Open Letter: “Liaise with Governor Aiyedatiwa to Fix the Ore-Okitipupa Road,” Ondo Scholars Tell Jimoh Ibrahim
The deplorable condition of the Ore-Okitipupa Road has become a major source of hardship, economic losses, and safety concerns for thousands of commuters and residents across Ondo South Senatorial District. Despite repeated appeals to the Ondo State Government, the road continues to deteriorate, leaving motorists and businesses to bear the heavy burden.
In light of this, the Ondo State Scholars Arena for Development Initiative has addressed an open letter to Nigeria’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador (Sen.) Ibrahim Jimoh, CFR, PhD (Cantab), appealing to him to leverage his influence and relationship with Governor Lucky Orimisan Aiyedatiwa to facilitate urgent remedial work on this critical economic corridor.
The full text of the open letter is reproduced below.
OPEN LETTER TO AMBASSADOR (SEN.) IBRAHIM JIMOH, CFR, PHD (CANTAB).
LIAISE WITH GOVERNOR AIYEDATIWА TO FIX THE ORE–OKITIPUPA ROAD
Your Excellency,
Sir,
The Ondo State Scholars Arena for Development Initiative, an organisation committed to ensuring that the average indigenous person of Ondo State is safe and secure and has access to the necessary social amenities required for a good life, writes to respectfully draw your attention to the deplorable condition of the Ore/Okitipupa road and to appeal to you to urgently liaise with the Governor of Ondo State, His Excellency, Hon. Lucky Orimisan Aiyedatiwa, on the urgent need to fix the road.
Your Excellency, we write to you not merely as Nigeria’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, but also as a distinguished son of Ondo South Senatorial District and a proud son of Ikale land. Your position, influence and relationship with the Governor place you in a unique position to intervene in this matter of urgent public importance.
For more than six months, the Ondo State Scholars Arena for Development Initiative has written over four open letters to the Governor of Ondo State concerning the deplorable condition of the Ore/Okitipupa road. Unfortunately, despite the persistent appeals from our organisation and the concerns raised by several critical stakeholders and youth organisations through the media, the situation on the road remains largely unchanged.
Your Excellency, the condition of the Ore/Okitipupa road has become a source of daily hardship for thousands of commuters, commercial transport operators, private car owners and businesses operating along the route. The road has deteriorated to the extent that vehicles and buses are regularly damaged, while commercial drivers are forced to spend a substantial portion of their earnings on repairs. Many of them have openly complained that, after paying for fuel, repairs and other operational expenses, there is little or nothing left as profit.
Private vehicle owners are equally suffering. For many families and individuals, the road has become a recurring financial burden. Vehicles that ought to serve their owners for years are constantly subjected to avoidable mechanical damage because of the deplorable state of the road.
Your Excellency, we are aware that you have played a role in advocating for the inclusion of the dualisation of the Akure/Ore road and the Ore/Igbokoda road in the national infrastructure plan. We are also aware of the reported approval of the project by the Senate in December 2025. However, as of today, approximately eight months have passed without the expected commencement of work on the Ore/Igbokoda axis, as funds have reportedly not yet been released and the contractor has consequently not mobilised to site.
While the people continue to wait for the commencement of the long-term project, the immediate responsibility of maintaining the existing road cannot be abandoned. The people of Ondo South cannot be expected to endure dangerous and impassable roads indefinitely while waiting for a major dualisation project whose implementation may take time.
It is therefore our appeal that you liaise with your friend and brother, the Governor of Ondo State, to ensure that immediate remedial work is carried out on the Ore/Okitipupa road.
The Governor has described his administration as the Government of Ease. However, the experience of the people of Ondo South, particularly commuters and residents who use the Ore/Okitipupa road daily, is unfortunately the direct opposite of ease.
We have also received unconfirmed reports that the Governor, whenever travelling to his local government area, sometimes passes through Irele in order to avoid the deplorable Ore/Okitipupa road. We must emphasise that we have not independently verified this information. However, if the report is correct, it would be deeply regrettable that the Governor of the State may have to avoid a major road within the State because of its deplorable condition, while the people who have no alternative route are left to suffer its consequences daily.
Your Excellency, the Ore/Okitipupa road is not an ordinary road. It is one of the major economic arteries of Ondo State. The southern part of the State contributes immensely to the economic strength and revenue base of Ondo State. The area is home to significant economic activities, natural resources, agricultural production, commerce and other businesses that generate substantial economic value.
It is therefore a matter of shame and deep concern that the major road connecting this economically important part of the State remains in such a deplorable condition.
The area that contributes billions of naira to the economy of the State on a monthly basis deserves good roads, functional infrastructure and adequate social amenities. The people of Ondo South should not be expected to continually contribute to the economic development of the State while being denied the basic infrastructure necessary for their own economic survival.
We acknowledge and appreciate the other infrastructural efforts of the administration of Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa across the State. However, we respectfully submit that the condition of the Ore/Okitipupa road requires urgent and exceptional attention. The road has become too important to be ignored and too dangerous to be left in its present condition.
Your Excellency, the Ondo State Scholars Arena for Development Initiative is tired of excuses and promises. The people are not asking for another explanation. They are asking for action.
We therefore respectfully urge you to personally take up this matter and liaise with Governor Aiyedatiwa to ensure that urgent remedial work is carried out on the road without further delay.
The Governor may not be fully aware of the extent of the hardship being experienced by the people who use the road daily. A direct intervention by a respected son of Ikale land and a distinguished national representative such as yourself may help to bring the matter to the urgent attention it deserves.
This is a matter that requires action now, not tomorrow.
Your Excellency, the Ondo State Scholars Arena for Development Initiative is one of the largest registered civil society organisations in Ondo State, with membership spread across the eighteen local government areas of the State. The organisation brings together professionals, lawyers, doctors, entrepreneurs, former student leaders and other concerned citizens who are committed to the development and wellbeing of Ondo State.
Our organisation is committed to ensuring that the average indigenous person of Ondo State is safe and secure and has access to the necessary social amenities required for a good life. It is in furtherance of this commitment that we continue to speak on issues that directly affect the lives, safety, economic wellbeing and future of our people.
The condition of the Ore/Okitipupa road is therefore not merely a political issue. It is a people centred issue. It is an economic issue. It is a safety issue. It is a development issue.
We respectfully call on you, Your Excellency, to use your good offices and relationship with the Governor of Ondo State to intervene.
Ambassador Ibrahim Jimoh, CFR, please liaise with Governor Aiyedatiwa to fix the Ore/Okitipupa road.
The people of Ondo South have waited long enough.
The commuters have suffered enough.
The commercial drivers have paid enough for avoidable vehicle repairs.
The private car owners have endured enough damage.
The people are asking for one thing: fix the road.
We appeal to you to take this matter seriously and act with the urgency it deserves.
The time for further excuses is over. The time for action is now.
Yours faithfully,
OMOYOLOYE OLORUNTIMILEHIN J
GENERAL SECRETARY.
ODONFIN OLUWAFEMI OLUSEGUN
CONVENER – Ondo State Scholars Arena for Development Initiative.
E-mail: ondostatescholarsarena@gmail.com
