The Ogun state governor, Dapo Abiodun consulted top federal officials on Thursday, as a professor of Political Economy, Pat Utomi, accused former Ogun State governor Ibikunle Amosun of revoking his property deal with the state government. Multiple Ogun State officials confirmed the development on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak on the matter. Abiodun went to Abuja last Thursday to engage the Federal Government officials over the seizure of the presidential jets.
The move by Abiodun to resolve the Ogun FTZ debacle came to light as Utomi and Amosun clashed over a revoked property deal. Utomi had in several posts on X.com on Saturday said he was also a victim of the decision of Amosun to cancel contracts signed by his predecessor, Otunba Gbenga Daniel. He narrated how he suffered to pay back millions of naira in loans after Amosun allegedly cancelled a contract he had with the state government.
Amosun had said he cancelled the contract with the Chinese firm in 2016 after the Ogun government discovered that the firm’s claims were false. However, commenting on Amosun’s admission, Utomi wrote: “So, it was Gov Amosun’s violation of contract terms signed by his predecessor that brought the shame of seizure of jets from the presidential fleet. I hope he is happy with his achievement. The whole matter is Karma at work.”
Reacting to Utomi’s statement on Sunday, Amosun accused the academic of making an unreasonable demand following the revocation of the property deal. He explained that Utomi did not invest more than N50m on the revoked property, adding that the former presidential candidate tried to induce him to pay N200m but he rebuffed him. Amosun accused Utomi of having an ‘entitlement mentality,’ adding that the House of Assembly had blacklisted Utomi over his alleged penchant for shoddy deals.
Amosun disclosed this in a statement on Sunday in response to the post made by the renowned don on his X handle. He said, “Before I came into office, the Ogun State House of Assembly had passed a persona non grata (resolution) on Utomi, and put its resolution in the state’s black book
Amosun committed to making a refund of N100 million as against his claim of N200 million. He pressured Utomi ceaselessly to pay him N200 million, but I did not yield. As part of his determination to sway me, he deployed his Centre for Value in Leadership, CVL, through the instrumentality of an Award. At first, it all looked curious that I had just been in office for about two years, and here I was being given an award, so I rejected it. But he insisted that I honour his CVL SOLUTION CONFERENCE SERIES with my presence, which I did, and I was given a plague for participating. But I did not change my position on the refund of N100 million as against his N200 million claim.
Utomi challenged everyone, including journalists, to let them meet at the construction site and see the N200 million investment he claimed to have made there. He said that Utomi knows his case did not even have any legs to stand on.
The former governor criticized Zhongshan Fucheng Industrial Investment Co. for being an impostor and canceled their contract, citing favourable court judgments. He emphasized the need for one law for every Nigerian, regardless of status, religion, or tribe, and called for leaders to be held accountable for their actions. However, he warned against misinformation and dubious tales.
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