L-R: Minister of Power, Chief Adebayo Adelabu; former Minister of Finance, Mrs Kemi Adeosun; Ogun State Governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun; Senior Special Assistant, Legal to the Vice President, Mr Bashir Maigudu; wife of former Governor of Oyo State, Dr (Mrs) Florence Ajimobi; former Minister of Industry, Chief (Mrs) Onikepo Akande; Deputy Governor of Oyo State, Barrister Bayo Lawal and the Chairman, Federal Inland Revenue Service, Zack Adedeji, at the 6th Annual Senator Abiola Ajimobi Roundtable and 74th Post humous birthday of the former Governor of Oyo State, Senator Abiola Ajimobi
By Nudoiba Ojen
Former Governor of Oyo State, Senator Abiola Ajimobi passed on in June 2020, but years on, he has remained in the hearts of friends, associates, family members and others.
They gathered in his memory in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital on Saturday.
The occasion was the 6th Senator Abiola Ajimobi Roundtable and 74th Posthumous Birthday, organized by the Senator Abiola Ajimobi Foundation in collaboration with the Institute for Peace and Strategic Studies, University of Ibadan on Saturday.
Among those at the event were the Governor of Ogun State, Prince Dapo Abiodun; Oyo State Deputy Governor, Barrister Bayo Lawal; the Minister of Power, Chief Adebayo Adelabu; former Minister of Finance, Mrs Kemi Adeosun; Senior Special Assistant, Legal to the Vice President, Mr Bashir Maigudu; former Minister of Industry, Chief (Mrs) Onikepo Akande; and the Chairman, Federal Inland Revenue Service, Zack Adedeji.
The wife of the late Senator Ajimobi, Dr (Mrs) Florence Ajimobi, was also at the occasion in honour of her husband.
Governor Abiodun described the late Senator Ajimobi as quintessential, saying “he was kind, gifted and an exceptional communicator, who through hard work, attained early success in the oil and gas industry and emerged a developmental political juggernaut worthy of emulation”.
While speaking on the theme of the roundtable, “Re-engineering Nigeria For Sustainable Development: Options, Costs and Prospects”, Governor Abiodun said that Nigeria’s economy would be sustainable if attention is shifted from oil to the non oil sector.
He said the nation could achieve this by diversifying into mineral resources, agriculture, manufacturing, tourism, and technology.
He said, “The world is slowly moving away from fossil fuels as more countries embark on energy transition, therefore the need to actively diversify economy into non-oil sectors such as mineral resources, agriculture, manufacturing, tourism, and technology.
“Nigeria is blessed with an abundance of over 40 commercially viable mineral and natural resources that we as a people and government have not explored. While no official figures have been put forward, industry experts report that Nigeria’s solid mineral deposits are valued at over $1 trillion with some estimates as high as $5 trillion.
“Take, for example, my state, Ogun State, where we have over 15 natural mineral resources present in commercial quantities in all our local governments but only actively mine limestone, granite and laterite.
“In fact, we are the largest producer of solid mineral resources in Nigeria and account for just over 32.04 metric tons of mineral resources or 37.6 per cent of national output.
“Imagine if, as a country, we are able to tap into all other solid minerals like gold, lithium, tantalite (a crucial mineral for electronics manufacturing), tin, barite, etc. The possibilities are endless, especially if we engage in value-chain addition in the country.”
He said the theme was apt, as factors like youth engagement, collaboration with international organizations and neighbouring countries, embracing technological advancement and fostering innovation could accelerate economic diversification and growth.
Governor Abiodun lamented Nigeria’s over-reliance on oil exports, which he said exposes her mono-economy as unsustainable in the face of volatility of oil prices due to supply and demand, market forces, vandalization and oil theft.
He emphasized that re-engineering Nigeria for sustainable development is an intricate and multifaceted endeavour, expressing optimism that the nation’s abundant resources and youthful population provide the needed solid foundation, but that addressing challenges such as infrastructure deficits, and economic diversification was imperative.
In his keynote address, the Minister for Power, Adelabu, attributed the nation’s problems to leadership and fellowship issues.
He said that though Nigeria is blessed with abundance of resources and has contributed quality men and women to lead many international organizations, she is still far from development due to lack of quality leadership.
He lamented that many multi-nationals are pulling out of Nigeria because of high cost of doing business in the country, noting that it was high time Nigeria began to focus on education, youth development, technical training, while the health and power sector should be revitalized and leadership and fellowship issues should be dealt with.
Moderator of the event, Tajudeen Akanji, in his opening remarks, said that despite the nation’s wealth, it does not show on the citizens as there is poverty in the land.
He said to re-engineer the country entails broad and general education for all, reasonable income for the people, functional middle class, functional administration, social services, and respect for the rule of law.
