Like Senator Ibikunle Amosun, former governor of Ogun State, Gbenga Daniel, has called on President Bola Tinubu to explore diplomatic solution in resolving the Arbitration and legal matters between a Chinese Firm and the Federal Government of Nigeria/Ogun State Government on the termination of Management contract at the Ogun/Guangdong Free Trade Zone.
Amosun succeeded Daniel in 2007. Both of them were in charge of Ogun at the time the crisis which is generating negative attention for Nigeria on the global scene, occurred.
The Chinese firm, Zhongfu International Investment FXE, had obtained a court injunction to ground three presidential jets belonging to the Federal Government in Europe.
The firm recently got the order from a court in France to enforce the award following an aborted contract between the company and the Ogun State Government, which was initiated in 2007.
The controversial contract was initiated under Daniel’s watch as Governor of Ogun State in 2007.
Speaking on the controversy on Saturday, Daniel in a statement, said rather than engaging on media comments, the most reasonable course of action would be to engage Tinubu “to finding a diplomatic solution to the issue at hand.”
The statement reads “Since the report of the Arbitration and legal matters between a Chinese Firm and the Federal Government of Nigeria/Ogun State Government on the termination of Management contract at the Ogun/Guangdong Free Trade Zone, the Media Office of His Excellency, The Senator Otunba Engr Gbenga Daniel, FNSE, FAEng has been inundated with calls requesting for Otunba Daniel’s reaction on the matter.
“We need to establish clearly that Otunba Gbenga Daniel, or his administration is not in discussion on the matter before the courts and arbitration, neither were the terms or proprietary of the Agreement for the establishment of the FTZ, rather it is the termination of a Management Contract. The judgements in all the courts are very clear on this.