Rasheedat Ibrahim sat in the passenger seat of a worn taxi heading home to Saki. She'd just finished a business trip buying building materials in Ilorin.
The driver slowed as they approached the Moro bridge. A speeding truck bore down from behind, forcing him to swerve hard.
The taxi hit a bus, then scraped the bridge's edge. Protruding iron slashed into her lap and wrist.
Ibrahim, 42, trades in roofing sheets, nails, paints and cotton slides. The 2023 crash left her hospitalized and cost her over a million naira in destroyed goods.
"The boot forced open. My paints and roofing sheets rolled everywhere," she told this reporter from her hospital bed.
She wasn't alone in her suffering. Daily accidents on the Ilorin-Igbeti road have killed commuters and destroyed millions in merchandise.
Yet traders, farmers and transporters keep using it. The route is their only link to major markets and farmlands.
On April 30 this year, the Moro bridge finally gave way. A truck loaded with stones crossed its weakened span, and the entire structure collapsed.
An okada rider died in the collapse. Dozens more were injured.
Heavy rains that week swelled the Moro River beyond its banks. The floodwaters submerged the collapsed bridge completely.
Trucks and motorcycles that had been crossing through the shallow river as a temporary solution got trapped in the deluge. Traders couldn't move goods anymore.
Farmer Raji Afolabi shook his head at the chaos. "People from Saki, Igboho and Igbeti now have to go through Ogbomoso," he said.
The longer route makes business harder. Accessing farmlands takes much longer now.
Ibrahim and Afolabi both wondered why government abandoned this bridge. It's crucial to millions of residents and businesses across two states.
Most people don't remember when the bridge was built. But everyone recalls it being in terrible condition their entire lives.
British colonial administrators constructed the Moro bridge between 1920 and 1940. It was part of their strategy to link Nigeria's interior to world markets.
The structure served vital trade routes for decades under colonial rule. After independence, however, maintenance stopped.
Over 20 communities depend on this bridge. Its collapse has stranded entire regions.
Investigation into federal spending revealed troubling facts. Government disbursed roughly 320 million naira to a contractor for a replacement bridge project.
That project stalled for about ten years. The work never progressed beyond initial phases.
Meanwhile, the 80-year-old bridge continued deteriorating. Repeated warnings about its condition went unheeded.
Fatal accidents occurred regularly on the span. But no emergency repairs were authorized.
Officials offered no explanation for the decade-long delay. The contractor couldn't be reached for comment on the stalled work.
Local traders say government neglect killed the bridge—and an okada rider too. The economic damage is still mounting daily.
Businesses that depend on this route face an uncertain future. Without a functioning bridge, their survival looks grim.
Ibrahim's business sits at a standstill now. She wants answers on when repairs will begin.
