Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of DeBASCO Group, Chief Babatunde Onakoya, has expressed the intention to partner with the Ogun State government in the area of fish farming.
The chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) said, when tapped into, his investment and expertise in the rearing of about one million shoals of fish, including fingerings, jumpers, brood stocks, and matured catfish at his DeBASCO Farm, would lead to the socio-economic development of the state.
Chief Onakoya, popularly known as DeBASCO, stated this while commending the state government for attracting foreign direct investments into the state through the implementation of public-private partnership (PPP) projects, including the Agro-Cargo and Passenger Airport on Iperu-Ilishan Road.
DeBASCO further described the payment of accumulated gratuities to thousands of state and local government pensioners as a testament to Governor Dapo Abiodun’s worker-friendly approach to good governance.
The APC chieftain also noted that palliatives rolled out by Governor Abiodun in the areas of transportation, workers’ wages and salaries, micro, small, and medium-scale, as well as youths and women empowerment, will go a long way in cushioning the negative effects of fuel subsidy removal and bring about good standards of living for the masses.
While recalling the role he played as an automobile investor in the development of the automotive industry in 1988 and 1989, Onakoya declared that his company is ready to support the PPP initiative being pursued by both the federal and Ogun State governments once again.
He further disclosed that about 1,000 youths and women across the 20 local government areas of Ogun State will be trained and empowered in various vocations and trades, including fish and poultry farming, hairdressing, auto mechanics, tire vulcanization, fashion designing, and catering.
He said the program will form part of his 70-year birthday celebration slated for October 2, 2023, at his hometown in Ijebu-Ode, Ogun State.