By: Manoah Kikekon
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| Photos of Ikoga-Zebbe to Mowo Road |
A concerned citizen of Ikoga-Zebbe Sesinu Hopo has cried out for government intervention on the deplorable conditions of the road that connects a major economic hub in Badagry, Lagos State, Nigeria.
In an article, made available to News Peddlers he said, "The Ikoga-Zebbe two-lane road outward Mowo has been a major trading route from the fifties till date, connecting at least, one-tenth of the present Badagry Local Government such as Koga-Zebbe (according to the native pronunciation), Hungon (Igborosun), Pota, Atinprome, Javie, Lagon (Iragon), Lagbo (Iragbo, Likiti (Erikiti), Agadangba, Agbovipe, Tohon, Ijotun, Ipara, Ilogbo-Eremi, and a few other areas.
"Ikoga-Zebbe has remained a beehive of trading and social connectivity due to the existence of this major market and the possibility of an exit to Ogun State. These are facilitated on a daily basis, giving its inter-State importance and enabling the increase in commercial transportation for several people and commuters alike in their search for a means of livelihood.
"Ikoga-Zebbe was an ancient kingdom renowned during the colonial era with a recognized titular king as "Sano" until the hiatus that lasted for over six decades. The present Sano of the Kingdom is His Royal Majesty, De Ovitotode, Aholu Toyi I.
"The proximity of this geographical area shares boundary with Ogun State, and thus links several parts of towns and villages outside the sphere of Lagos, and this interconnectivity of the premier road by which previous traders from other places as Ebute-Ero in the Lagos Mainland linked the old Ota Road in Agege to Ota and Ado-Odo in Ogun State accounts remarkably for why the "Tedo Market" now at both sides of the Ikoga-Zebbe road was identified as the foremost major market in the entire Badagry division according to verified records, including Alausa Alert in 2020.
"This inter-state road became the only alternative by which the previous traders from Ebute-Ero, Idumota, and some other parts of the Lagos Mainland accessed Badagry area as part of Lagos State to buy food stuffs and also sell their wares. The primordial status of this strategic road in history also made it the only road available to the First Military Governor of Lagos State, Brigadier Mobolaji Johnson, in the seventies, during his tour of the various administrative divisions in the state.
"However, the former Military Governor saw it as an affront when some hoodlums attacked his convoy at Ado-Odo as he was about to link Badagry Area. That uneventful occurrence was incomparable to when he went through Ijebu-Ode before he linked Epe during the tour of the state. That ill-fated incident informed the construction and commissioning of the present Lagos-Badagry Expressway by his administration in 1974 which was later taken over by the General Yakubu Gowon led Federal Government as a federal road till date.
"Fixing this road in such appalling and deplorable conditions calls for urgency from the state government, as it will be a unique dividend of democracy that can affect several people, reaching over a million homes in different parts of this area of the state.
"The great benefit of fixing the Ikoga-Zebbe road is of immense value to the Lagos State Government and residents of this particular area, and if evaluated, it will carve a strong niche for the ongoing administration. It is hoped that the Sanwo-Olu led second term administration would yield quickly to this call in its characteristic nature of a people-responsive government."