The Ogun State Government has accused Senator Gbenga Daniel of deliberately misleading the public after he criticised Governor Dapo Abiodun over a stop-work order issued on the 260-metre Paddy Arikawe Oye-Igbimo Road in Sagamu.
In a statement signed on Sunday by Mr. Kayode Akinmade, Special Adviser on Media to Governor Abiodun, the state described Senator Daniel’s remarks as “reckless and misleading.”
“Only a mind bent on mischief will describe adherence to due process as obstruction. The same contractor has since accepted the government’s recommendations, which makes Daniel’s claims even more misleading,” Akinmade said.
He alleged that Senator Daniel has a pattern of stirring controversy, recalling past disputes over constituency projects and property verification in Sagamu.
The government accused the former governor of undermining state institutions during his time in office, questioning his record on infrastructure delivery.
“He complains about roads, yet how many did he construct as governor? Meanwhile, the present administration has built over 1,000 kilometres of roads across the state,” Akinmade noted.
He added that the Abiodun administration would not compromise the rule of law or allow substandard works in the name of political grandstanding.But Senator Daniel’s media aide, Mr. Steve Oliyide, faulted the government’s action, describing it as sabotage against federal projects.
He said: “The Sagamu–Aiyepe road already has budgetary approval signed into law by President Bola Tinubu. No sooner than the contractors were mobilised to site than the Ogun State Government moved in with a stop-work order.”
Mr. Oliyide accused the state of deliberately frustrating federal interventions in Ogun East, warning that the action was an attempt to portray President Tinubu in a bad light before the people.
“This is not the first project the state government has stopped. If they continue like this, they are sabotaging the Federal Government’s efforts and denying Ogun people the benefits of governance,” he added.
The dispute followed a September 17 letter from the Ogun State Ministry of Works directing contractor Minim and Tonye Nigeria Limited to halt work for failing to secure necessary approvals.
