By Musa Baba
The Oyo State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has said that it is fraudulent for Governor Seyi Makinde of the state to spend N5.3 billion on renovating a stadium already leaking.
APC made this disclosure while reacting to the commissioning of Lekan Salami Stadium, Adamasingba, Ibadan.
Note that the stadium, which was rehabilitated with a sum of N5.3 billion, was commissioned on Wednesday.
APC has however alleged that the remodeling of the stadium is a scam.
Acting Publicity Secretary of APC, AbdulAzeez Olatunde, on Thursday described the work done at the stadium as shoddy work.
Olatunde said the rain has only exposed the weakness of the project.
He added that it was unfortunate that the stadium renovated with such an amount of money would be leaking on the day of commissioning.
“It’s a scam. I have searched the internet to see many other world stadiums and I realised we have been scammed big time in Oyo State.
“How can you say you refurbished a stadium for that kind of bogus amount of N5.3 billion. In the whole world, with the amount of money spent on the stadium, I have not seen any stadium that will be flooded and the roof will be leaking on the day of inauguration. That tells us it’s a scam.
“That is going to be the first project this government will say they are taking from scratch to the end and now see that it is all fraud. The rain has done us a favour by exposing the scam and the fraud,” Olatunde said.
But, Taiwo Adisa, Chief Press Secretary to Makinde, in a statement, noted that the contractor has given his assurance to address the challenges of the pitch.
He described the pitch as a work in progress. “Besides, the pitch as seen on Wednesday is work in progress, because the contractor has not handed over the project to the state government.
“The contractor has given his assurance to address the challenges of the pitch and by the time the works are completed, Oyo State would definitely have the value for its money, which has always been the priority and intention of Governor Makinde,” he said.
