By Samuel Edu

Commercial activities were yesterday paralyzed along the Akure/Ado road for hours as commuters and youths staged protest against the deplorable state of the road.

The youths barricaded the road with a truck they hijacked from one of the  drivers.

The angry youths who later dispersed, called on the federal government to urgently intervene on the state of the  road.

Commuters plying the road were delayed for hours  and were later forced to take a detour  to adjoining routes.

Few of the aggrieved protesters who spoke with The Hope expressed displeasure over the attitude of concerned government agencies towards the road.

They narrated their   ordeals and hardships encountered while plying the road in search of their daily bread.

Dare Oluwaseun, a commercial motorcyclist said “with this road, life has become more unbearable. It gets worse on a daily basis and cost of maintaining my motorcycle is increasing.

“All we can say is to appeal to the governments as they are our last hope. We are only pleading for help, this hardship is too much.”

Another commercial driver, Lasisi Yisa said his vehicle has been off the road for days as a result of the deplorable condition of the road.

“My vehicle has been with the mechanic for a while and I am trying to raise some money to get it fixed. This terrible road is a major contributor to the problem of the vehicle, we appeal to the government to please proffer a lasting solution to this persistent problem.”

A petty road side trader, Abosede Olaoluwa narrated the extent at which the road has affected her business, stressing that the hardship she has been encountering in the last few days could not be quantified.

“Just few minutes ago, this road was blocked, I had to trek from Itaogbolu to where you’re seeing me now. I fry Akara and before now, I usually fry five rubbers of Akara but now, I can only afford to fry five cups, the road has affected everyone, motorists and okada riders now charge extra amount, we humbly plead that the government should please help in alleviating this hardship.”

A meat seller along the road, Amao Ola said “profit from  my business has reduced drastically. I fell off my motorcycle last week due to the road condition. We plead with government to come to our rescue.”