Makinde Reads Riots Acts to Traffic Offenders,Street Hawkers

…to impose sanctions on defaulters

Oyo state governor, Engineer Seyi makinde, has read the riot act to traffic offenders that are full of flouting the traffic rules and regulations of the state and to the street Hawkers that display their goods on the roadside and their patronizers, that cause traffic gridlock to abstrain from such acts or face the wrath of the law after May 29.

Governor makinde who gave the warning while speaking at a special church service on Sunday,said that the government will impose sanctions on defaulters.

Governor makinde, explained that the traffic gridlock being experienced recently must have been as a result of influxes of people who are seeking a conducive environment in the state.

He noted: The second issue is about the investment on the road. As you can see, we have traffic situations here. Well, let me say this; many people are coming into this state from other states because things are being done right here. “When we came in, we were in a hole. Now, we are out of the hole and yet to start working or running, but we are crawling along and proactive in how we are situating our infrastructure.
“Many people are coming in, and we have to stay ahead on how we provide the infrastructure. If you look at the Airport road coming into Ibadan, it is not the same situation as we have in Lagos. We are looking at multiple routes to get to the Airport. Not only have we dualized the Airport road itself, the Airport road is now going to Ajia to burst out at the Ajia junction. So, if you are going to Ife, you don’t need to get to the junction.

“We also have a new road now going through Oremeji, Agugu, which is right after the gate of the Airport. So, if you are going to the centre of the City, you don’t have to come to Iwo road. You turn in right after the gate to get to Oremeji, Agugu and beyond. Furthermore, on that road to Ajia, we made a spur to Amuloko and from Amuloko, you can turn left and go towards Akanran and Ijebu-Ode, and you can turn right and come to Olorunsogo. Not only are we fixing the road, we are also dualizing the biggest portion, which is about 3.5 km.

“For example, if you want to come to Secretariat, Gate, Total Garden and all those neighbouring areas, you don’t have to come in through Iwo Road. The Old-Ife road is being fixed. I was there yesternight around 9:30 p.m and inspected the underpass at Onipepeye. You know it is connected to the Ogbere River and we have expanded that place. We can never experience floods at Onipepeye like again. If you want to go to gate, you take the old-Ife road, which has been dualized. No bottleneck. That underpass will be open for traffic before the 29th of May. All of these are under Omituntun 1.0.

Makinde warned lawbreakers, to turn a new leaf by obeying environmental and traffic laws, adding that violators of the state law would not go unpunished under Omituntun 2.0

The governor explained that “If you look at the roadmap for sustainable development 2023-2027, section 6, it deals with the rule of law. We have the grace period also now. Between now and May 29, people will have the grace. But starting from May 29, I will make the pronouncement and put big billboards at all entry points to Oyo State that will suggest that this will be a state that you will be responsible for your actions.

“We will engage with all stakeholders whose markets are flowing into the roads and causing traffic logjam. We will ask them to be confined within the space provided for buying and selling. I will not go after the sellers but the buyers. If you want to buy things, go inside the market. We will provide parking spaces and organization within those marketplaces. But if you stay on the road to patronize people who are not supposed to be on the road, you will pay the fine for both of you as the buyer and the seller. ‘We will show mercy on the seller, but the grace will not cover the buyer, but we will sensitize the people first, he said.