The Ogun State Government has rejected claims of political vendetta by former governor and serving senator, Otunba Gbenga Daniel, over demolition notices served on some of his properties.
The development comes after Daniel’s media office raised an alarm, accusing Governor Dapo Abiodun’s administration of a “malicious and vindictive abuse of power.”
According to Daniel’s team, the notices, issued on Friday, targeted his Sagamu private residence, The Asoludero Court, as well as his hospitality business, Conference Hotels Limited.
Daniel’s team claimed the government was attempting to apply the Ogun State Urban and Regional Planning and Development Law of 2022 retroactively, to demolish buildings constructed long before the law existed.
Some of the affected structures, they noted, dated back to 2004, and the move was linked to a previous demolition of a property belonging to Daniel’s wife in Ijebu-Ode in 2023.
Responding on Saturday, the state government, in a statement by the Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Kayode Akinmade, rejected Daniel’s claims, describing them as “blatant distortions of facts.”
Akinmade clarified that the notices were part of a development audit being conducted in the Sagamu and Ijebu-Ode Government Reserved Areas, an initiative he said affects many other property owners.
He said that instead of politicising the issue, Daniel should follow due process.
“All Otunba Gbenga Daniel needs to do, just like every other person in a similar situation, is to present his planning permit and land title to the relevant government agency for verification within the time specified in the notices, rather than resorting to cheap blackmail,” he said.
He further emphasised the government’s position on the rule of law.
“Nobody is bigger than the State. Senator Gbenga Daniel is distinguished, no doubt, but he is not bigger than Ogun State. He should submit himself unreservedly to the same laws he once swore twice to uphold,” the statement added.
The Ogun government also pointed out that such town planning audits are not new and have been a standard procedure, including during Daniel’s tenure as governor.
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