FERMA Flags Off “Operation Safeguard the Road” in Oyo State.
By Adewale Owoade
The Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA) Oyo State Field Office has officially launched its nationwide Operation Safeguard the Road (OSGR) programme, aimed at preserving federal road infrastructure and improving road safety across the state.
The flag-off ceremony was held at the Ibadan–Lagos Toll Gate in Ibadan.
The Federal Roads Maintenance Engineer (FRME) for Oyo State, Engr. Babatunde Adepoju, described the programme as a direct implementation of President Bola Tinubu’s agenda to ensure safer, more durable, and sustainable roads across the federation.
“This initiative, conceived under the leadership of our Managing Director, Engr. Dr. Emeka Agbasi, through the Public Works Department, marks another milestone in the drive to protect the public facilities of our great nation.
“We are committed to making our roads safer and more motorable by ensuring clear visibility for motorists, free flow of drainage systems, and proper maintenance of road furniture,” Adepoju said.
Engr Adepoju explained that the operation would include the clearing of roadside vegetation, desilting of blocked drains and hydraulic structures, traffic management, and patching of potholes along critical corridors in the state.
Ensuring clear visibility, free‑flowing drainage, and proper road‑furniture maintenance to make highways safer and more motorable.
“Our roads remain one of the most critical infrastructures in Nigeria. They connect communities, power business activities, and serve as lifelines for economic and social development.
”Protecting them is a collective duty we owe to ourselves and the next generation,” Adepoju added.
The programme also provides short-term employment opportunities for local youths numbering over 50 labour, who will be engaged and properly documented to ensure transparency and accountability, that will work along the 43-kilometre stretch currently covered by the project.
He thanked the Managing Director of FERMA, represented by the Zonal Coordinator, South West, Engr. Babatunde Aina, and all stakeholders present, including representatives of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Nigeria Police Force, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), and the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW).
Earlier, the South West Zonal Coordinator , Engr Aina, emphasised on the need for Nigerians to cultivate a maintenance culture in order to keep public infrastructures safe and in good condition for better and durable service.
In separate remarks, stakeholders including the Police Commissioner (represented by CSP Rotimi, the DPO of Toll Gate Division), officials of the FRSC, NSCDC, and members of the Oyo State Park Management System (PMS), commended FERMA for the initiative, describing it as “timely and proactive.”
They called for stronger collaboration with FERMA, and highlighted the need for a maintenance culture and intensified public sensitisation to curb reckless driving and reduce road crashes, especially along the Lagos–Ibadan Expressway.