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Akinwande Soji-Ojo
Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, has admitted that the project to remodel the Agbowo shopping complex failed.
Speaking on Fresh 105.9FM programme, ‘political circuit,’ on Saturday, the governor said the project failed due to some factors that has nothing to do with the state government.
He said:” I’ll admit to the people of Oyo State that the project failed.
“When we came on board, the state government is the one still managing the place. I went there during the campaign and the place has dilapidated. We advertised for investors and people applied.
“We advertised and they brought the file to me. The Brent group came first. I said engage them. This is during COVID-19 time. But they said they can’t do anything until after a year because of COVID. We already wasted a year on COVID-19, and because we want to give the place a facelift, I said bring the second person.
“While I was trying to decide who I should give Agbowo remodeling to, a prominent Ibadan elder came to me that I should give the second person, I gave it to him.
“We got to know that the guy doesn’t have money to do the job. Infact, someone told me that the guy that came third is the one financing the second person. I said since you know that number 3 is financing number 2 and number 2 has no money, let’s go to number 3. I later got to know that the second person had already applied during the previous administration. If I had known, I won’t give it to him, despite the Ibadan elder’s intervention.
“This is an asset that is dilapidating, that was how we got to number 3.
“If you have a problem staring you in the face, you tried to solve it and it failed, you come together to solve it.”