By: Dr. Philip B. Olusola
The ongoing reconstruction of the Ibadan-Ife-Ilesa Expressway is one of the most strategic infrastructure projects in Southwestern Nigeria. Beyond improving transportation, the project promises to boost commerce, reduce travel time, enhance road safety, and stimulate economic development across the region.
Sadly, this landmark investment is increasingly threatened by a disturbing wave of vandalism, particularly along the Ilesa-Ife axis, where criminal elements, popularly known as “iron condemn” scavengers, have reportedly been cutting and stealing exposed reinforcing steel bars (starter bars) from sections of the road under construction.
To the uninformed, these protruding steel rods may appear to be abandoned construction materials. Nothing could be farther from the truth. They are critical structural components deliberately left exposed by engineers to bond successive sections of reinforced concrete pavement. Their removal compromises the structural integrity of the highway, reduces its lifespan, increases maintenance costs, and could ultimately expose thousands of road users to avoidable danger. What some perceive as an opportunity for quick financial gain is, in reality, an act of economic sabotage against the nation.
This disturbing trend can be better understood through established criminological theories. Routine Activities Theory posits that crime occurs when a motivated offender encounters a suitable target in the absence of capable guardianship. In this case, the exposed reinforcing steel constitutes an attractive target, offenders are motivated by the lucrative scrap-metal market, and inadequate surveillance creates the opportunity for theft. Similarly, Rational Choice Theory suggests that offenders weigh the anticipated benefits of crime against the perceived risks. Where monitoring is weak and the likelihood of arrest or punishment is low, offenders may conclude that the rewards outweigh the consequences.
The implications of this criminal enterprise extend far beyond the construction site. Every stolen reinforcement bar undermines the quality and durability of the highway, increasing the likelihood of premature deterioration and costly rehabilitation. Ultimately, it is the Nigerian taxpayer who bears the financial burden through additional public expenditure. More importantly, compromised infrastructure could endanger the lives of countless motorists who will depend on the road for decades.
Another dimension that deserves urgent attention is the possibility of insider facilitation. Experience has shown that infrastructure vandalism is sometimes aided by individuals who possess knowledge of construction activities, material locations, work schedules, and security arrangements.
Contractors should therefore strengthen internal control measures through proper personnel screening where practicable, worker identification systems, routine inventory of construction materials, restricted access to sensitive areas, and close supervision of both permanent and temporary workers.
Effective infrastructure protection must address both external threats and potential internal vulnerabilities.
Security agencies should also maintain intelligence-led surveillance of individuals and groups whose activities regularly bring them into the construction corridor. Commercial motorcycle operators, scrap collectors, transporters, and persons operating around the project should receive appropriate attention where intelligence indicates suspicious movements or activities.
Furthermore, the prevalence of illegal mining around parts of the Ilesa axis warrants closer scrutiny, as criminal networks engaged in illicit mining or scrap-metal trading may exploit opportunities for infrastructure vandalism. Such monitoring, however, must remain evidence-based, professional, and devoid of indiscriminate profiling.
Equally troubling is what this trend reveals about our collective attitude toward public property. Infrastructure financed with taxpayers’ money belongs to every Nigerian. Destroying it for personal enrichment is tantamount to stealing from millions of citizens and undermining the nation’s development aspirations. No society can achieve sustainable progress where public assets are routinely vandalised with little or no consequence.
Addressing this challenge requires far more than periodic security patrols. Government should strengthen surveillance around construction sites through modern technology, intelligence gathering, community-based monitoring, and closer collaboration among contractors, host communities, and security agencies. Those apprehended for vandalism must be thoroughly investigated and prosecuted to serve as a deterrent to others.
Equally important is the regulation of the scrap-metal trade. The activities of “iron condemn” dealers who knowingly purchase stolen reinforcing steel sustain this criminal enterprise. Without a ready market for stolen construction materials, much of the economic incentive for infrastructure vandalism would disappear. Law enforcement efforts should therefore target not only those who steal public assets but also those who knowingly receive, trade in, or profit from them.
This menace should not be viewed as a problem peculiar to the Ilesa-Ife axis alone. It is a wake-up call for every ongoing infrastructure project across Nigeria. Every construction corridor should be adequately protected through proactive security measures rather than reactive interventions after damage has occurred. Preventive security is invariably more effective-and far less costly-than repairing compromised infrastructure.
The reconstruction of the Ibadan-Ife-Ilesa Expressway presents Nigeria with an opportunity to demonstrate not only its capacity to build world-class infrastructure but also its resolve to preserve it. Roads are more than concrete and steel; they are arteries of commerce, education, healthcare, tourism, social cohesion, and national integration. Allowing criminal elements to undermine such investments is unacceptable.
The exposed reinforcement bars along the Ilesa-Ife highway are not mere pieces of iron. They symbolise the foundation of a safer transportation network, a stronger economy, and a more prosperous future. Protecting them is not solely the responsibility of government or contractors. It is a shared obligation of security agencies, host communities, traditional institutions, civil society organisations, the judiciary, the media, legitimate scrap-metal dealers, and every patriotic Nigerian.
If we truly desire sustainable national development, we must recognise that building infrastructure is only half the task; protecting it is the other half. The war against infrastructure vandalism is one Nigeria cannot afford to lose, for in protecting our infrastructure, we are ultimately protecting our collective future.
— Philip B. Olusola, PhD, is a Public Affairs Analyst and Academic
