Oyo State Archives - SocietyGazette.com

Adron Homes Chairman Commends Oyo State’s Real Estate Reforms, Urges Policy Continuity

The Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Adron Group, Aare Adetola Emmanuelking, KOF, has commended the Oyo State Government for its bold reforms in the real estate sector, describing the state as a land of “history, enterprise, and endless possibilities.”

Aare Adetola remarked while delivering a goodwill message titled “The Real Estate Called Oyo State” at the 2025 Oyo State Real Estate Conference, held in Ibadan.

The event, themed “Real Estate and Economic Development in Oyo State: Strategies for Success,” brought together top real estate developers, government officials, and investors to discuss strategies for improving housing delivery and driving economic growth in the state.

Organised by the Office of the Special Adviser to the Governor on Housing and Urban Development in collaboration with the Real Estate Developers Association of Nigeria (REDAN), the conference highlighted the need for policy stability, public-private partnerships, and innovation in real estate development.

In his address, the Speaker of the Oyo State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Adebo Ogundoyin, reaffirmed the government’s commitment to transparency and investor confidence through the digitalisation of land records (OYOGIS), improved urban planning, and major infrastructure upgrades across the state.

He also cited the passage of the Oyo State Land Control and Administration Bill, 2023, and the establishment of the Anti-Land Grabbing Task Force as key reforms curbing land disputes and promoting sustainable property ownership. Ogundoyin praised major developers such as Adron Homes and MKH Properties for their role in boosting investor trust in the Oyo property market.

In his goodwill message, Aare Adetola Emmanuelking applauded the administration of Governor Seyi Makinde, FNSE, for maintaining consistency in land policies and governance structures, which he said had continued to attract serious investors to Oyo State.

He recalled that Adron Homes made its foray into Ibadan nearly a decade ago based on the state’s stable policy environment, a decision that has since yielded impressive results. He, however, urged the state government and future administrations to ensure policy continuity, warning that inconsistency could derail the progress already achieved.

The conference ended with a collective resolve by stakeholders to deepen collaboration between the public and private sectors, strengthen regulatory transparency, and create a business environment that will make Oyo State a model for real estate investment in Nigeria.

N34b Security Vote: Oyo State Questioned on Increase on Insecurity

As it is in many other States in Nigeria, tales of insecurity have trailed the administration of Oyo State governor, Engineer Seyi Makinde, a corporate Czar, who made laudable marks in the oil and gas sector before venturing into politics.

Pre 2019, governor Makinde had solicited for votes, promising the people of Oyo State through a concise manifesto, “ Oyo State Roadmap for Accelerated Development, 2019-2023” with Economy (through agribusiness), Education, Healthcare and Security as priority areas.

However, just after assuming office, a segment of the numerous crises that upturned the innocence of Igangan to the mayhem at Iwo Road and the assassination of an Ibadan On-Air Personality, showed clearly about the renewed upsurge in crime in the 46 years old State.

But an investigation by the National Association of Online Security Reporters, NAOSRE revealed that the governor has taken measures to enhance safety in the State.

Among other things, the governor, within one year in office, was said to have procured and distributed 100 Rio Kia motor vehicles fully equipped with modern security communication gadgets; operationalised 615 Citizens’ Emergency toll-free lines, streetlights under the Light-up Oyo Phase 1, about 49 JAC Pickup Vans for the new Police Mobile Force (PMF) Squadron (No. 72 PMF), refurbished 8 Toyota Hilux Pickup Vans and 1 Utility Lorry for the security outfits, enactment of the Oyo State Security Network Agency (‘AMOTEKUN’) Bill 2019 which was signed into law March 10, 2020.

In May 2021, by which time the governor was two years old in office, he had operationalised the Western Nigeria Security Network codenamed Amotekun in Oyo State in November 2020 and recruited and trained 1,500 Amotekun Corps members.

He also expanded and upgraded the Security Control Room and City, provided CCTV cameras in strategic locations in the state and provided more communication equipment for the security agencies as well as more brand new operational vehicles for the Nigeria Police, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, ‘Operation Burst’ and Amotekun.

However, further investigations indicate that though governor Makinde may have purchased security equipment, the totality of what he has expended in security operations is a far cry from the sum total of his security votes in the past two and half years, raising the questions about his genuine concerns for the safety of life and property in Oyo State.

Unconfirmed report showed that while his predecessor, late governor Abiola Ajimobi ensured safety of life and property with a monthly security vote of N250 million, Seyi Makinde, upon assumption of office, increased the monthly vote to N1 billion, translating to about N34 billion in his 34-month old in office.

Insiders averred that governor Makinde is not truly concerned about the security of people in Oyo State.

Those who spoke to NAOSRE stressed that the young governor is more interested in his second tenure, a development that may ignited the passion to save for elections and careless about the series of unrest, kidnapping, attacks on citizens and killing in major towns and cities in the state due to poor security network in the State especially in Oke Ogun and Ibarapa zones.

However, there have been arguments about the over blown security situation in Oyo State.

This argument is held mostly by the governor’s loyalists who maintain, at every available opportunity, that governor Makinde is a victim of political cross fire, essentially from the camp of opposition.

Though this might sound valid, Oyo State government’s penchant for withholding valid information from journalists rubbishes such argument with many saying that the governor has so much to hide at the expense of the safety of life and property in the State.

This is much so as the request by NAOSRE, “To access documents of the security votes accrual to the Oyo State government in the past two years,” had not yielded any response as of the time of filling this phase one report in the ongoing investigation.

NAOSRE is a body of publishers
and professional journalists from the digital and conventional news platforms, made up of the finest hands in Nigeria’s security reportage.
The association’s goal is to professionally bridge the information gap between government, security agencies and the general public on security related matters.

Kayode Ajulo urges police to release arrested OPC men

Following the arrest of some three members of the Oodua People’s Congress (OPC) who were involved in the capturing of suspected kidnap kingpin, Iskilu Wakilu, civil right lawyer, Dr. Kayode Ajulo has urged the police to release the arrested individuals.

Saying the arrest was an unfortunate development in the first place, Ajulo urged the police to release the OPC men without any further delay.

Speaking through his aide, Wole Adepoju, the Mayegun Aare Ona Kakanfo of Yoruba said the issue at hand is such a sensitive one and therefore must be treated as such.

Ajulo said complains about Wakilu’s activities in Ibarapa area of Oyo state have been so rife that it was expected the police would have done something about it but nothing seemed to be coming forth. He further said it was regrettable that the police would now turn against the OPC operatives who made the job of the police easy by turning in the alleged kidnap kingpin.

Also, he said the police ought to have recognized fact that the arrested men were not acting in isolation but as members of an age long sectional group saddled with responsibility of defending integrity of Yorubaland and as a matter of exigency, backed by the sons and daughters of Yoruba land to ensure that pockets of insecurity being witnessed in the South West doesn’t degenerate further than it is. He argued that it is better Wakilu was apprehended and handed over to the police, rather than being killed outrightly. He therefore said the arrest of the OPC men by the police is fittingly and unwittingly sending wrong signal to the populace.

Ajulo added that, by extant law, citizen arrest is lawful as anyone having reasonable suspicion can arrest a suspect and within reasonable time hand such suspect over to the authority.

On a final note, while the former national secretary of Labour Party urged the police to free the detained OPC members, he advised that the police should hence desist from action that may make it appear to be partisan in a matter that involves two or more ethnicity as this, as it could cast a stain on its image.