Abiodun: Why Governors Ended Political Interference, Mediocrity in Odu’a Group

Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja

Ogun State Governor,  Dapo Abiodun, has said the owner states of the Oodua Investment Company Ltd have decided against interfering in the running of the conglomerate.

Abiodun, speaking while receiving the board and management of the conglomerate, led by its Group Chairman,  Bimbo Ashiru, expressed delight at the successes recorded by the company in recent years.

Commending the sense of creativity, direction and purpose of the new management team, Abiodun noted that he and the other South-West governors adopted a non-interference approach in order to reposition the conglomerate to reflect the true worth of the people of the zone.

He said: “I want to recall that in 2019 when I assumed office, my colleagues and I sat and we decided that it was high time we began the process of repositioning Odu’a and that the present Odu’a at that time did not reflect the quality of us as a people of the South-West.

“We decided that no longer would we want an Odu’a where the members that represent the various states are just politicians; that we would ensure that we have members that are fit for purpose, and also that we should ensure that even the management itself and the directors are professionally recruited so that they can complement the board.

“Today’s Odu’a is a complete departure, night and day from what Odu’a used to be. I want to commend your sense of creativity, direction, purpose, sincerity, and commitment to all that you signed up to do, and we are very happy with the results we have seen.

“Because of that, all the governors have adopted a non-interference approach; we have decided not to interfere with you. We are happy with what we are seeing.”

Abiodun also noted that his administration had come up with an inter-ministerial business environment council saddled with the responsibility of ensuring that investors don’t find it difficult to set up businesses in the state, adding that the state is number three in internally generated revenue in the country.

The governor noted that reforms and the ability to block leakages and loopholes without putting so much burden through increased taxes on the citizens were some of the reasons why the state would continue to soar in its determination to improve it’s internally generated revenue.

He added that his administration had created business clusters across the state, such as Remo, Ijebu, Egba, Magboro, and Yewa.

He disclosed that his administration had acquired an Electronic Certificate of Occupancy equipment that could sign 2,000 Certificates of Occupancy per day.

Abiodun said that his administration had to sanitise the entire land bureau of the state with the appointment of a tested hand to ensure the smooth running of the office, adding that his administration was fast tracking the processes so as to also ensure that the reforms reflect who the state is.

Earlier in his remarks,  Ashiru commended the governors of member states for appointing capable hands into various boards of the company, noting that the issue of diversification was very key to the company.

Ashiru also disclosed that the company had been given a license for a marginal field, noting that Odu’a investment company was on the verge of becoming an oil-producing organisation in the country.

Talking about the hospitality business of the company, Ashiru also noted that the company currently has a joint venture with international hoteliers, saying that an agreement had been signed for the increase of rooms in Premier Hotel from 87 to 150.

The group chairman, who noted that the company was looking at having an industrial park along the interchange, added that a Chinese company was on the verge of investing in the power sector of the South West with an interest in 1000 megawatts per state of the zone.