The PDP senatorial candidate for Kwara South, Hon Saheed Olamilekan Popoola of the PDP, has said federal roads in the district will get necessary attention if he is elected.
Popoola spoke on the deplorable state of federal roads across the senatorial district, lamenting the hardship faced by residents, farmers and motorists.
He cited the Omu-Aran – Iloffa – Eruku – Egbe – Kabba road, where the Alofa of Iloffa recently described the route as a death trap, noting that farm produce now rots on farms due to the inability of transporters to access agrarian communities.
The aspirant also mentioned the Omu-Aran – Obbo-Aiyegunle – Ille – Eruku – Egbe road, the sole federal artery linking Kwara South to Kogi State and the South-West, where a 143-kilometre journey from Egbe to Ilorin which previously took two to three hours now takes seven to eight hours.
He further decried the condition of the AOffa – Erin-Ile – Osun road among others, which he said has become a security risk for commuters.
According to Popoola, the roads have been neglected due to lack of strong representation for the district.
“If you elect me as your Senator, our federal roads will get the necessary attention under my administration. I will not sit in Abuja in silence,” he said.
He said he would move motions on the floor of the Senate, engage the Minister of Works and the Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA), and work to ensure the roads are captured and adequately funded in the national budget.
Popoola added that he would also engage private companies, including Dangote and BUA, whose heavy-duty trucks ply the corridors, to contribute to the reconstruction and maintenance of the roads.
“A road is not just tar and stone. A good road is food on the table, it is security, it is jobs, it is dignity. Kwara South deserves better,” he stated.