Ibadan residents protest Circular Road land extension

Residents of Ibadan in the Oyo State capital have protested against the elongation of marked portions of land for the construction of the Ibadan Circular Road.

The protest, which erupted on Monday, took the protesters to the entrance of the Oyo State Government Secretariat.

News gathered that  between 2003 and 2007, the Oyo State government, then under the leadership of Senator Rasidi Ladoja, marked some portions of land for the construction of a Circular Road in Ibadan.

However, the project was not executed by the late Chief Adebayo Alao-Akala, who took over from Ladoja.

According to findings, the project was eventually executed by the immediate past governor, the  late Abiola Ajimobi who started the construction of the road while in office between 2011 and 2019.

The residents, during Monday’s peaceful protest, pleaded with the Makinde-led administration in the state not to extend the Circular Road beyond the already marked areas.

The protesters, who were mostly from the Akinyele Local Government Area, noted that many people had already been affected in the existing arrangement, with an appeal that the Circular Road should not be extended beyond 150 metres.

They paraded placards with varying inscriptions such as “150 meters is enough”, “150 metres is enough for Circular Road”, and “Our people are dying on a daily basis.”

One of the protesters, identified as Ismail Abimbola, spoke on behalf of the protesters.

He said, “Residents of many communities in the local government area are already panicking over the planned extension.

“We are here to appeal to the government to consider us on the issue of the corridor they want to embark upon.

“I am from Akinyele Local Government Area. Many villages and communities are involved.

“The communities include Solalu, Alagbede, Olukitibi, Akinwande, Akinlawon, Omilabu, Aba Odo, Aba Ido, Ido Omo, Ori Oke, Oke Ola, Olowoogbo, Olohungba, Ade Owu, Asaaju and many villages.

“There are still many other communities that this corridor is involved.

“Our prayer is that the government should consider us. They should not go beyond the already marked areas because many people are already dead, though physically alive, because of the previous 150 metres already marked. It is too much.

“We are here to appeal to the state government.”