The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ekiti State has berated the Governor Ayodele Fayose administration for failing to rescue Gossy Water from liquidation.
It blamed the governor for allegedly creating an unfriendly atmosphere for businesses, regretting that instead of building on initiatives of his predecessors to sustain job-creating businesses, the governor allegedly created conditions that hampered businesses with attendant job losses.
The party accused the governor of preferring to spend money on projects awarded to his friends for personal gains.
It cited the imminent liquidation of Warm Spring Waters Limited, producers of the popular Gossy Water, as an instance of Fayose’s “callous neglect of government’s enterprises that have the potential to keep Ekiti people in jobs while spending on projects that benefit him and members of his immediate family”.
The board of Warm Spring Waters Limited had given liquidation notice to stakeholders, citing failure of the company to pay its debts and other challenges.
In a statement yesterday in Ado-Ekiti, the capital, the party’s Publicity Secretary, Taiwo Olatunbosun, APC said: “One major reason for the winding up of the company is the unfavourable business environment such that there was no electricity supply to the company to run effectively for three years, including the non-patronage of the company’s product by Fayose’s administration because the company was the initiative of his predecessor.
“It is on record that the Kayode Fayemi administration provided electricity in many communities through rural electrification, distribution and repair of transformers while liaising with the power company to restore electricity in many towns.
“Ikogosi Warm Spring Company would not have been without electricity under such an administration as it is under the Fayose administration now, resulting in huge debts overhang, which has led to its liquidation.
“Fayose is known for abandoning revenue-generating projects of his predecessors in office. This is the same way he has abandoned the foreign exchange earner Ikogosi Warm Springs Resorts, which was developed to the world tourist standard by the Dr Fayemi administration.
“Gossy Water is one of the surviving income-generating investments for the state government, but it is unfortunate that Fayose has again killed it with his nonchallant attitude to revenue generating investments of the state initiated by his predecessors.”
It added: “Gossy Water was established as a joint business venture between Ekiti State Government and the blue chip conglomerate United African Company (UAC) by Otunba Niyi Adebayo’s administration.
“The company’s product was known nationwide because Segun Oni and Kayode Fayemi administrations that succeeded Adebayo fulfilled their obligations to the company, but the company is closing down under Fayose who has since ensured the liquidation of a sister investment in the same town, the Ikogosi Warm Springs and Resort, after mindless looting, leaving only its carcass.”
The party added: “While he left money-generating investments like the Ikogosi Warm Spring Waters, Warm Spring Resorts, Ire Burnt Bricks and the Pavillion to rot away, he deliberately, through his hostile and anti-business attitude borne out of greed, caused private businesses such as Coca-cola, Ecobank, GTB, ROMACO Igbemo and the billion naira Iluomoba Plywood Industry to close shops.
“Fayose is so insensitive and mean such that he doesn’t care a hoot about what happens to two major investments – Gossy Water and Warm Spring Resort in Ikogosi community – which launched the state to the world map.
“Fayose is like the biblical prodigal son who has frittered away Ekiti’s commonwealth, which his predecessors worked hard to create from their visions and which they nurtured until Fayose came and destroyed all.
“This is a tragedy for Ekiti State, which needs such investments to shore up its Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) and keep the people in their jobs because Gossy Water directly employed 500 indigenes and about 6,000 indirect labour force, including distributors all over the country; same with banks and other companies he drove away from the state.
“As we speak, nobody knows the IGR profile of the state except Fayose.
“We only hope the whole state would not go into liquidation before the dreadful and locust tenure of Fayose ends in October.”