Lagbẹja is a business and farm products trading hub in the Akinyele Local Government Area of Oyo State. Flash floods devastated the community last year leading to the destruction of properties. Residents said the non-completion of a road project that has been on for about seven years contributed to the flooding.
Saadu Akeem, a man in his late 40s, told PREMIUM TIMES that the floods submerged his two-month-old bungalow. “My family now lives in a rented apartment outside the [Lagbeja] community,” he said.
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Lagbẹja and its environs–including Ifẹsowapọ, Ọfakun, Akinola, ifẹlagba, Olórò and Laniba communities, located behind the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) in Akinyele Local Government Area, were surrounded by a forest where farmers grew food and cash crops. However, people building homes there depleted the forest between 2006 and 2016.
Mr Akeem’s house lay along the 4.78-kilometre Akingbile-Lagbeja road linking the communities. The state government constructed the road toward the end of former Governor Abiola Ajimobi’s administration. Funds for the project were allocated under the state’s Ministry of Public Works and Transport Budget for 2018. However, the government later abandoned the project.
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Mr Akeem told PREMIUM TIMES that he put up his property for sale before the floods, but prospective buyers always “turned back after seeing the state of the road in the community.”
Oladosu Basira, a farm products trader, recalled how her baskets of mangoes fell off a bus on the road while being taken for sale.
“There is no alternative route out of the community,” she said. “I no longer supply mangoes because of the condition of the Akingbile-Lagbeja road. The loss is unbearable.”
The road runs from Akingbile junction down to Ajibọdẹ community. A portion along Oluana, a community near the Gunwin River, was tarred. But the portion that covers Lagbẹja and others is untarred and abandoned.
Residents said the uncompleted road is causing flooding and displacement in their community, as they pleaded with Governor Seyi Makinde to intervene.
A community leader, Michael Alofe, said they had been facing “problems on this road for over 17 years, and the community development associations had spent a lot of money, but it was not enough.”
“The Ajimobi administration started the road from Akingbile, but it did not get to us. Although the current administration promised to complete it, there has been little or no progress,” Mr Alofe said.
Approved Budget
A review of Oyo State’s 2020 budget shows that Mr Makinde allocated N1.03 billion to the Ministry of Works to rehabilitate the road.
The project was also listed among 28 road projects in the 2021 Fiscal Budget, with an additional N200 million allocated, totalling N1.23 billion.
However, the contract details and the contractor’s name are unavailable on the Oyo State open contract portal.
Oluwadare David, IITA Community Liaison Officer, said the Ministry of Public Works and Transport handled the project initially. “The ministry brought construction equipment to Lagbeja and held a town hall meeting in the presence of the community leaders in 2021.”
A community leader said the team constructed a drainage from Yidi junction to Oke Oloro village that same year. “It was poorly executed and is causing more damage to properties. In 2021, the construction team disappeared from the community.”
Appeal to the state government
On 18 October 2022, the communities under the umbrella of the Akingbile-Ifesowapo-Lagbeja Landlord and Landlady Association wrote a Save Our Soul (SOS) letter to the governor, requesting his urgent intervention on the project.
A former chairperson of the group, Oguntoye Julius, said the governor forwarded the letters to the Ministry of Works for action.
In a letter dated 31 October 2022, the ministry acknowledged the communities’ complaints and said it was liaising with the IITA to take necessary actions.
But Mr David, IITA liaison officer, said the government did not act.
While commemorating his second year in office, Mr Makinde listed the 4.73km Akingbile-Lagbeja road among his achievements.
Also, the state government recently listed the road among completed and ongoing projects.
On its official X account, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) also listed the Lagbeja road as part of Mr Makinde’s accomplishments.
However, contrary to their claims, when PREMIUM TIMES visited the community in May, it observed that the road was not completed and its abandonment contributed to many properties being destroyed by flood around the Gunwin River, which connects Akingbile, Lagbẹja, and its environs.
