Edo state governor, Godwin Obaseki has blamed the state of federal roads in the state on the federal government.
The governor spoke after a viral video showed his convoy trapped along the Benin-Sapele road.
For minutes, Obaseki and his entourage battled unsucessfully to salvage the situation to the admiration of the people in the community, who mocked the governor blaming him for the bad conditions of roads in the state.
But speaking after the incident, Governor Obaseki said the federal government should be held responsible for the harrowing experience motorists, commuters, and other road users pass through on the roads which are in a state of disrepair.
He said the federal government has refused to work out a modality with the state on how the roads will be repaired, and later be reimbursed.
The governor who spoke on Channel Television described the state of roads as ‘scandalous’ saying the region that produces the nation’s oil wealth has been abandoned.
According to Obaseki, “I was on Sapele Road recently. After the heavy downpour, the road was impassable. What is going on on Benin-Sapele Road is scandalous. I don’t think that any region where the oil resources that sustain the Country come from should be neglected. We have done everything possible. We don’t know what to do again to draw the attention of the federal government to these roads.
“The Auchi-Ibillo Road was so bad that some of our contractors couldn’t go to their quarry site. We appealed to the Federal Government to do palliative work on that road, but they refused, saying the road is under contract. If I want to do the same for Benin-Sapele Road, I am not allowed to do so. They claim the road has been given out to a contractor.
“Last year, the Benin-Auchi Road was locked for about two weeks as food, animals, and petroleum products could not reach their destination. We don’t want such situations this year, so they should help us. We are not here to criticise them but to appeal for help.
“At a point, they said we could apply and take over the repair of federal roads, but I am yet to see a state they have given Federal roads to fix,” he stated.
Meanwhile, not a few watching what is happening in the state have opined that states governor must take responsibility for what is happening is their states instead of blaming the federal government.
After all, it’s the people of the state that are using the roads and not those in Abuja. So what is he talking about?
