Adeleke Claims Osun Built Federal Roads Without Payment

The Governor of Osun State, Ademola Adeleke, has said his government has built several federal roads in the state but has not received any payment from the federal government for these projects.

Mr Adeleke made this known on Tuesday during a town hall meeting on Arise TV in Osogbo. This was ahead of the 15 August governorship election. He responded to a question about the bad condition of the road leading into Ile-Ife.

The governor said that the road in question is the responsibility of the federal government. Therefore, it should not be used to judge his government’s performance in Osun.

“Do you know I’ve done many federal roads and I’ve not been paid? I have done about seven federal roads, up till now I’ve not been paid,” Mr Adeleke said.

It is not clear how much work has been done on these roads. It is also uncertain if he meant he rehabilitated or built them. He did not mention the lengths of the roads his administration worked on.

Later, he increased the number, saying his government had completed “about nine” federal roads without getting paid. He said he had even discussed this issue with the Minister of Works.

“I’ve done nine federal roads, up till now they’ve not been paid for [by the federal government]. I’ve talked to the minister, I’ve gone to visit him. I told him I’ve done these federal roads and he said ‘no problem, I will look into it,’” the governor said.

In Nigeria, state governments that repair or build federal roads can ask for reimbursement from the federal government. This is subject to approval and verification processes.

Mr Adeleke’s comments came during the town hall meeting after Opeyemi Adamolekun, the Executive Director of Enough is Enough, a civil society group, raised concerns about the road leading into Ile-Ife. He described its condition as poor.

The governor dismissed the idea of including the road in the assessment of his government’s performance. He emphasized that it is the federal government’s duty.

“No, no, no. That’s not fair. That’s [a] federal road. Talk about Osun,” he said.

Mr Adeleke also stated that aside from federal roads, his administration has built many roads across Osun. This is part of efforts to improve links between farming communities and towns.

He claimed that his government has constructed about 350 kilometres of roads in the state. Many of these projects involved roads that had been left untouched for years before his administration took action.

Mr Adeleke said these roads are important because of the state’s reliance on agriculture. It is essential to connect farmers to markets.

“So all the roads that I’ve done, because in Osun State we are farmers. If we don’t have good roads, how are we going to have connectivity?” he said.

Mr Adeleke is running for re-election with the Accord Party. He is competing against candidates from 13 other political parties, including Bola Oyebamiji from the All Progressives Congress (APC).

The governor also rejected claims that roads built under his administration are of poor quality. Recently, rivals criticized the new Osun Lameco Flyover in Osogbo for cracks in part of the structure. This stirred political tension in the state as the election approaches.

During the town hall, the governor dismissed these accusations. He said qualified Nigerian engineers worked on the projects and that he personally supervised their work.

“It is a sin to say that the roads I constructed are substandard. I used professional engineers. I used Nigerian engineers. I supervised their work,” Mr Adeleke said.

His statements come as road infrastructure remains a key issue in the campaigns ahead of Saturday’s governorship election. The conditions of both federal and state roads have led to different claims from major political parties.