Ogun State Governor Ibikunle Amosun on Wednesday,
lamented that over N23bn was lost by the state through the
mismanagement in land allocations by the administration of former
Governor Gbenga Daniel.
Amosun, who also reiterated his vow to reverse the concessioning of the state’s assets granted the immediate administration, regretted that due diligence and processes were not followed in land allocation in the state.
Addressing the people of the state during his state- of- state address to mark his 30 days in office at the June 12 Cultural Centre in Abeokuta, the governor wondered why the Daniel administration did not adhere to the Land Use Act which makes it mandatory for every state to have a Land Use Allocation Committee.
He said, “There was clear breach of the extant laws and an unacceptable abuse of official position by the concentration of such committee powers in the hands of one individual in the last eight years.
“For example, there is the case of a publishing company which was allocated 41hectares. The revenue that ought to accrue to Ogun State from the huge land allocations was at least N33.8bn, if we use the Land Bureau rates.
“Curiously, for the entire period of eight years, the last administration posted a meagre N10.9bn for land allocation and N577m for land ratification.”
On the concessioned assets of the state, Amosun said some of the most painful of them were the Gateway Hotels and Ogun House on Victoria Island, Lagos.
According to the governor, the Gateway Hotels was valued at N1. 41bn in 2009 but was handed over to a private firm to manage for 25 years at a meagre N300m.
He said, “In this case, Gateway Holdings had no clue of this invidious concession that was entered into on May 2, 2011 in the tail end of the last administration’s days. To underscore the insincerity of the past administration in this regard, May 2, 2011 was a public holiday.
“When it is considered that like in all other cases, no valuation was embarked upon, only N10m was paid as concession fees for a concession that is supposed to last for a period of 25 years. Against the back drop of very hazy obligations that will bring no benefit to the state, one will not fail to wonder the motivation behind this mindless exercise of power.”
The governor, who did not mention how much was paid for the Ogun House that was concessioned to an individual for 50 years, added that the Gateway Trailer Park was one of the worst cases of abuse of power that any administration could commit.
“I will not rest until all those assets are reverted to Ogun State. We will pay them their money back if necessary as we cannot just allow the state to be signed away. Our solace is that almost all the properties concessioned did not follow due process,” he stated.
Amosun also disclosed that about N2bn was being deducted from source from the state’s monthly revenue through an irrevocable standing payment order entered into by the previous administration.
He added that with the situation on ground, the state government had no alternative than to borrow to pay workers salaries.
By Francis Falola Courtesy Of: Punch
Amosun, who also reiterated his vow to reverse the concessioning of the state’s assets granted the immediate administration, regretted that due diligence and processes were not followed in land allocation in the state.
Addressing the people of the state during his state- of- state address to mark his 30 days in office at the June 12 Cultural Centre in Abeokuta, the governor wondered why the Daniel administration did not adhere to the Land Use Act which makes it mandatory for every state to have a Land Use Allocation Committee.
He said, “There was clear breach of the extant laws and an unacceptable abuse of official position by the concentration of such committee powers in the hands of one individual in the last eight years.
“For example, there is the case of a publishing company which was allocated 41hectares. The revenue that ought to accrue to Ogun State from the huge land allocations was at least N33.8bn, if we use the Land Bureau rates.
“Curiously, for the entire period of eight years, the last administration posted a meagre N10.9bn for land allocation and N577m for land ratification.”
On the concessioned assets of the state, Amosun said some of the most painful of them were the Gateway Hotels and Ogun House on Victoria Island, Lagos.
According to the governor, the Gateway Hotels was valued at N1. 41bn in 2009 but was handed over to a private firm to manage for 25 years at a meagre N300m.
He said, “In this case, Gateway Holdings had no clue of this invidious concession that was entered into on May 2, 2011 in the tail end of the last administration’s days. To underscore the insincerity of the past administration in this regard, May 2, 2011 was a public holiday.
“When it is considered that like in all other cases, no valuation was embarked upon, only N10m was paid as concession fees for a concession that is supposed to last for a period of 25 years. Against the back drop of very hazy obligations that will bring no benefit to the state, one will not fail to wonder the motivation behind this mindless exercise of power.”
The governor, who did not mention how much was paid for the Ogun House that was concessioned to an individual for 50 years, added that the Gateway Trailer Park was one of the worst cases of abuse of power that any administration could commit.
“I will not rest until all those assets are reverted to Ogun State. We will pay them their money back if necessary as we cannot just allow the state to be signed away. Our solace is that almost all the properties concessioned did not follow due process,” he stated.
Amosun also disclosed that about N2bn was being deducted from source from the state’s monthly revenue through an irrevocable standing payment order entered into by the previous administration.
He added that with the situation on ground, the state government had no alternative than to borrow to pay workers salaries.
By Francis Falola Courtesy Of: Punch
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