Ekiti State Governor Kayode Fayemi has described the alleged abandonment of the famous Ikogosi Warm Spring resort by his predecessor, Mr. Ayo Fayose as a “flagrant and brazen destruction of Ekiti heritage.”
The governor said a project that generates revenue into the coffers of the government should not have been deliberately left to rot away because of petty politics.
He regretted that more than half of the 110 rooms in the resort are no longer habitable promising to do everything possible to revive tourist destination.
The governor contended that it was wrong for the Fayose administration to abandon the Ikogosi Warm Spring and Gossy Water Factory because the projects were midwifed by previous administrations.
Describing government as a continuum, Fayemi promised to maintain and not to abandon projects executed by Fayose including the Ado-Ekiti flyover, International Academy for Gifted Children in Afao, new Governor’s Office, among others.
Fayemi spoke on Monday while paying a visit to the tourist centre on the first day of inspection of projects which kicked off with a tour to Ekiti West Local Government Area.
The governor also visited the Arinta Waterfalls site in nearby Ipole Iloro, in the Ekiti tourism corridor in his bid to put the facilities back to life to boost Internally Generated Revenue (IGR).
The first administration of Fayemi spent billions of Naira for the first phase of the redevelopment of Ikogosi Tourist resort in partnership with a South African firm, Mantis Group.
The Ikogosi Warm Spring thereafter hosted many local and international conferences including the 2013 National Media Merit Award.
Fayemi said: “I want to express my anger with what I have seen here today. I am really upset. You all witnessed the spate of development here in 2014, you knew the patronage this facility was enjoying.
“What I met here today means to me a destruction of Ekiti’s heritage, destruction of our commonwealth. It was unfortunate that our government had become so careless to allow this major tourist attraction and revenue earners for Ekiti to destroy and decay.
“This could have been avoided if the last government had maintained the facilities therein, because it involved Ekiti’s money. It is not only the leadership that was culpable, the management of this place too should be held accountable, though I agree that leadership defines everything. Now, everything is in shambles.
“But my belief has been that a major tourist attraction like this shouldn’t be left in the hands of government alone to manage.”
According to him, the alleged abandonment of Gossy Water Factory produced in conjunction with United African Company (UAC) forced its product from the market.
He added: “Gossy water is associated with Ekiti, is a brand that was known to belong and part of Ekiti. Wherever you see the water, you will think of Ikogosi Warm Spring, so we are going to bring it back to live.
“Apart from the fact that the facilities in this resort had damaged, the roads to this place are impassable, particularly the Aramoko-Erinjiyan-Ikogosi Road. Half of the 110 rooms in this resort are not habitable, this is unacceptable to us.
“This is not what Ekiti was known for, this is not what we are, because we used to manage the little we have .
“That the immediate past government doesn’t responsible for the turnaround of this resort doesn’t mean it should be abandoned.
“I believe the immediate past government ought to improve on the development we brought here before we left in 2014 and not to allow it to damage.
“I can’t, because of politics, cancel the Gifted Academy in Afao Ekiti, I can’t demolish the flyover and the new governor’s office built by the past administration, I can only improve on them and that is what governance is all about.
“The projects of this state belong to the generality of Ekiti people and not to the governors and every government must neither abandon them nor allow them to destroy just because they are not the initiators.“
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