Monarch blames policy inconsistencies for nation’s infrastructural decay

The traditional ruler of Omu-Aran, Oba Abdulraheem Adeoti, has identified inconsistency in government policies as a critical factor militating against the nation’s infrastructure developmental efforts.

Adeoti made the assertion during a sensitisation/stakeholders meeting organised by the office of the Kwara state National Orientation Agency (NOA) at the Olomu’s palace on Wednesday.

The stakeholders’ meeting was attended by heads of security agencies, market leaders, union leaders, community development associations and civil society organisations.

Oba Adeoti said that the lack of continuity in government infrastructure development plans is responsible for the high number of abandoned projects across towns and villages in the state.

He also blamed inadequate maintenance culture by the government as a contributory factor for the dilapidated state of most public utilities, stating that the non-functionality of most local councils across the state has also compounded the menace of infrastructural decay.

According to him, every successive government comes with different project ideas, policies and programmes without concrete plans for continuity.

“It’s very common in government circles and from past experience to see one government refusing to continue its predecessor’s projects and start similar projects afresh.

“This quite explains the high number of abandoned projects scattered across our various communities today. Most annoying aspect is that majority of these public infrastructure were put in place through communal efforts, but got rotten due to inadequate maintenance.

“Governments at all tiers need to re-order their priorities as regard having the strong political will to imbibe adequate maintenance and project continuity to move the country forward.

“In the time past, councils in the country are always beehive of activities with adequately equipped works department that can carry out all manners of maintenance, but the reverse is the case presently,” he said.

President of the Omu-Aran Development Association (ODA), Chief Bisi Adeyemi, decried the dilapidated state of public infrastructure in the community due to inadequate maintenance.

He cited the dilapidated state of various courts in the community which were built through communal efforts as a good case to buttress his point.