Oyo APC Kicks Against Alleged Plan To Cede Agodi Fish Farm To Private Estate

The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Oyo State has raised concerns over an alleged plan by the administration of Governor Seyi Makinde to cede the Agodi Government Fish Farm in Ibadan to a private housing development reportedly linked to the recently demolished Agodi conservation forest.

The party described the alleged move as another attempt to convert public assets into private property, warning that the development could lead to the loss of a government-owned agricultural and research facility with decades of contributions to human capacity development.

The 40-year-old fish farm, situated between the Agodi Gardens and Dandaruu Stream in the heart of Ibadan, houses offices, laboratories, demonstration farms, fish ponds and training centres for government personnel, students, prospective fish farmers and established practitioners.

The facility also accommodates the Ogunpa Lake, where different species of indigenous and exotic fish are bred for educational, research and commercial purposes.

In a statement issued on Friday and made available to journalists in Ibadan, the APC, through its Publicity Secretary, Olawale Sadare, accused the Makinde administration of what it described as a poor attitude towards the management of public assets, alleging that government lands and properties were being sold or transferred to private interests for estate development.

The party also criticised what it described as the administration’s poor maintenance culture, claiming that several valuable state-owned facilities had deteriorated since Makinde assumed office in 2019.

The statement partly read:

“We have uncovered fresh plans by Gov. Makinde and his cronies to expand the private Housing Estate projects around Agodi Government Secretariat which has birthed Baywood Estate.

“After the destruction of the enviable green zone that protects the environment around the area, the next in the line for Governor Makinde is to level up the Government Fish Farm facility with a view to joining the large expanse of land, which it occupies, with the private estate.”

The APC further questioned the administration’s record in the agriculture and environment sectors, arguing that the proposed conversion of the fish farm would deprive the state of a facility that had served educational and agricultural purposes for nearly four decades.

It also listed Trans Amusement Park, Agodi Gardens, the Broadcasting Corporation of Oyo State (BCOS), Oyo State Library Board and the Oyo State Water Corporation among public institutions and facilities it claimed had suffered neglect or adverse treatment under the present administration.

The opposition party expressed concern over the future of other government-owned facilities around the area, including the Agodi Government Secretariat, Government House and Cultural Centre complex.

Consequently, the APC called on Makinde to suspend the alleged plan to transfer the fish farm to Baywood Estate and refrain from converting other public facilities earmarked for what it described as private use.

The party also urged elders and concerned residents of Oyo State to prevail on the governor to protect public assets, while demanding accountability over government lands and properties allegedly sold, transferred or taken over illegally.

It warned that the administration and those involved would be expected to account for the management and disposition of public assets under its watch.