By Rosemary Okoduwa
Governor of Edo State, Senator Monday Okpebholo, on Sunday carried out an unscheduled inspection of the ongoing reconstruction of Ogheghe Road and Old Sapele Road in Benin City, directing contractors to quicken the pace of work to maximise the dry season.
The governor, who visited the project site shortly after attending a church service, said the inspection was necessary to personally assess the progress and quality of work on the key road projects.
According to a statement signed by Dr. Patrick Akhere Ebojele, Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Okpebholo said the dry season presents a limited but critical window for accelerated construction and warned against avoidable delays.
“I have not been around here for some time, so coming to see what is going on is important,” the governor said. “We are experiencing the dry season now. Outside this period, there is little time to do much. We must take advantage of the season, so the speed of work has to be doubled.”
While expressing satisfaction with the quality of work observed on site, the governor stressed that the contractors must increase their pace to meet project timelines.
“Now that I’m here, I’ve seen the extent of work being done, and they are doing well. But they need to buckle up and move faster than the pace I am seeing now. We have just about five months of dry season,” he said.
The statement further noted that the governor took photographs during the inspection to ensure strict adherence to approved project specifications.
“The reason I snapped those pictures in some sections of the road is to confirm that what is on the ground matches the specifications in my records,” Okpebholo explained.
The governor recalled that the 4.1-kilometre Ogheghe–Old Sapele Road project was initiated following complaints from residents over erosion, flooding and safety concerns in the area.
“When we came here the last time, many people thought it would never be possible. We embarked on this road after reports that a child lost his life due to flooding and erosion in this community. The child was washed away, and that tragic incident underscored the urgency of addressing the problem,” he said.
Discover more from DE-PATRIOT
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.