Motorists, residents and the Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA) are trading words over the deplorable Omu-Aran-Kabba road in Kwara State.

The road links Kwara and Kogi states.

They claim that it has been abandoned by FERMA. Towards the end of last year, the Federal Government ordered FERMA to make the road motorable.

But a commercial driver who plies Ilorin and Odo-Ere lamented the abandonment of the road.

He hailed FERMA for patching critical portions of the road to Araromi-Opin in Ekiti Local Government Area of Kwara State.

“In the last three months we have not seen FERMA men on site. We don’t know what is wrong. The Eruku people have to communally patch the failed section of the road, which had become a ditch. From Egbe, Yagba West Local Government Area to Kabba all in Kogi, no work has started. Plying the road is dangerous as one is at the mercy of hoodlums who cash in on its bad condition to unleash terror on travellers. Wear and tear of your vehicle too is exponential,” the driver lamented.

Chief Abraham Medaiyese, who plies the road  said: “Kabba-Ilorin road is the worst road in the whole country. I can conveniently say that. Plying the road now with your vehicle is tantamount to committing economic suicide.

“As a result, so many vehicles have stopped plying that road. It is as if there is no government. Now this is the time to repair all roads in the country as there is no rain now. If they don’t repair that road before rainy season sets in, they will have another excuse. This means that they have abandoned the road, it is a pity.

“My appeal to the Federal Government through its Ministry of Works and Transport is to do something urgently to rescue the situation as it has affected the people in the area.

‘’Hoodlums both night and day cash in to dispossess passengers and motorists alike on that road. So, nobody is safe on that road. People living around that axis have lost hope in the government. They always query their representatives both at the state and National Assemblies.”

Kwara State FERMA boss, Babatunde Ige, however, disagreed with the people’s submission.

Ige said: “Serious work has been done at the Kwara end of the road. We are using our pothole patcher to repair some portion while contractors are handling some others. The Ganmo axi of the road, hitherto accident prone, has been widened.

“From Omu-Aran to Egbe the section of the road was im- passable, but now we have effected repairs on Araromi-Opin. We have even received commendation from the Osi community in Ekiti Local Government Area of the state for a job well done. We are still working.Work has not stopped. We have written to Abuja that the contractors are regularly mobilised to site.

“The Kogi State FERMA is handling its own end of the rehabilitation of the road. You know control takes time. We have carried out quality control on the road and it will stand the test.

‘’For our pothole patcher, right now, we are short of 60/70 asphalt. But as soon as that is available from Lagos, the patcher will be back on site. We and the contractors are rushing this job before the commencement of another rain.

“The Federal Government gave us an order that we should ensure free passage of vehicles during the yuletide and New Year seasons. During that period we did a lot of job on that road. Every other day, we are on the road desilting drains and other things to make the road motorable. Before rainy season sets in, we must have covered the bad portions of the road.  Currently, we have covered almost 80 per cent of the critical portions of the road.”