Yesterday’s announcement by Governor Seyi Makinde of the approval of the construction of four ultra modern bus terminals at Iwo Road, Challenge, New Ife Road and Ojoo in Ibadan, the state capital, has generated mixed reactions from stakeholders in the state.
OYOINSIGHT.COM had earlier reported how the state’s Commissioner for Public Works, Infrastructure and Transport, Prof. Raphael Afonja, announced the decision of the government, on Tuesday.
In his own reaction, Barrister Musah Abdulwasi, a former deputy speaker of the Oyo State house of Assembly, wrote that it is important for the people of the state to understand that the current leadership in the state is democratically elected, and, as such, it is illogical for the people to question the decision of the governor on what project he will execute because it had been captured in the appropriation bill.
“I think people should understand that this is a government democratically elected by the people. The Governor is responsible to the people and he ll be rated at the end of the day base on his performance.
“It doesn’t sound logical to insist on what project the Governor must do or not in as much as it’s captured in the appropriation Law.
“I can’t recollect anyone dictating to the president or any past Governor the projects he must do or not to do.
“The interrogation to be made should be whether the authorised parliament approved it or not,” he wrote in a comment on Facebook.
He wrote: “The demolition being carried out is preparatory for the actual contract award.
“The Government is reclaiming the contract site for proper evaluation for the contractors. Once the contract is awarded, the contract sum will be revealed sir, of course it wont be done in secrecy.
However, Oyaremi Abiodun Sulaiman, a former chairman of the Congress for Progressives Change, CPC, in Oyo State, in his reaction questioned why the state government embarked on the demolition of shops at Iwo road when the contract had not been awarded.
“In a construction project, before demolition starts, it means there had been a design, that shows the area the project would cover and that would determine which buildings should be demolished. The design would come with drawings, BoQ and total contract value would have been estimated and that would inform the decision of the government in determining the best time that she can afford the cost.
“My question now is, demolition has commenced which means contract value is known! If contract has not been awarded, who is carrying out the demolition.”
In his own comment, a public affairs analyst, Onike Rahman, laid emphasis on the importance of constructive criticism to ensure accountability.
He stressed further that the fact that an expenditure or it’s contract sum was captured in the appropriation bill does not make it illegal for members of the public to criticize it.
He wrote: “We can not achieve the end of good governance and for our nation to become truly an egalitarian society without people’s criticism and taking on the government of the day for accountability.
“Of course, whatever happened during the former Governor Ajimobi’s administration is not the measure of ideal or final proof of what is right .
“Let me reiterate here that the fact that an expenditure or contract sum is well captured in the appropriation bill doesn’t make it wrong or illegal for members of public to either comment or criticize such project.
“At all times,a responsible and responsive government should expect people’s comments which may be positive or negative depending on the perspective, expectations and background of the person making the comment.”
In the same vein, Wasiu Olawale Sadare, a former Public Relations Officer of the All Progressives Congress, APC, in the state, described the action as a slap on the face of the people of Oyo State.
Adding that it is confirmation that the current PDP administration is here to waste the scarce resources in the state because he does not know what the governor plan to achieve with four bus terminals at a jaw breaking cost.
“It is simply a slap on the face of the people of Oyo State. The development has confirmed that the present PDP administration is here to waste scarce resources and feed fat on our common patrimony. What does the governor want to achieve with four bus terminals in Ibadan at a jaw breaking cost in the region of billions of naira when the critical sectors of the economy are left to suffer?
“Take for instance, why would a reasonable government plan an idea of two bus terminals around the same locations of Iwo Road interchange and new Ife Road, Ibadan when we already have an underutilized massive motor park at Wema Junction beside new Gbagi market complex? “Were the projects captured in the 2020 budget documents? Why did the government deny it when InsightOyo broke the news few weeks ago only to come out now to make a flippant public announcement of a clandestine award of contracts reported to be in the region of N20 billion? Where are the prototypes or engineering designs of the proposed bus terminals?” Wasiu Sadare wrote.
However, in his own reaction to the criticism of the decision of the state executive council and the demolition of shops, Taiwo Adisa, the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, explained that the ministry is currently clearing the site ahead of the commencement of work by the main contractor.
He stressed that the contractor would be named when the contract had been signed off. Adding that once the project is completed, the current shop owners in that axis would be allocated stalls.
“The Ministry is clearing the site ahead of commencement of work by the main contractor. The government had entered into direct talks with the shop.owners long ago. Remember when the Governor worshipped at the mosque there. The contractor would be named when the contract processes are dotted and signed off.
“The demolition can be taken in two parts, either as part of the work of the contractor or as part of the work of the Ministry. In this case it was taken up directly as government after enumeration and biometrics captured. The shops on that axes will first be allocated stalls in the new ultra-modern Terminal,” Adisa added.