The flood also contaminated the community’s water source, rendering it unsafe. Residents now walk a long distance for clean water.
Adedoyin Adeleke, an environmental expert and executive director at Green Growth Africa, said incomplete structures, such as embankments and culverts, can obstruct natural waterways, leading to flash flooding.
Mr Adeleke added that unprotected roadbeds are prone to erosion during heavy rains, causing soil to wash into rivers, streams, and drainage channels.
Residents are concerned that the small bridge across the river, which runs through the IITA garden, hinders water flow, causing floods to spread to homes during rains.
“We wrote to the state government requesting assistance to raise the bridge and complete the abandoned road project. They came but later packed away their equipment without repairing the bridge or the road,” said Dahood Adeleke, the chief imam of Lagbẹja Community.
Mr David, the IITA community liaison officer, said the agency had built the bridge as part of its social responsibility services.
He said the river widened and flowed over the bridge after people turned the forests into homes.
“The flood also destroyed our rice and maize farms and our fence. IITA once engaged the state government on it because it is beyond what we can do,” Mr David told PREMIUM TIMES.
Oyo government speaks
When PREMIUM TIMES contacted the Commissioner for Public Works and Transport, Dahud Sangodoyin, he said his ministry slowed down work on the project because of the rainy season.
Responding to an FOI request, the commissioner said the road rehabilitation project was at “28.08 per cent completion, which means it is still ongoing.”
“Several unforeseen circumstances and challenges have impacted the Lagbẹja project timeline, but the state is currently addressing these issues through its infrastructure review and planning efforts.”
The commissioner said the road and other community projects aligned with the government’s strategic initiatives on agribusiness and the ease of movement of goods and services within the state.
He did not acknowledge or reply to our reporter’s subsequent questions.
Poor infrastructure & flooding are common menace in Nigeria
Floods have killed thousands of people, destroyed homes, and displaced many across Nigeria over the years. Experts cite poor drainage systems and unregulated construction as factors that worsen flooding.
A recent case in Niger State caused by torrential rains led to the destruction of roads and bridges.
In 2024, over 400,000 people were displaced by floods in Maiduguri.
Also, several communities in Kwara suffer from perennial flooding due to poorly constructed drainage systems and poorly executed erosion-control projects.
In Anambra, the Umunankwo community faces severe flooding and road damage. Over N397.5 million was approved for road rehabilitation, but work has been slow and ineffective.
The federal government has repeatedly urged communities to take ownership of abandoned projects because of the flood disaster.
Experts weigh in
Mr Adeleke of Green Growth Africa said that overlooking potential environmental or social challenges is a standard error leading to abandoned road projects in Nigeria. He said contractors’ failure to assess soil stability in erosion-prone areas can lead to road collapses or landslides.
READ ALSO: NDDC to resume work on road project abandoned for 12 years
According to Mr Adeleke, incompetent contractors often handle community road projects. “Partisan politics impact road construction projects, especially when the government changes.
“Climate change has also intensified weather patterns, resulting in more frequent and severe rainfall events, and Nigeria is no exception. Furthermore, global warming above the 1.5 °C average leads to higher evaporation rates, which may result in increased rainfall during wet seasons. In communities that do not have adequate drainage systems and poor road infrastructure, climate change thus increases the likelihood and volume of flooding.”
Mr Adeleke urged the government to complete the road project to prevent flooding. “It is as simple as that. Importantly, the road construction must allow for effective drainage systems, and the materials used in the project must be high-quality and durable enough to withstand large amounts of water,” he said.
Meanwhile, Adedeji Adéọlá, a professor of civil engineering at the University of Ilorin, said incorrect grading and sloping of abandoned roads and surrounding areas often cause water flow to nearby communities.
“Failure to implement control measures, such as retaining walls, which can cause soil erosion and increase flooding risk, and/or insufficient water storage capacity in road design, resulted in rapid runoff and flooding.”
Mr Adeola said the government should complete or decommission abandoned infrastructure projects and prioritise those with the most significant environmental impact.
