There is indeed every reason to believe that something is wrong with those who run government in our country as well as those who manage our huge resources. Our heroes past will be weeping in their graves any time Nigerians complain of poverty in the midst of plenty.
A trip to Badagry is just enough to vent ones venom on our leaders. Originally known as Agbadarigi before British colonists turned it to Badagry, this ancient town has a lot to do with history. Christianity was said to have been first preached under the famous Agia tree.
The first storey building in the country is firmly rooted there. It was also one of the ports through which thousands of able bodied Africans were shipped to Europe and the Americas as slaves. Badagry has a lot of tourists attractions. Apart from the historical monuments, there are sprawling ocean blue beaches. It is also a border town, one of the routes to the Republic of Benin. That also means that it is a gate way to other West African countries. Travelers to Togo, Ghana, Cote D’Ivoire, Burkina Faso and Mali troop out of Nigeria through the Seme frontier.
There is a lot of Federal presence in the town. It hosts the massive Administrative and Staff College of Nigeria [ASCON] in Topo, has an Airforce Base close to Gbaji Junction and quarters an Army Battalion in Bereko. There is also the French Village, a language school that captures the essence of our Francophone neighbourliness. Badagry is a huge market waiting to be explored by a government that is preaching diversification of the economy. As travelers drive out of Lagos and head towards Okokomaiko , the next town of good standing is Ijanikin, with a Federal Government College.
Then there is the highly industrialized Agbara which was in the news recently following a deadly robbery attack from the sea. Accessing this important town called Badagry by road is like a trip to a war zone in Iraq or Syria. From Lagos, it is a nightmare. This 67-kilometre stretch of highway is a shame .
It is even a miracle that people still make the trip to Badagry. Hell is indeed real if you decide to journey to Badagry. Right from Mile Two in the Amuwo Odofin area of Lagos tourists and potential investors are trapped in terrible traffic that could last for half of the whole day.
When the line begins to move it is as fast as snail speed, bumper to bumper. The colonial trains that plied the Port Harcourt- Kano rail tracks would make a round trip before Badagry bound vehicles would get to the Lagos State University[LASU] gate from Festac main gate. The reason could be that the mono rail project and the expansion of the highway to a 20-lane speedway were taking a toll on the people.
That is on paper for beyond Iyan Iba there is no sign of any ongoing or future project. The road from Okokomaiko to Badagry is one that should worry the Federal Government. Government does not operate in a vacuum. If we begin to lay blames,that is one sure way of prolonging the suffering of the people.
There had been talks of turning that road into a sub regional motorway as part of ECOWAS integration moves. What is on ground at the moment does not show that there were plans to ever work on that important super highway. It is good news that the Minister of W orks, Power and Housing , Babatunde Fashola, is not new to the sorry state of the road.
We call on him to move fast with solutions. The problem has been identified. Government refused to act at the appropriate time whether it was the Olusegun Obasanjo administration or the Goodluck Jonathan regime, compatriots are tired of stories and politics. Urgent attention is what the road requires. Government cannot be talking of diversification and at the same time fold its hand waiting for miracle to happen.
Badagry is an economic tree waiting to bear fruits. The volume of trans border trade that it holds is enough to keep so many idle hands busy for good. Agbara which is on the road and accommodate hundreds of industries would do even better with good roads.
The Lagos state government should take up the challenge. Between Governor Akinwunmi Ambode and Fashola this an a begging opportunity to decongest Lagos. Both men should schedule a meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari with he sole aim of changing the face of Badagry. Rehabilitation of the roads will bring in so much wealth through business transactions. Lovers of Tourism should also rise in condemnation of the recent merger of the Ministry of Tourism with Information.
While we permit government to keep the Ministry of Information as long as it wishes, we believe it was a huge miscalculation to treat Tourism with such disdain. Countries like Kenya, St. Kitts and Nevis, Bahamas and United Arab Emirates earn so much from tourism.
There is no logic in crying for alternative sources of revenue beyond oil and at the same time killing the same alternative avenue.There is so much to do with agriculture in Badagry. The National Youth Service Corps has a farm there. The sea is full of active fishermen and the nation stands to lose if Badagry is cut off by deplorable roads.
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Let me draw the Lagos government’s attention to Okoafo – Ilogbo Eremi -Agunmo roads.The raod is situated off Lagos Badagry Expressway.
It is in a deplorable state, vehicles cannot ply the road again, it has been washed off by rain, some areas are water logged .it has been like this over the years.We are appealing to relevant authority to take a tour of this road to see things for themselves.