The Senator representing Ondo Central, Ayo Akinyelure, said the health challenges facing Governor Rotimi Akeredou is causing the state government to lose some of its assets to unscrupulous aides.
Akeredolu is down with blood cancer. The governor’s health issue was hinted by his wife, Mrs Betty Akeredolu via a viral audio of her in which she called his spouse’s mistress and aide, Bunmi Ademosun, out.
The sickness is taking a toll on governance, with government assets in danger of being sold by some Akeredolu’s aide, as per Senator Akinyelure.
The latter in a chat with newsmen, said the Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Agriculture, Pastor Akinola Olotu, in particular, is conniving with some people to illegally sell out the Ondo State chocolate factory worth between N9bn and N15bn at a give-away price of N10m under the guise that the asset was non-operational, adding that the proposed sale fell short of due-process.
Giving a background on the issue, the Senator stated, “The Ondo State Government under the immediate past administration of Governor Olusegun Mimiko, established the Coca Processing Factory as part of his state-wide industrialisation drive, by taking over the moribund Federal Government Asset and entering into a partnership with an American chocolate industrialist, Eric Reid of Spangvola Chocolatier United States of America to convert dried Cocoa bean from the state to Chocolate and cocoa butter, thereby adding value to Nigeria cocoa produce before export.
“The machinery for the smooth take-off of this very important Industry in Idanre was imported, installed and equipped for commencement of production in partnership with Mr Eric of Spangvola Chocolatiers, USA, while the first batch of Chocolate production was made in 2015 after the commissioning of this multi-billion naira project by the state government at the twilight of the Governor Olusegun Mimiko Administration in 2015.
“To guarantee a constant supply of cocoa beans to the factory, the Oda Cocoa Plantation, which is over 1,744 Hectares, was resuscitated and made functional with over 250 Cocoa farmers’ up-scaling daily production from the farm to feed the factory.”
Continued: “Some cronies of the Government of Ondo State including the Senior Special Assistant on Agriculture had concluded arrangement to sell the same factory at the give-away price at the detriment of people of Ondo State and Idanre Local Government in particular without following due process in line with provisions of the Public Enterprise (Privatisation and Commercialisation) Act, 1999 which has generated public outcry to stop the Government from selling the property of Ondo State meant to generate employment for the good people of the State now and in future.
“These people are taking advantage of the ill health of the governor to sell state-owned properties to themselves. By God’s grace, the governor will get better.”
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