BY TIMOTHY AGBOR, OSOGBO
GOVERNOR Gboyega Oyetola of Osun State, on Thursday, flagged off the construction of the Olaiya Flyover in Osogbo.
The popular and busy Olaiya junction, located in the heart of the capital city, was shut down on Thursday morning as the contractor had already mobilised workers on site.
At the flag-off ceremony, Oyetola promised that the flyover project would not affect other dividends of governance in the state.
According to the governor, the project was necessitated by the need to enhance the quality of lives of Osun people and improve infrastructure in the city that is becoming more populated and boisterous on account of increasing business activities.
He said, “Specifically, the project will address growing traffic around major routes in the city and particularly, the Olaiya axis, leading to waste of man hours by residents in our State. It will also prevent frequent cases of accidents that have claimed lives. We cannot afford to waste more lives.
“The proposed flyover is a 4-span of 15m each, with two Underpass bays for U-turning to Fakunle/Justrite and MDS/Post Office. It is a 295.95m length of Bridge Approach Ramp, 196m long Fakunle Ramp, 99.95m long MDS Ramp, with slope of Ramp being three per cent.”
According to him, the Flyover will be financed through the state’s Alternative Project Funding Approach (APFA).
He said, “By this, it entails that the contractor will fund the project, while the state repays the contractor over a period of time so as to enable Government free up resources for its other important obligations.
“Consequently, this project will not in any way stop us from delivering on other dividends of good governance, including citizen’s welfare, regular payment of workers’ salaries and pensions, completion of ongoing projects and initiation of more projects across the State.”
“Realising that the closure of the Olaiya road will bring some temporary difficulties, we’ve made enough provision for alternative routes to serve vehicular needs. I, therefore, appeal to owners of businesses around the project site to bear with us, as we’ll try as much as possible to minimise the inconvenience,” he added.
Meanwhile, stakeholders in the state hailed the governor during the flag-off ceremony, saying it was a well thought-out project.
