Whilst it is exciting to have witnessed the fruition of a dream, conceived in 2005 by the administration of Otunba Gbenga Daniel, 2003-2011, with the maiden Iperu-Abuja flight by Value Jet on October 6, 2025, let us not ignore the issue of TRANPARENCY AND ACCOUNTABILITY on the laudable project. For now, what we are confronted with, by way of public commentaries, is how the present Governor has failed to acknowledged the vision of one of his predecessors whose idea it was, and who did all of the paper work and secured the operating licences from the relevant government agencies, and Federal Government approval.And, indeed, performed the turning of the soil on the grounds where the maiden flight took off for what was meant to be an International Cargo Airport to serve, not only Nigeria, but the West Africa sub- region.It would have been good and commendable if Governor Dapo Abiodun has been less self- serving in his inauguration speech at the occasion of that maiden flight, and be more charitable by acknowledging the laudable ground- breaking work of his predecessor in office whose yesterday’s dream birthed today’s reality. Perhaps the work ethics of professional politicians whose stock in trade is politics of power do not accommodate the celebration of real and imagined political opponents.And Dapo Abiodun surely has a big obstacle in Gbenga Daniel for Ogun- East Senatorial seat in the National Assembly in 2027.Yet, he should, at least, have accorded the ‘devil’ his due.But it is all about class and character and less about social status.
Now, Nigeria, in general, and the people of Ogun State, in particular, have been presented with a ‘brand new Airport’.It should not be lost on us that the Airport at conception was not meant to be financed by the government of Ogun State, and this much was emphasised in the speech of Governor Gbenga Daniel at the ground- breaking ceremony in May, 2005 .The Airport, being part of a 20 year( 2005- 2025) regional development plan, was meant to be built and operated under a business model called PPP arrangement.I think it is important that stakeholders, who are Ogun indigenes and Nigerians who reside in the geographical space of Ogun State, should know under what business model is the Airport has been delivered and will be operating . Is the original plan of it being a public private property still in place? If it is still in place, as originally envisaged by Dapo Abiodun’s predecessor at Oke- Mosan, Ogun State people deserve to know the investing partners and the respective investment status of each investor.But if the Airport original plan has changed, and it is now wholly built and owned, therefore, to be operated as government business property, as was the case with Governor Bisi Onabanjo- sponsored Ogun State( Gateway) Hotels, now defunct,and unbundled, we must be availed of necessary information on the source(s) of funds used in executing the project.For example, are the funds sourced from banks, which banks, and how much were secured at what interest rates?If the Airport has been delivered as a government project, the people of Ogun State must know how much they are owing.
Let the euphoria be muted to enable the government to attend to important matters arising from its laudable achievement
