The Oyo State government has promised to put a smile on the face of residents of Wire and Cable/Orisunmibare/Ita Faaji Community by constructing the road that serves the community.
The state Commissioner for Energy and Mineral Resources, Professor Dahud Shangodoyin, gave the assurance at the Omituntun 2.0 Inter-Ministerial Press Briefing held at the Governor’s Office Briefing Room, Secretariat, Ibadan, on Wednesday.
Addressing the Press on the achievements of his ministry in the first half of the second term of the Makinde administration, he had stated that many communities are enjoying relative power supply and good roads.
However, a resident of Wire and Cable/Orisunmibare/Ita Faaji Community took up the commissioner, stating that the community is yet to benefit from the first and second terms of the present administration in the state.
He pointedly told Professor Shangodoyin that his community has been suffering from pains and hardships caused by bad road and near total darkness for about three years, as a result of erratic power supply due to lack of transformers.
“Honourable Commissioner sir, when you were reeling out the achievements of the present administration, I was wondering if I am living in any other state outside of Oyo.
“You said your ministry is working to ensure energy security across the state by distributing transformers and solar power to some communities. That is a very good one coming from the state government.
“While I am not in doubt of the efforts you are making, but as commendable as they are, it appears that you are being selective about which parts of Ibadan you are attending to.
“My community has become a butt of jokes in Ibadan. Even many people seated here today (Wednesday) often jokingly say the Apata axis of Ibadan is an extension of Abeokuta in Ogun State.
“The people and residents of the Apata/Wire and Cable/Command/Omi-Adio axis seems to have been totally abandoned.
“The people of my community, Wire and Cable/Orisunmibare/Ita Faaji/Opopin/Oganla, have been living in near total darkness for three years now. This is due to erratic power supply caused by non-functional transformers.
“For example, I bought 500 units of power credit from IBEDC for ₦20,000 in June 2023 which I was till June 2025 when I bought another ₦10,000 units.
“Even the streetlights put in place by the state government only ended up at Apata. From Apata down to Wire and Cable, Command and up to Omi-Adio are left out of the largesse.
“Sir, please, let us feel the positive impacts of the Omituntun administration of His Excellency, Governor ‘Seyi Makinde in our community,” he said.
The resident also reminded the state government that the road in question is a 7.2km stretch, covering Wire and Cable Junction, up to Ita Faaji, Olude, Opopin and All Saints College roads.
Responding, Professor Shangodoyin, who was the state Commissioner for Works until his redeployment to the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, acknowledged the deplorable condition of the Wire and Cable/Orisunmibare/Ita Faaji Community Road.
He also assured that the road will soon be attended to by the state government and further promised that streetlights would also be provided as soon as the construction of the road was completed.
He said he visited the community, then as the Commissioner for Works for an assessment of the road, noting that he was then aware that it is a 52.km road, starting from Wire and Cable Junction, up to Ita Faaji Roundabout down to Opopin and Oganla/All Saints College Road.
“I thought that you will talk about the state of your road. I was there on an assessment tour. I know that His Excellency is aware of the deplorable condition of your road. I can assure you that it will be done.
“As regards streetlights, we can cannot do anything about it for now because there is nowhere on the road to put solar light poles. However, your community will be given solar lights as soon as the road is constructed,” he assured.
Wire and Cable/Orisunmibare/Ita Faaji Community Road in Ido Local Government Area has been acknowledged to be one of the worst roads within Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.
The entire community comprises of 22 communities, even as the Governor ‘Seyi Makinde-led administration promised to give reprieve to the residents, after several appeals to successive administrations had proved abortive.
