The Oyo State Government has refuted claims that it demolished a car park at the Bola Ige International Business Complex, popularly known as Gbagi Market, to make way for new shops and extorted money from traders in the process.
In a statement released on Wednesday by the Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Dotun Oyelade, on behalf of the Commissioner for Investment, Trade, Cooperatives and Industry, Adeniyi Adebisi, the government described the allegations as “entirely false, mischievous, and an intentional misrepresentation of an ongoing, well-planned redevelopment project.”
According to Adebisi, the Gbagi Market redevelopment initiative is a phased government-led project being supervised in collaboration with market leadership and zonal traders’ associations.
He also clarified that the land in question was never an officially designated car park but an underutilised space often taken over by illegal vendors and susceptible to security threats.
“Following broad consultations with stakeholders, it was approved for formal stall development to promote orderliness and improve access and safety within the market environment,” Adebisi said.
He reiterated the state government’s commitment to transparency and due process in the execution of the market’s redevelopment.
The statement urged residents to disregard the misinformation, noting that the government remains focused on improving infrastructure and trade environments across the state.
