Former Ogun State Governor, Senator Ibikunle Amosun, has accused his successor, Governor Dapo Abiodun, of distorting the history of the President Muhammadu Buhari Estate in Abeokuta, saying the project was already conceived, acquired, master-planned and substantially developed before the change of administration in 2019.
Amosun made the allegation in a statement titled, “The Rescue of PMB Estate by Gov. Dapo Abiodun: The Limit of Falsehood,” issued ahead of the commissioning of the estate by the First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, on Tuesday.
The former governor was reacting to claims by the Abiodun administration that it had rescued the estate from possible forfeiture, settled a dispute with the contractor and transformed a stalled project into a modern 108-unit residential community.
Amosun described the claim as “a political narrative deliberately constructed upon a false premise,” insisting that the estate had already attained substantial development before he left office.
According to him, the project, originally known as Three Hills Estate, was conceived as a Three-Arms residential zone for the Executive, Legislature and Judiciary. He said the estate occupied about 500 hectares of acquired land along the Abeokuta-Sagamu Expressway, with approximately 170 hectares designated as the master-planned first phase.
Amosun said about 50 hectares had been developed as the pilot scheme before the end of his administration, with infrastructure within the area reaching about 95 per cent completion by May 2019.
He listed the infrastructure as including 43 roads, street lighting, electricity, water distribution, drainage networks, a central sewage system, gas supply lines and fibre-optic cable ducts.
He further said the infrastructure project, awarded at about N3.5 billion, had been substantially executed, adding that the contractor, ZCC, had been fully mobilised and funds were available for the outstanding work.
“If the contractor had been fully mobilised, the infrastructure was already approximately 95 per cent complete, and sufficient funds remained available for the outstanding work, who then took the government to court and threatened seizure/forfeiture, and for what reason?” Amosun asked.
The former governor also cited the visit and commissioning of the estate by former President Muhammadu Buhari on February 3, 2016, during Ogun State’s 40th anniversary celebrations, as evidence of the level of development achieved under his administration.
He said Buhari toured the estate on tarred roads with street lights illuminated and was hosted to a state banquet at the location.
Amosun also questioned the fate of individuals who had acquired plots in the estate before the change of government, saying some had obtained Certificates of Occupancy, secured development approvals and commenced construction.
He challenged the Ogun State Government to explain what had become of their interests.
The former governor further questioned the location of the 108 housing units being commissioned, saying the project occupied less than one hectare of the approximately 50 hectares that had already been provided with infrastructure under his administration.
He also raised questions over the relocation of the Access Bank Training School, claiming that the facility had been conceived during his tenure, with land allocated and payment made for it.
Amosun alleged that the training school was later relocated to an area originally designated for the Executive Arm of Government, including commissioners’ quarters.
He therefore urged the state government to publish a comprehensive account of the entire 500-hectare estate.
“Rescuing a public asset must mean securing and protecting it in its entirety, not merely developing one portion, commissioning a cluster of houses and proclaiming victory while leaving the fate of hundreds of hectares unexplained,” he said.
The former governor maintained that governance was a continuum and that completing, improving or modifying inherited projects should be regarded as part of the normal responsibility of government rather than an attempt to rewrite history.
Meanwhile, the Abiodun administration had earlier defended its handling of the project, saying it inherited the estate in a largely undeveloped state, with only the infrastructure awarded and one show building completed.
The state government said the project was subsequently caught in a legal dispute over unpaid obligations to the contractor, putting the property at risk of legal action.
According to the government, the Abiodun administration settled the dispute out of court and commenced payments to secure the state’s interest before adopting a Public-Private Partnership model to complete the development.
The government said the arrangement resulted in the development of 108 four-bedroom detached and semi-detached duplexes, alongside roads, street lighting, landscaped areas, water supply, waste management facilities, a sporting centre, children’s playground, clubhouse, 24-hour power supply, parking and security.
Abiodun said the project reflected his administration’s commitment to completing inherited projects and protecting public investments.
“This project is part of our administration’s commitment to providing quality and affordable housing for different categories of residents, while ensuring that government projects inherited from previous administrations were completed rather than abandoned,” the governor said.
The First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, is scheduled to inaugurate the estate as part of her visit to Ogun State for the South-West Zonal Launch of the National Community Food Bank Programme.
