- Safiu Kehinde
The Ogun State Government has debunked the purported ruling of the Court of Appeal sitting in Ibadan, Oyo state, dismissing its appeal filed against Datkems, a company associated with the state’s former governor, Gbenga Daniel.
As against reports of the dismissal, the state government, in a statement issued on Wednesday by the Special Adviser to the governor on Media and Strategy, Hon. Kayode Akinmade, noted that it only withdrew one of the four appeals it filed against Datkems in the court.
The appeal was withdrawn after noticing an error in the title, adding that three appeals are still pending against the company.
This withdrawal, it said, was falsely misrepresented as a judicial victory with the intent to deceive the public, even while the Court of Appeal has yet to make any pronouncement on the substantive issues and while Datkems has yet to file any cogent response to the allegations against it.
“The Ogun State Government still has three pending appeals against Datkems before the Ibadan Division of the Court of Appeal.
“With respect to a fourth appeal, the government observed an error in the title of the Notice of Appeal and opted not to proceed with that appeal but to file another.
“Because the government had expressly informed the court of its decision to abandon the appeal, the court took a procedural decision to end the appeal and delete the appeal number.
“This is without prejudice to the right of the Ogun State Government to reinitiate the appeal.
“The fact remains that the Ogun State Government still has three strong appeals against Datkems’ business.
“Those appeals are pending, ongoing, and have been adjourned to 19 May 2025 for hearing. Datkems has yet to submit any arguments in those appeals.” the statement partly read.
The legal tussle, as recalled in the statement, began on the 7th of September 2023 after Datkems Enterprises Limited filed lawsuit against the Ogun State Government over the demolition of its five-storey complex in Ijebu-Ode.
In its defense, Ogun State Government claimed that diligent investigation exposed that no company named Datkems Enterprises had ever been registered thereby labelling the said company as fraud.
The state government, in the statement, claimed that Datkems’ case is incompetent.
“Datkems had no answer to that point at the trial court and has had no answer to this day.
“That is why rather than face the appeals, it is busy presenting minor administrative decisions as huge judicial victories. Time will tell. And the Ogun State Government will prevail,” the statement added.
However, the demolition of the property which was disclosed to be a plaza owned by Gbenga Daniel’s wife, Olufunke Daniel, and valued N5 billion, was suspected to be politically motivated on account of the foul play observed during the demolition exercise.
According to reports, the building, which was already completed and awaiting commissioning just two weeks before it was brought down, was targeted by agents allegedly acting on the orders of the Ogun State Government.
Unconfirmed sources claim that the initial plan was to use dynamite to create the illusion that the structure had collapsed due to structural defects.
However, upon realizing that the explosion could damage surrounding buildings and expose the act as deliberate sabotage, the perpetrators allegedly opted for jackhammers and bulldozers, executing the demolition under the cover of darkness.
Eyewitnesses who spoke to journalists described the scene as “a well-coordinated operation” designed to erase the landmark building, which many had believed would become the tallest structure in Ijebuland. By the time daylight broke, Datkem Plaza was nothing but rubble—its dream of becoming a thriving commercial hub obliterated overnight.