* Decry incessant outage at Oye, Ikole
By John Odunayo
Students of Federal University, Oye Ekiti on Monday besieged the office of the Federal Road Maintenance Agency, in Ado Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital to protest incessant accidents and deaths of their colleagues owing to the bad condition of Ifaki – Oye – Ikole Road.
The placards-carrying students gave FERMA and the Federal Government 48 hours ultimatum to begin action on the federal road or face the consequences of occupation of the road by them thus making it impassable for road users.
Led by the Students Union Government President, Mary Abiodun, FUOYE students also stormed the Ekiti State Office of Benin Electricity Distribution Office in Ado Ekiti to protests incessant power outage in their university campuses and host communities, urging BEDC to rectify the situation immediately.
The students, while at FERMA office lamented what they called “the severe harm caused to our student population, resulting in the loss of over 10 students in fatal accidents”, including the loss last week of a fresh graduate, Ohonsi Williams Ehigie.
Among inscriptions on their placards are “FOUYE students’ lives matter”, “repair Oye-Ikole federal road now”, “enough is enough”, “President Tinubu, save our students’ lives”, “stop neglect of our infrastructures” and “FERMA in Ekiti State is useless”.
In the students’ position paper delivered by Abiodun, she stated, “We vehemently condemn the deplorable condition of the Oye – Ikole Road. This road has become a daily death trap for students, staff, and the indigenous people of Oye Ekiti.
“Despite numerous attempts to highlight this critical issue, FERMA’s inaction has jeopardized the safety and well-being of road users, recently resulting in the tragic death of our beloved alumnus, Ohonsi Williams Ehigie.
The Oye – Ikole Road is a crucial link between the nation’s capital, Abuja and several southwestern states, including Ekiti, Oyo, Osun, and Ondo. This road is heavily trafficked by large vehicles such as petroleum tankers and 18-wheel trucks transporting goods.
“Tragically, this road has been in disrepair for an extended period, leading to numerous accidents, loss of lives, and untold hardships. We cannot tolerate FERMA’s negligence, which endangers the lives of FUOYE students, staff and the local community.
“Immediate action is imperative. We can no longer endure the brutal loss of our students due to improper road maintenance and the absence of necessary palliatives. We can’t take it anymore,” the students said.
FERMA Federal Road Maintenance Engineer, Simon Adeniyi, who apologized to the students for the losses and condition of the road, said that the Federal Government had awarded the road already, adding that work would soon begin on it.
Adeniyi said, “If you listened to the news, about a month ago, the same road was awarded by the Federal Government and I am assuring you, any moment from now, the contractor will resume.
“It is not going to be a flexible pavement like asphalt, it is going to be concrete road. On the same road, FERMA has a palliative measure that will start any moment,” he said, adding that the Federal Controller of Works had said the palliative work could be done on the done pending the time that the construction would start.
