Ogun State Governor, Dapo Abiodun, has said that his government’s urban regeneration project is progressing well. He recently revealed that more than 150 houses have been completed out of over 200 planned for the Ibara Government Reservation Area in Abeokuta, the state capital.
In a press statement shared by his Chief Press Secretary, Lekan Adeniran, after inspecting the ongoing housing construction within the Ibara GRA, Abiodun confirmed that his government will keep working towards the completion of the project regardless of external noise.
According to him, he will not stop concentrating on the needs of the people of the state amid all of the distractions by faceless opposition on Facebook and other social media platforms.
The governor stated that he will pay no attention to his detractors because they are frustrated individuals.
“Sometimes in March, after several town hall meetings and consultations with those living here — most of whom were illegal occupants who had turned themselves into landlords, renting out spaces to others illegally — we began the regeneration process.
Because it was not our desire to make people homeless, we agreed on different terms with them and managed to achieve what previous administrations either did not envision, lacked the foresight to do, or didn’t have the political will to accomplish.
We were able to convince the people that the future is here and now, and that Ogun State’s capital cannot continue to look the way it did. Particularly, the highbrow area called the GRA in Abeokuta required transformation. So, in March, we began to clear the area, demolish dilapidated structures, and implement the regeneration scheme,” he said.
Dapo Abiodun further noted that about 213 to 220 houses were earmarked for construction in the area, either directly by the state government or by private developers through the Ministry of Housing.
He concluded by saying that his administration has constructed more roads in six years than anyone else did in 16 years.
“So far, we have about 150 houses already built, while others are at different stages of completion — and this is just the beginning.
Let me assure you, this level of development is not limited to Ogun Central. As we are building and regenerating Abeokuta, we are also doing the same in Yewa, where we have affordable housing units in Ilaro.
Kobape has almost 600 houses and is still counting. In Sagamu, we have affordable housing schemes in Sagamu and Iperu, leading to the airport, and also in Ijebu-Ode.
We are doing exactly what we promised the people of Ogun State who entrusted their mandate to us, and to them we remain accountable — not to a few faceless individuals on Facebook or Twitter.
I challenge my detractors: if we have not constructed more roads in six years than anyone else did in 16 years, then I stand to be corrected. That alone is enough response to those sponsoring faceless videos and negative narratives on social media,” he added.
