Leaders and wealthy Nigerians have been advised to invest their money in the country and stop taking it abroad in order to tackle the growing youth unemployment and poverty presently bedevilling the Nation.
Former Governor of Ogun State, Otunba Gbenga Daniel gave this advice in Abeokuta, on Friday while fielding questions from reporters during a facility tour of his new Conference Hotel, ahead of its official opening to members of the public.
The former Governor explained that the capital flight carried out by Nigerians do the country and the citizens no good, stressing that if such funds stashed away in foreign lands such as Switzerland could be invested at home, it would definitely redeem thousands of jobless youths from the grip of poverty.
Chief Daniel disclosed that the new hotel initially had engaged about 300 hands who worked at the facility daily in the last six months, stating that he later recruited 200 additional staff on permanent employment.
He observed that if one investment from a single individual could provide such number of jobs to the youth, it is then left to the imagination, the quantum of Nigerians that would be empowered across the country if many of the nation’s wealthy individuals resolved to invest their monies in Nigeria instead of overseas countries.
Former Governor Daniel who declared that he has forgiven everybody that had a hand in the shutting down of his multi-million Naira five star Hotel located in a choice area of Abeokuta, the Ogun state capital, for eight years said he does not have any difficulty with forgiving people.
According to him, “to forgive is divine. You know me, I don’t waste time to forgive and I guess everybody (connected with my hotel closure) has regretted it. The most important thing is that I’m alive. I took everything as the way God has planned it,”.
Chief Daniel who was not interested in mentioning names, however, said, he believes the man behind the locking up of the hotel with the attendant negative effects had “regretted” his action.
It will be recalled ,that shortly after the administration of Senator Ibikunle Amosun was inaugurated in May 2011, the hotel project which was nearing completion was sealed up and it remained under lock and keys till 12 midnight of May 28, 2019 when Amosun left office, after his eight years sojourn in Oke-Mosan Governor’s Office.
Armed and fierce looking policemen were stationed at the hotel entrance throughout the period, after they had chased workers away.
While the siege on the facility lasted, burglars, allegedly, had field days, routinely looting the electrical fittings, electronics and other valuables even as they vandalised some of the window panes.
The two time Governor of Ogun State on the platform of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), returned to the hotel this year, after the exit of Amosun’s administration.
