Cocoa: A shadow of itself in Ede

Less than a kilometre from the site of the proposed Osun State Airport, the magnificent building is strategically located on the Ede/Osogbo road, and most indigenes and residents of Ede community considered  the Cocoa Product Industry (CPI) to be vital to the economic well-being of the community when it was functional.But the industry is now […]

Less than a kilometre from the site of the proposed Osun State Airport, the magnificent building is strategically located on the Ede/Osogbo road, and most indigenes and residents of Ede community considered  the Cocoa Product Industry (CPI) to be vital to the economic well-being of the community when it was functional.
But the industry is now a shadow of itself as weeds have taken over the facility which used to be a hub of activities years back. A recent visit to the facility by Daily Trust, shows that the industry, meant to add value to the economy of Ede and Osun State as a whole, was wasting away. It was gathered that Osun State government has the largest share  in the industry jointly owned by the  government and some private investors in the state.
When our correspondent visited the Cocoa Products Industry, there was no single worker or official present, except two gatemen who attended to this reporter. The gatemen told our correspondent that they were indigenes of the community and that they voluntarily decided to  guard the industry, so as to prevent looters from  carting away valuable items in the facility. The gatemen could not speak further as it was apparent that they do not know much about the  industry.
The immediate past National President of Ede Descendants Union (EDU), Barrister Dele Adeyemi who spoke with Daily Trust recalled that the industry used to contribute  significantly  to the economy of Ede before it became moribund. He noted that about 70 per cent of youths from the community used to work in the industry, and a  majority of them had become  successful before the company folded up.
According to him, CPI was producing many products, including cocoa butter, cocoa liquor, cocoa cake, and the industry was reputed for high quality products that were in  great  demand by consumers, before it folded up some years ago.
His words “We want the Osun State government to revive the Cocoa Product Industry, Ede because of  its immense contribution to the economy of this state. The industry was providing employment for our people, because there were many products from cocoa in which different individuals can make money. When you process cocoa, you can get about four or five products. The end products of cocoa are good raw materials for Cadbury, Nestle and other beverage producing  concerns. Chocolate is also a cocoa product and very popular in the international market.”
Adeyemi said indigenes of Ede who were workers at the CPI have become jobless, while the economic benefit of the industry has ceased. He urged the traditional ruler of the town, Oba Munirudeen Adesola Lawal to put pressure on the Osun state government, so that the government would revive the industry. He claimed that the Osun state government took a N10 billion naira Islamic interest-free loan known as Sukuk to revitalize the company, and wondered  why the government has not started work on the industry.
The Secretary General of Federal Council of Ede Descendants Union, Alhaji Basiru Oyedemi,  said Aregbesola has been promising to bring the company back to life,  and also expressed worry that nothing was done to salvage the industry.

Oyedemi said “the Cocoa Product Industry in Ede was a fertile business ground for majority of our youths, who would go to cocoa farms and buy the product on retail basis and take it straight to CPI, where they had a  ready market for it. That was another area where the company was boosting our economy, apart from the employment opportunities it provided for our people.”
When our correspondent visited the state ministry of Commerce and Industry, to find out what the state government was doing to revive the industry, the senior civil servants in the ministry said they were not authorised to talk to journalists.
Johnson Ojo, a member of the Osun State House of Assembly representing Ede South Constituency, also said that the Cocoa Product Industry, Ede used to  be vibrant  like any good industry, and that as part of efforts to bring the company back to life, he has sponsored a bill on the he need for rehabilitation of the industry. He assured his constituents that the industry would be brought back very soon.
However, the Director of Bureau of Communication and Strategy in the Governor’s, Mr Semiu Okanlawon debunked the claim by president of the former National President of Ede Descendants Union (EDU), Barrister Dele Adeyemi that Osun State government took a 10 billion naira Islamic interest-free loan known as Sukuk to revitalize the company Okanlawon explained that there was no connection between the Cocoa Product Industry and the Sukuk loan  which the  Osun state government took.
According to him, “Yes, Sukuk loan was taken for development projects across Osun,  which the people have seen manifesting in all spheres,  but the loan was not taken for the purpose of reviving the cocoa industry in Ede. So, the question of Osun taking Sukuk for Cocoa industry is a case of misinformation.”

Speaking further, Okanlawon disclosed that a section of  the  private investor has signified interest to partner  with the Osun government in reviving the company, and that a Chinese company  was in the process of revamping it.
His words “To the best of my knowledge, after the visit of the investor last year, it was discovered that all the machines in the facility have gone obsolete, necessitating procuring the  latest ones that would meet the best technology in such productions. The state government has no kobo in the new initiative, other than providing the necessary enabling environment for the investors.”