Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, 2023 Lagos Guber Candidate of the Labour Party, has raised questions about the claim by Dangote Group CEO Aliko Dangote that he paid $100 million for the land his refinery sat on.
Rhodes-Vivour, in a post on X, pointed out that the $100 million could have been transformative for the Ibeju Lekki axis.
”A good part of this amount could have built a tram to connect Ibeju to CMS, opening up the entire corridor to more investments. It could have built a hospitality management school to empower young people with the right skills to flourish in the hospitality sector – the fastest growing sector in Lekki,” he stated.
He stressed the critical need for investment in better roads, medical services, and human capital development—all of which have remained a mirage despite so much being promised about economic growth from mega-projects like the Dangote Refinery.
”Imagine what $100 million could have done for the Ibeju Lekki community and environs. These communities have the worst set of roads and other basic infrastructure, poor health care services, and low investments in human capital development. That money could have been invested in dikes and mechanical drainage systems to manage the impact of floods,” he noted.
“Dangote still had to construct the road to his refinery. He still had to build his power plant and other infrastructure and social services that the government had failed to provide,” Rhodes-Vivour stated.
He questioned the state government’s accountability and transparency about how the resources, especially money earmarked for community development and infrastructure improvement, were utilised.
As usual, the poor drainage system and designs have compounded flooding problems during the rainy season.
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