After many years of neglect, the administration of Governor seyi Makinde of Oyo state is set to revive Bower’s Tower, tourism site situated in the heart of Ibadan, the state capital.
Hon. Akeem Ademola Ige, Special Adviser to Governor Makinde on Culture and Tourism, while speaking with journalists during his visit to the tourism site on Thursday.
Hon. Ige, who was on an assessment tour to the eight-four year-old Bowel’s Tower, expressed dissatisfaction over the level of decay at the tourism site.
The tourism site, located at Oke Are area of Ibadan, was erected in 1936 in honour of Captain Russ L. Bower, the first Resident and Travelling Commissioner of Interior Yorubaland from 1893-1897.
The historic Bower’s Tower was designed by Taffy Jones, the engineer that designed Mapo Hall.
The tower is 60 feet high and 11 feet square with two entrances and a spiral staircase that leads to the top of the tower, and this enables visitors to have aerial view of the ancient city of Ibadan from the summit of the tower.
The Governor Makinde’s aide said, “I am not happy that this place, which has many tourism potentials, has become moribund”.
Ige, however, assured that the place will soon be revived, as the state government has set the machinery on motion to ensure total resuscitation of the tourism site through Public-Private-Partnership (PPP).
According to him, Bowel’s Tower, when eventually revived, will increase the Internal Generated Revenue (IGR) and provide job opportunities for citizens of the state.
“All what needed to revive this place is government’s commitment, and Governor Seyi Makinde’s government is interested in that. Very soon, this place will be wearing a new look. We will revive this place to increase the IGR of the state and to provide job opportunities for our people”.