The protesting youths, under the auspices of Ilaje Advancement Forum (IAF) blocked all the major roads leading to Igbokoda, the headquarters of Ilaje Local Government Area of the state, chanting anti-government songs,”No light, no election.”
This led to traffic gridlock in the town and paralysed all commercial activities for more than eight hours as the youths armed with placards embarked on a peaceful procession.
Some of the inscription on the placards read: “Ilaje: enough is enough;” What offence has Ilaje people committed;” “Ondo State government has failed us;” OSOPADEC is fake,” NDDC is fraud;” The Federal Government has failed in service delivery,” “Our leaders are rogues;” “No light, no election” among others.
Speaking to newsmen, the coordinator of the youths, Tokunbo Ehinmowo, frowned over the deplorable state of the communities in the coastal area, saying the Ilaje nation, despite its huge natural resources and contribute to the country’s GDP, is suffering neglect.
Ehinmowo said the unavailability of power supply in the area has plunged the people into untold hardship for the past 10 years.
According to her, “The movement is purposed at resisting all retrogressive changes that are socio-politically and economically created as a result of bad leadership.
“Ilaje people must intervene in the process of Ilaje development, rather than remain spectators or passive participants in the ebb and failure of governance in the state.”
She lamented that there is the dearth of industries, factories, the prevalence of infrastructural decay, environmental degradation, poor empowerment programmes, attributing it to a failure of their representatives at all levels.
She said “For the past ten years, there has not been electricity in all our communities; and this has meted untold hardship on us. The artisans can no longer work, businesses are collapsing and life has become so unbearable for us.
“We are the local government producing the largest chunk of money to the Federal Government through our oil resources. We surrender everything we have for the government under social contract to take care of us.”
The group condemned the recent Federal Government Amnesty Program, saying the program was fraught with irregularities as there were reports of fraud, while most projects initiated by Ondo State Oil Producing Development Commission (OSOPADEC) and Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) were abandoned.
According to Ehinmowo, the over N6b Ayetoro Shoreline Protection project and other intervention funds by government agencies were embezzled by the community leaders in the area
“Our governments at all levels are fake, especially the Ondo State government. We are the hen laying the golden egg for this state and nation at large through our oil, yet we suffer the most.
“Our governor is flagging off fake projects around the state without execution: the Araromi-Akodo/Ibeju-Lekki road and a flyover bridge, yet no contractor has moved to site. We are tired of them,” she said
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The youth, however, said that “if our light is not restored, the government should forget 2019 elections. None of the leaders in Ilaje communities will be allowed to campaign, INEC should forget elections in the riverine areas.”
The Chairman of the Ondo State Oil Producing Area Development Commission (OSOPADEC) Gbenga Edema, while speaking on the protest, sympathised with the people of the area, assuring that efforts are on top gear to ensure that there is a restoration of electricity in the whole South Senatorial District.
Edema said “I sympathise with them and also feel their pains because an idle hand is the devil’s workshop. We agree that electricity is key to development. A lot of our youths who have trained as artisans need energy.
“The government of the day has been trying so hard to see how it can restore electricity in that area. We were in a meeting with the Executive Director of NDPHC a week ago and he briefed us what is being done to solve the problem.
“We have been collaborating with the BEDC too and other stakeholders, the government will soon find lasting solutions to this. I also sympathize with them because some of those things they were protesting about, some of us in the past had also raised the alarm.”
He attributed the delays to some challenges which the present administration in the state met on board and restated the commitment of the state government to develop the riverine communities.
Edema said “the progress made might be slow but steady,” appealed to the people of the riverine area to be patient, assuring them that “the whole world will soon see the good things we are doing at OSOPADEC and as government.”
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