As part of its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative in promoting the Town and Gown relations, the University has begun maintenance work on the Camp-Alabata Road in Abeokuta, to minimise the hardship experienced by road users.

The maintenance work, which involves the filling of potholes and patching of the road, is being jointly carried out by the Directorate of Works and Services, as well as the Department of Civil Engineering, College of Engineering, of the University.

The Dean, College of Engineering, Professor Johnson Adewumi, noted that the decision to embark on patching of the road was taken during an emergency meeting of Senate of the University, when the deplorable state of the road was raised.

Professor Adewumi disclosed that the Vice-Chancellor, Professor Olusola Oyewole, responded positively to the issue when he approved that the
Directorate of Works and Services be mobilised to commence work with an input from the College.

The Dean stated that following the Vice-Chancellor’s directive, he quickly mobilised his team and proceeded on a site inspection of the road and did the cost analysis that would make the patching and asphalting permanent.

He assured that COLENG would monitor the project closely, to ensure that an excellent job is done, as he lauded the Pro-Chancellor, Senator Adeseye Ogunlewe, as well as the University Management, for encouraging Engineering students to participate in field work, to gain more practical experience.

The Head, Department of Civil Engineering, Professor Bayo Olateju added that speed-breakers would also be constructed, to help reduce excessive speeding and prevent accidents on the road, when completed.

Furthermore, the Deputy Director of Works and Services, Engineer Babatunde Olukoya, said “although, the road is a government road, the University felt that as part of its CSR, even with its lean resources, it should work on the road since the University and its host community would benefit, when the road becomes motorable”.

Engineer Olukoya disclosed that even as far back as 1995, the Camp-Alabata Road had been a rural road that was surface-dressed and that most of the work done then was through the intervention of the Ogun State Government and the University.

He, however, stated that this time, the University’s intervention was a major one because it entailed using asphalt, and in the process, Engineering students would be involved, to enable them gather practical knowledge, in addition to the theory taught in the classroom.

Engineer Olukoya, who is a Civil Engineer, added that the area to be covered is about 2 Km long; between the Camp Junction and the Ogun-Oshun River Basin Development Authority in Abeokuta.

To ensure that the repaired work lasts long, the Deputy Director appealed to residents not to dispense used water on the road.