An estate developer who is also the chairman of Jericho Mall, Ibadan, Dr Makanjuola Ojewumi, has described Governor ‘Seyi Makinde as an intentional leader, who is deliberately developing Oyo State.
Dr Makanjuola, a Fellow of the Nigerian Institution of Estate Surveyors and Valuers (NIESV), disclosed this in an interview with The People’s Verdict.
According to him, “Governor Makinde is a leader who has intentionally streamlined the process of accomplishing tasks and facilitating development.” So many estates have popped up within the city. He must be a governor that is positively looking at what can be done to raise the standards and the building set up in the city for him to have consistently done that over time.
“Of course, there have been one or two controversies, for instance, the Baywood GRA beside Agodi Gardens. Some people felt why should a conservation area be approved as a GRA and all that. But the argument is neither here nor there. Let’s be candid, that area is prime; if it is not done today, it could be done another four, five years and it might not be done structured or organized. What I’ve observed is a professionally assembled estate. Much land is being compacted, while a substantial portion of the conservation area has been preserved. So, it balances flora and fauna with the built environment.
“So, it is showing a consistent pattern of someone who really wants Ibadan to grow into the city that is evolving right now, a nicely evolving city that shows a lot of development.”
Makinde and estate development in Oyo
Commenting on Makinde’s disposition of supporting the development of new estates in the state, he said, “It is always a welcome thing for us to see a governor that is positively looking towards developing a city or town with approvals for various developments. It is impactful.
“Nigeria has a huge housing gap; the number of houses we have is not enough to house the populace, as it were. You know we have changing demographics. Young people are growing up; someone who was 20 a few years ago is now 26 or 28 and needs accommodation. Those who were 28 before are now 35. The demographics keep changing; if the government is unaware, it will just do nothing.
“It is old fashioned for government to say they want to build houses for people, what is called social housing; government doesn’t have enough resources to do that. The government should do what Oyo State is doing: facilitate places where land is available and developers can come in with necessary capital to develop housing for the citizens and the city.”
Talking about the necessity for new estates in the state, Makanjuola said, “To the degree that they increase the number of houses available for the people to be housed in, it is good, it is important. These days, the trend is for us to have gated developments, where people have a sense of security, a sense of community. So, we must have new estates and we don’t have enough yet. We can still have more.”
Regarding the relationship between estate development and economic development, the estate developer stated, “There is no way that estate development can occur without impacting economic development.” Every time you are building a house, you are engaging workmen. You might be surprised to learn that some workmen travel from as far away as Cotonou and Lagos to work in Ibadan. The workmen earn money and spend it within the city. They must be accommodated in the time that they are here, they must eat. Some people set up kiosks to serve the workers. The timber market at Bodija will recognise that development occurs when there is a significant increase in demand for timber. There is a postulation that if you allow a lot of estate developments, you can actually cause an economy to boom.”
Maknajuola also submitted that there is a link between estate development and wealth creation and job creation.
He said, “For the developer, wealth is being created, for the buyers of the properties, too, wealth is being created. There is a small GRA behind BCOS at Bashorun; the price at which the property started there is not the price today, I am sure it has virtually doubled. That is wealth creation. However, what particularly interests me in this context is the creation of jobs. Jobs are created when estates are built, not just during construction, even post-construction. You won’t believe the number of people that work in an estate: stewards, helpers, security men, etc. So many jobs are created in post-construction.”
