Image caption: An accident at Take on Saturday involving a logging truck, motorcycle and petrol tanker leading to the death of the motorcyclist
Dualize this road, put flyovers, Ogbomoso residents beg Gov Makinde as accidents claim 16 lives in 2 days
Khalid ABRAHAM
It was real Black Weekend in Ogbomoso, Oyo state as five separate crashes reportedly claimed nothing less than fifteen lives including three traditional rulers and left two with tattered legs.
This sad development has triggered a sober appeal to Oyo state governor Engr. Oluseyi Makinde to consider dualizing the major trunk A road in the metropolis (North – South road) and construct flyovers at some spots notably Takie Square and Caretaker junction in order to reduce frequency of carnage on the road.
Ogbomoso Insight can affirm many lives have been lost on this particular road, which traverses Ogbomoso metropolis from Lagos/Ibadan/Oyo axis towards the northern part of the country.
The large number of load-laden articulated vehicles (trailers) plying the road coupled with several bad gullied portions have no doubt turned the road into death trap harbouring blood-sucking ghosts.
“I appeal to Governor Seyi Makinde to come to our aid by dualizing this road from Agric (Farm Settlement Scheme) to Aroje or Igbon,” a disraught man, who identified himself as Idowu Ashifa, told ogbomosoinisightonline.com Saturday when discussion arose on the incessant accidents on the road.
Continuing Mr. Ashifa said, “Only yesterday three traditional rulers reportedly died on the road, I heard of another one at Emaayo area and two today all with casualties. If the road is dualized head-on collisions will reduce.”
ogbomosoinsightonline.com broke the news of the auto crash that claimed the lives of three traditional rulers Friday at Arinkinkin area including Olodogbo of Odogbo, Onibowula of Bowula and Alayetoro of Ayetoro on their way to a social function.
In another accident on Friday, three motorcyclists reportedly lost their lives at Emaayo area as a car said to be coming from Otitoju area slammed into them on this trunk A road when the driver instead of pressing the brake pedal as it approached the junction pressed hard on the throttle making the car to lunge forcefully forward into the okada riders and crushing them to death in one fell swoop.
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Then, overnight (3;30am Saturday), this same weekend, nine persons reportedly got burnt beyond recognition at Sekona village (well beyond Agric area) as a petrol tanker fell during an accident, spilled its content and caught fire leading to the burning of the nine people.
At Caretaker/Ijeru Baptist Basic School area Saturday, a trailer also crushed the legs of an okada rider and his passenger a female during a heavy traffic snarl. The okada fell into the tyre of the articulated vehicle as it attempted to manouvre the long winding queue of vehicles. The wide deep craters on the road had ignited the hold up.
Later in the afternoon same Saturday a heavily-loaded logging truck/timber lorry (Yoruba – gbegilodo) was said to have lost control while descending the Sekoni hill towards Takie Square, tornadoing an okada man into a petrol tanker, who died on the spot.
“Two ways to reduce these road mishaps are for the government to make it dual-carriageway so that incidences of head-on collisions will reduce and will allow drivers and riders greater room for manouvring in cases of emergencies,” another concerned resident, who witnessed the Caretaker accident, Adegbosin Michael, opined.
“The road will eventually revert to Oyo state government (or it has become the state’s) when the federal government completes the new dual carriageway linking Ibadan to Ilorin through Oyo and Ogbomoso,” Adegbosin added.
In the same vein a shop owner who confirmed the Takie accident but spoke under condition of anonymity stressed, “It was a tragic sight seeing the victim of the accident how he was crushed by the gbegilodo.
“I believe if a flyover is constructed at Takie such an accident could have been averted,” further noting, “Takie roundabout is prone to accidents, therefore putting a flyover there will be a good solution. We appeal to Governor Makinde to construct an overhead bridge at this ever busy spot.
“After all, he once made a promise at Ogunlola Hall, Oja’gbo, to put up one. That was in his first tenure when Ogbomoso’s votes for him was even minimal, in this second term when we voted massively for him let him help us to dualize the road and fulfill the promise of flyover. The Caretaker junction will also do with a flyover.”
Recall late Governor Abiola Ajimobi dualized part of the trunk A road at Takie area (Bowen to Post Office, Apake), which drastically cut down traffic snarls and accidents despite it being a full fledged federal government owned road at the time, “Government Makinde should do something unforgettable for Ogbomoso too in his time, though we thank him for the Ogbomoso – Iseyin highway, which he started and completed,” Quaseem Adeleke, another resident, submitted.
