Governor Dapo Abiodun will soon stand before cameras on Thursday, 12 November 2026, to break ground on a 450-hectare industrial park for Lee Group at Makun, near the Sagamu Interchange. The government calls it fresh investment. Many Ogun people are asking a simple question; is it really new?
Here is the story as people close to it tell it. Lee Group did not just wake up and discover Ogun State. Long before this governor came, the company was already in Kano, where about 57 Chinese companies were reportedly lined up to join it. Then the economic meltdown came, and many of those dreams were abandoned. Around 2008 and 2009, under Otunba Senator Gbenga Daniel, the group was brought to Ogun State. Anyone driving from Lagos toward the Sagamu Interchange can see the place on the left, marked “Chinese Industrial Park”.
So what exactly is Mr Abiodun flagging off?
The Lee Group chairman, Sheau Fung Lee, has himself expressed frustration at how slowly the project has moved after about sixteen years. The reason, according to this account, is that the House of Assembly did not allow the administration of that time to access the funds needed to carry the project through. Two arms of government fought, and the investor waited. That is not the story the public is being told today.
Now see the pattern. Airports, the Olokola Deep Seaport, oil exploration, and now this. Different words, same trick. Take an idea that was started by those before you, wait for it to ripen, then hold a ceremony and call it your own achievement. A government that is proud of its work does not need to hide where the work began. Credit should go where credit is due, and Otunba Senator Gbenga Daniel’s administration deserves the credit for bringing Lee Group here.
Ogun people should ask three plain questions. What did the company already build on that land since 2008? How many jobs exist today, not on paper? And why does a sixteen-year-old story need a brand-new groundbreaking? A ceremony is not a factory, and a promise repeated is not progress.
Before you publish, two notes. My search could not confirm the 2008 relocation, the Kano history, the Assembly dispute, or the chairman’s quote, so please check them against documents or named sources. Also, I avoided stating “fraud” as fact, since it is an accusation that could expose you to a defamation claim unless you can prove it.
The government’s side is that the 450-hectare park may be a new expansion on top of existing plants. Reports from earlier this year say Abiodun secured a $50 million expansion deal with Lee Group to grow its detergent and food-processing plants in Sagamu. Supporters would say bringing an existing investor back to expand is a good thing, whoever first welcomed them. I can add a right-of-reply paragraph or a shorter version if you want.
Seunmanuel Faleye is a brand and communications strategist. He is a covert writer and an overt creative head. He publishes Apple’s Bite International Magazine.
