The political rivalry and cold war between Governor Dapo Abiodun of Ogun State and one of his predecessors, Senator Gbenga Daniel took a different dimension at the weekend as the popular DATKEM Plaza, owned by the wife of Daniel, Yeye Olufunke, has been demolished by the state government.
The Project Manager and Developer, the project situated at Folagbade Street, Ijebu Ode, Ogun State, Mr. Olusegun Lawal, announced the development on Sunday in a statement issued and made available to journalists in Abeokuta.
Lawal, who works with Adeolumi Environmental Services Limited, said that the bulldozers of the Governor Abiodun-led Administration moved into the plaza at 3:00am on Sunday and was still carrying out the demolition as at the time he issued the statement.
He said that this was in spite of the fact that the construction of the plaza which started in 2009 had full approval, adding that the project which cost over N1billion was an iconic, solid structure but for which the notification for the demolition was carried out within three days of notification.
In the words of Lawal; “There are no single structural defects on the building and ALL relevant and necessary government approvals have been obtained. All these information are known by the relevant personnel of Government in ongoing discussions”.
Lawal also said that the commissioning of Plaza was scheduled for the end of September, 2023, adding that the ground floor and mezzanine is a banking hall fully fitted with bank trap doors, and CHUBB strong room.
Lawal said that the Plaza had a Kone elevator installed by Kresta Laurel Limited, another company owned by Senator Daniel, who also served as governor of the state for former two terms.
In the words of Lawal; “About 80 brand new split air-conditioners recently installed by Holomicool Nigeria Limited were destroyed alongside the building with a 150 KVA generator set and a transformer.
“A fire-fighting system installed by Flory Limited and external cladding being completed by Vertex Nigeria Limited also went down,” he said.
Lawal also said that the Governor Abiodun-led Administration stated that the reason for demolishing the plaza was because there was not enough parking space in front of the building on Folagbade Street, sided by two undeveloped streets which is being prepared by the Developers to be tarred to support parking while the empty piece of land at the back is being negotiated for lease to complement car parking.
He further said; “Inadequate Muster Point: Muster point is any space outside the building where people can gather in case of fire or emergency. There is ample space around the building that can be used as Muster Point.
“Inadequate Airspace. This is a new one. But there is enough airspace as there is no single adjoining building around the four sides of the building. There is also no concrete fence but only metal grills to ensure proper airflow,” he said.
The project engineer said that it must be noted that there are other buildings within the vicinity that do not come close to the demolished plaza in terms of compliance on safety matters.