Apapa Gridlock: It’s Never Been the Bad Roads After All

Of all, the notorious Apapa gridlock has never really been about the bad roads. Olawale Olaleye reports

Without a doubt, the deplorable portions of any class of roads in any part of the society, have never been a plus for development, even if such roads do not play host to frequent users or experience heavy regular traffic. 

But the Apapa gridlock had been mixed up in the assumption that the deplorable roads within and connecting the city, have been the reason the ugly traffic situation associated with that part of Lagos State, seemed intractable. It seems that’s a lie, even though the bad sections of the different roads linking Apapa, were a contributory factor.

Last Monday, February 28, the Minister of Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, SAN, undertook a routine inspection of the stretch of the road from the Apapa ports, where the project commenced through to the other sections still under constructions. He also had brief stops along the stretch, where other different kinds of related or complimentary landscaping constructions were equally ongoing. 

From Fashola’s itinerary, the inspection started from Liverpool road through Creek Road, to the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), back on the Creek Road to the Port-Novo Creek bridge and then, the stretch to Tincan Island, all the way to the Beachland junction. 

The entire stretch is partitioned into sections for ease of construction. Section one is from the Ports in Apapa to Beachland, while Section two takes off from Beachland to Cele busstop. The third section is from Cele to Anthony, and then, the fourth and final leg of the partitioning runs from Anthony to the toll gate, which is also under renovation. 

However, of all the sections, which are all about 98 per cent done, only the section two is still lagging behind and just between 8 and 10 completion, because it was decided late to give it the same concrete construction as the rest of the sections. This, also, is because, when the Muhammadu Buhari administration came in, that was the only motorable section and well asphalted section of the road. 

But the government soon discovered that the quality was purely cosmetic and might end up being the weakest link to the new enduring effort. A decision was later taken in 2020 to bring it up to par, while contractor moved to site late in 2021. 

Thus, after inspecting an ongoing landscaping work under the Port-Novo bridge by Liverpool roundabout, an idea Fashola said was conceived to protect the asset (bridge), which had come under abuse from squatters, who did everything under the bridge, including trading, cooking, setting up open fire and by implication, weakening the strength of the bridge, the convoy moved inwards Tincan. 

Ordinarily, the minister said, such an effort was purely a municipal responsibility, but, perhaps, because of the cost implications or inability to seize the initiative by those concerned, the federal government would not sit by and watch its asset go down on account of the ignorance or irresponsibility of others. Sustaining the effort was another debate the minister would rather defer since there might be a need to involve the local government afterwards. 

He moved from there to also inspect the Tincan Island truck transit park, just by the Port-Novo bridge. The contractors here had some concerns, which the minister immediately cleared were carryovers from the previous administration, but had been doing everything possible to address. Of course, the contractors concurred. Fashola would rather not have such conversation there but ensured work was ongoing, at the minimum. 

At Tincan, the minister stopped by to see the proposed location for the expansion of the truck park, where not much had begun, essentially for some administrative niggles, from which Fashola demanded a situation report. Not far from there was another ongoing landscaping work by the Beachland bridge, which apart from beautifying the environment, also served to protect the assets and keep the atmosphere sane.

Arriving the Berger bridge, where there is also another landscaping work, the minister met with the leadership of the auto dealers there, apparently to catch up with an ongoing discussion. Apparently, the dealers had been asked to relocate from the place as their presence was unsightly, in addition to the risks it constituted to them as well as addressing image concerns. But the auto dealers, who were excited at the presence of the minister and bantered with him repeatedly, didn’t make the engagement any difficult.

They told the minister they had now come to the conclusion that it was time to go and would be willing to partner the ministry in the relocation exercise, although they needed to sit with the government properly and fashion out the modus operandi. The minister requested for the size of the entire area to see, where would be suitable for relocation. He also asked if it was okay to break them into two in case there was no one place that could accommodate all of them, to which they consented. 

That seemed fruitful and the minister went on to inspect the section two of the Apapa/Oshodi expressway, which is fast taking shape but still at its early stages. He seemed impressed with the pace and nature of work that was ongoing. He engaged the contractors, who briefed him and still assured him that the completion time remained as agreed. He complained about the drainages that have been clogged with refuse, occasioned by the bad habits of residents and other people.

That, of course, necessitated an interaction with the media at the Mile 2 end of the Section two of the road and immediately released the journalists to proceed to their respective offices, before heading to Eric Moore in Surulere, to inspect a residential estate. 

In all, the takeaways from the about five hours inspection exercise were a legion, particularly, the significance of the almost completed road construction vis the unceasing truck menace, whose drivers have elected to make the roads – a common asset of all – their abode. 

Fashola, of course, was unhappy with the situation and the deliberate recalcitrance of the truck drivers to decimate the roads again after fixing it and pumping into it, a lot of money. He went on to identify some of the factors responsible to include the poorly executed privatisation exercise, which he reckoned must be reviewed. 

He also agreed that the country had outgrown the current ports and so, the need for new ones was no longer debatable. He thought the enforcement of rules must also be taken seriously such that would end illegal trading on the roads and roadsides, ensuring law and order on the roads.

The truth is that a lot of the people and the institutions are benefitting from the illegality, because those illegal ventures were in many respects, servicing the ports and by extension, generating revenues for many, including the banks, whose POS services are top on the list of those constituting nuisance around the ports facilities. 

Now, the roads are fixed and fixed to last a certain number of years. But with the trucks parking on the roads, the initial life span might be threatened, hence, the need for all to see the fight against truck drivers’ abuse of the roads as personal. And this is despite the alternatives provided by the government. They find it cheaper constituting nuisance on the roads and becoming menace to other road users as against following rules. 

Although these are at most the attitudinal dispositions of third world countries, an aspiring developing nation like Nigeria cannot continue to live in the past with cave age habits and expect to catch up with requisite growth and development. How does anyone reconcile the fact that after spending billions to fix the roads, trucks, which are the going concerns of private individuals, would still be threat to the common interest of all?

It goes without saying that the campaign, “Change Starts With You” applies here without equivocation. The time for everyone to see these common assets as what they all need to protect as against allowing some self-serving individuals to appropriate and vitiate them, is now. The fact is that the truck owners are into business and not serving the country and people for free.

Besides, support facilities have been provided to help the business of truck owners run smooth. What, therefore, is the fixation about destroying these common assets? The new construction might be concrete and stone-based, it’s a matter of time before the reckless abuse by truck owners starts to tear it down, creating another cycle of road menace, as well as compounding the situation in the ports and environs. 

The solutions, clearly, are within some of those suggested earlier by the minister. They include reviewing the ports concession agreement, expanding the ports, enforcing law and order, and by extension, forbidding illegal trading on the roads, not only within the ports vicinity but in other places, where such are not permitted by law. 

Ironically, that’s not an assignment for governments at all levels and their agents alone, but responsible citizenship – focused on protecting common assets and setting examples of good citizenship – also comes to play here; understanding and ensuring that the change that everyone seeks in actualising the Nigeria of their dreams, begins with everyone. 

Let it be stated, for the record, that public assets, which come at great costs to both the government and the citizenry, in terms of funding and the discomfort suffered during construction, cannot be left at the mercy of exploitative vandals, while running their personal businesses. The people must, therefore, rise in unison against such willful vandalism of collective assets and show readiness to always protect what is theirs. 

The government has done its part and still not resting on its oars, the baton, of course, is now passed on to the people.