beyond the already marked areas because many people have died while alive already on the previous 150 meters they have already marked. It is too much. We are here to appeal to the state government.”