By Moyosore Oyetunji
“Eni ti a ba se lore ti ko dupe, dabi olosa ti oko ni eru lo.” — Anyone who refuses to say thank you after receiving help can be likened to a thief who has stolen another man’s belongings.
I begin with this Yoruba proverb because I know the reaction that will follow. The moment anyone writes anything commendatory about a sitting president, the accusations come flying—”praise singer,” “APC apologist,” “compromised.” I have been around long enough to accept that as the cost of speaking your mind. But I also believe that fairness demands we call things as we see them, good and bad. I have been critical of this administration where I felt it necessary. Today, I choose to acknowledge what is undeniable.
Let me start with my hometown, because that is personal.
The last time the Ibadan–Iwo–Osogbo road received meaningful attention was in 1980, during Chief Bola Ige’s tenure as Governor of the old Oyo State. That was before Osun State was created. That was forty-six years ago. For nearly five decades, this critical artery connecting two state capitals was left to decay. Those who ply the route regularly will tell you it became a test of endurance rather than a commute. Potholes that seemed to multiply overnight, stretches where drivers prayed their vehicles would survive, and a constant cloud of dust or mud depending on the season.
The frustration is heightened by the fact that the Ibadan–Iwo route is actually shorter to Osogbo than the Gbongan alternative. It should be the preferred option. Instead, it became the road everyone dreaded. For years, we watched other communities receive federal attention while our own corner of the country waited. Through sixteen years of PDP rule, nothing tangible came our way. I state this not to engage in partisan point-scoring but to establish context. The neglect was real, and it was sustained.
I remember travelling that road as a young woman, and I remember travelling it just last year. The difference was negligible. The same craters, the same misery, the same sense that no one in power cared. There were times I would sit in traffic caused by yet another vehicle that had fallen into a pothole, and I would wonder: does anyone in Abuja even know this road exists? Does anyone at the Federal Ministry of Works have a map that includes this corridor? Or have we simply been written off?
That is the thing about neglect. It is not just the physical deterioration of infrastructure. It is the psychological weight of knowing that your community does not matter. When you see other towns get new roads, new hospitals, new schools, and you get nothing year after year, you begin to internalise it. You begin to believe that perhaps your people do not deserve better. That is a dangerous thing for any government to allow, because when citizens lose faith, they lose everything.
Then came a shift. Under this administration, we have seen developments that once seemed distant aspirations become reality. A military hospital now serves our community. A Federal College of Education has been established. And now, this road. The work has commenced in earnest. Concrete paving is advancing, and the progress along the Iwo axis is visible to anyone who cares to see.
I have seen the scepticism that greets every government project in this country, and I understand it. We have been disappointed too many times. But I have also seen the concrete being laid with my own eyes. This is happening. And for a community that has waited forty-six years, that is no small thing.
But my town is not the only one benefiting. Across the country, there is a wave of infrastructure development that deserves attention.
This is why what this administration is doing matters. It is showing that governance is not just about occupying office but about making a difference in the lives of ordinary people.
I am aware that there are still challenges. These are real issues that must be addressed. But progress in one area does not invalidate progress in another. We can walk and chew gum at the same time. We can acknowledge that there is still work to be done while also recognising that work is being done.
I think about the people of my hometown. The farmers who will now get their produce to market without losing half of it to spoilage on bad roads. The students who will no longer have to wake up at 4 a.m. to avoid being late because the road is impassable. The mothers who can rush a sick child to the hospital without praying that the vehicle makes it. These are the people infrastructure is for and the people this administration is serving.
I want to acknowledge my brother Temitope Ajayi and others who have the President’s ear. Please convey my gratitude to PBAT. Tell him that the people of my town say thank you—not because we expect political appointments or contracts, but because good roads benefit everyone. The trader, the farmer, the student, the mother. Infrastructure does not discriminate. It does not ask your party affiliation. It does not care where you worship. It simply works for everyone, and that is why it matters.
We also want him to know that we see the work. We see the difference between a government that pays lip service and one that delivers. And we will remember when the time comes to vote again.
I cannot speak for all Nigerians, but I can speak for my people: we are grateful. Not because we have been bought or silenced, but because after forty-six years, someone finally remembered. And that is worth writing about.
Moyosore Oyetunji wrote from
Iwo, Osun state
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