As a member of one of the prominent families in Ijebu Ode, it is natural to be worried that the Olokola Project, which was initiated by former Governor Gbenga Daniel of Ogun State, in conjunction with Ondo State and the Federal Government in 2004, appears to be “porting” to Ondo State, even after the current Ogun State Governor Dapo Abiodun promised to revive it.
To be fair, former Governor Ibikunle Amosun of Ogun State, whose alleged negligence caused the relocation of Dangote Refinery from Ogun State to Lagos State, actually expressed willingness to support the take-off of the Olokola liquified natural gas, harmonia and fertiliser plant between Ogun State, Ondo State and private interests, a euphemism for Dangote organisation.
Though he reportedly made 10,000 hectares of land available for the project, and appointed Dapo Abiodun, now Ogun State governor, and Lekan Onamusi, who replaced Ijebu Waterside indigene, Kemi Adeosun, who became Minister of Finance, the Ijebu kingdom still grudges Amosun for the relocation of Dangote Refinery and the stalled take-off of the Olokola project.
According to Amosun, the Federal Government, with 51 per cent stake, is the majority shareholder in the Olokola Free Trade Zone, while Ogun and Ondo states would have 14.5 per cent apiece. Aliko Dangote, the core investor, was supposed to own 20 per cent.
The Olokola Free Trade Zone, located along the Atlantic Ocean coastline, was conceived in 2005 to serve as a major economic gateway for Nigeria. And the good news is that Olokola runs through Ogun and Ondo states, and its commencement in one of the states should not preclude its extension to the second state.
So, Oba Samuel Adeoye of Atijere in Ondo State should rein himself in and not muddy the waters with vexing claims that the Eba oil fields belong to Ondo State exclusively, even though he must be commended for demonstrating a sense of fairness by asking the National Boundaries Commission to intervene in the boundary dispute.
He sounds like a man looking for a fair and just way of resolving the matter in the interest of all the stakeholders. At the end of the day, the ultimate beneficiaries are the citizens of Nigeria, regardless of the state that they belong to. In any case, there is no way that the benefits will not spill over to the neighbours that are close to the project, as the nose is to the eyes, even if they are in another state.
But the Ijebu Kingdom must not fold its hands and yield to threats, feints or hubris, but assert its inalienable rights to an asset that it owns fully, or, at least, partly. And the NBC must intentionally deal a fair hand to all concerned dispassionately. Right now, all eyes are on the NBC, whose actions are being watched with intense scrutiny.
Aliko Dangote, the world’s richest Black man, has confirmed to Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa of his organisation’s intention to develop the largest industrial and free trade zone in Nigeria in Ondo State’s portion of Olokola.
This industrial hub would attract manufacturers with its own infrastructure of electricity, water and logistics that will remove the usual bottlenecks that constrain commerce in most parts of Nigeria. There is no doubt that the Lagos-Calabar Coastal highway will bring its own advantages when it becomes operational.
When Dangote uttered the reassuring words, “We want to create the biggest free trade zone where investors can just come and plug in,” to Governor Aiyedatiwa, it tugged at the underbelly of all bona fide natives of the Ijebu Kingdom of Ogun and Lagos states.
It is of even more concern when you realise that early in 2026, President Bola Tinubu, not only approved the longstanding aspiration of Ogun State to become an oil-producing state with the drilling at Eba in Ijebu Waterside, but he also approved the take-off of the Olokola Deep Seaport project, with the construction work expected to significantly advance between 2026 and 2027.
Aiyedatiwa, who has quickly inaugurated an Ondo State Technical Committee for the project, thinks that Ondo Olokola could become Africa’s leading maritime, industrial and logistics hub because of its strategic location and abundant natural resources (that spreads into Ogun State).
What remains to be done is for the governments of both states to persuade the Dangote organisation of their willingness to participate as partners in the Olokola projects. Reports indicate that representatives of Dangote Industries Limited, led by Captain Jamil Abubakar, had visited the Ode Omi community of Ijebu Waterside in Ogun State as part of efforts to advance the Olokola project.
Abiodun recently announced that oil drilling had commenced at Eba in Ijebu Waterside after due approval by President Bola Tinubu. He added that oil was abundant in other parts of the Ijebu Kingdom, which includes Odogbolu and Ijebu East Local Governments, as well as Ijebu Ode, the lead city of the Ijebu Kingdom.
Who knows if the oil asset extends to Remoland, which is coterminous with Odogbolu LGA, or even in Ijebu North LGA, which is situated north of Ijebu Ode? It could also extend to Epe and Ikorodu divisions, the Ijebu part of Lagos State.
Abiodun, who obviously could not contain his joy, announced effusively, “As we speak, drilling activities have commenced in Eba in Ogun State.” Then he asked in apparent wonderment, in Yoruba, “O se wa je pe igba ote ti emi ni Olorun ba wa se,” meaning, “Why is it that it is during my tenure (as governor of Ogun State) that God helped us to do it?”
Governor Abiodun described the commissioning of the reconstructed Gao-Ibiade Road as a strategic investment to prepare Ijebu Waterside communities for the anticipated surge in industrial, commercial and maritime activities that should follow on the heels of Olokola Free Trade Zone, Olokola Deep Seaport, and the return of Dangote Refinery.
The Governor disclosed that the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited has indicated willingness to revisit its multi-billion naira OKLNG project, a highly ambitious natural gas development project that it had practically abandoned.
These developments put Ogun State in the league of Nigeria’s oil-producing states. Maybe that should be a selling point to attract Aliko Dangote to extend his operations into Ogun State, where his journey into the petroleum refinery business started, before the deal was compromised and he left for Lagos.
Nothing stops Dangote from having many units of the same kind of business in as many states that have the resources and want to participate. At the moment, Dangote has cement manufacturing works in Benue, Kogi, and Ogun states.
The Olokola port, to be known as the Blue Marine Economic Zone, is expected to contribute to the significant decongestion of Lagos and Tin Can Island ports in Lagos State, while the commercial drilling of oil in Eba Island should promote economic empowerment of the Ijebu Waterside.
If it is okay to borrow the slogan of President Tinubu’s presidential campaign, one could say that the Ijebu Kingdom should be excited that Governor Abiodun is raising renewed hope about the return of the Ogun State Government to the Olokola and oil assets projects in Ijebu Waterside.
The Olokola project, which has been described as Nigeria’s next industrial and maritime economic hub, must not become a stillbirth.
Credit: Punch Newspaper.
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