Revealed ; AREGBESOLA ENGAGED IN MONEY RITUAL TO DEVELOP STATE OF OSUN : REMI ODEWALE

FlashBack

In spite of the national economic recession rocking the whole nation due to global fall of the crude price, the state of Osun under the stewardship of Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola in the last 12 months has never witnessed the kind of developmental project going on across the state. A trip to some of the construction site put some of the project on 90% completion while others are 60-70% and one begin to wonder is Osun not part of Nigeria again?

Many are obviously of the fact that circumstances of governance are at the mercy of available resources. The government has to source, appropriate and allocate in the most socially inclusive, cost efficient and economically sustainable manner. In many state today, we don’t want to come to terms with the realities of the modern economy that draw on sustainability. How could a nation like ours sustain her welfare without fiscal discipline to maintain reasonable reserve even in time of oil boom? Not too many of our governors today has that vision like Ogbeni Abdul Rauf Adesoji AREGBESOLA did years back.
Despite the fact that in the last 1 year of APC controlled federal government, Osun has been recording negative balance sheet on his federal allocations. In march 2016, the state government got as low as 6.23million naira, a state with over 25,000 work force and against all odds Aregbesola keep on working on his determination and his promise to the people of Osun that he’s going to turn Osun around for good.


SALARY
Ogbeni deserve applause for the management of the meager resources accrued to the state of Osun and his passion about the wellbeing of Osun civil servants. You want to know why? Go to Bayelsa, Kogi, Ekiti, Ondo, Kwara, Benue and other state how tough is going to work without receiving a kobo in the last 6-11months. Bayelsa and Ondo state with oil derivation owed February and January salary respectively till date likewise other oil producing state, Ekiti governor Ayo Fayose once said and I quote “Any state governor that can not afford to pay salaries should be impeached” today he’s owing the workers with no tangible project to show for his tenure in the last two years except drinking palmwine and cutting ponmo on the road side.

Aregbesola in Osun, has soared above all other state in salary payment, though half salary to level 8 upward which constitute the 30% of the total work force and FULL-SALARY to level 1-7 that constitute the remaining 70%, this is a fact that are not open to many and it only confirm Ogbeni’s love for the poor and the commoner as he’s been popularly called ORE MEKUNU ATI ARA ILU (Friend of the Poor and the Masses). Ogbeni has achieved what may be difficult for any of his successor to replicate again, the project are all there for people to see, even his critics knows that AREBESOLA is a working governor.

EDUCATION
So far so good, Aregbesola has built 14 new elementary schools, each with capacity of 900 pupil, 15 new middle schools, each with capacity of 1000 students, and 11 new high schools, each with capacity of 3000 students with hostel facility and standard sport complex, 1,794 classrooms rehabilitated across the state, 30,000 units of furniture provided including the daily feeding of over 300,000 pupils at 300 naira per pupil. The school-feeding template that attracted global commendation, which is currently being adopted in Kaduna state and by the federal government.

Some of this project has been commissioned while others are under finishing touches. Let those who are staging the religious drama continue with their comic relief, the truth is sacrosanct. Rauf has demonstrated commitment to the promotion of quality education and history will be very kind to his effort and we still need to remind the distractors that all public schools in Osun are FREE!!!

ROAD
The various developments going on in the state reveal Aregbesola’s commitment not to only complete all the road projects embarked upon by his administration but to open up new ones. While his distractors are pessimistic that he would not complete the projects before the end of his tenure. Ogbeni in many occasions to insinuations has maintained that he would finish all the projects embarked upon by his administration no matter the economic challenges.

While work has resumed at the Chief Bisi Akande Trumpet Bridge in Gbongan, the ring road eastern bye-pas and Old Garage – Ikirun road in Oshogbo, Gov. Aregbesola has opened up more than 20 new road projects across the state in the last 12 months with over 10 of them at the completion stages. A trip to popular Orita-Olaiya junction to Odi-Olowo road in Oshogbo the state capital will give an insight to the seriousness from the part of this government. It would be recalled that the governor was reported to have paid compensation to house owners along the roads and all the affected businesses. Another good example of  “A job well-done” from Mr. Governor is popular OMI-OKUN road in Ile-Ife, for over 30 years no government has been able to bring succor to road users in that axis. The project has been completed and it’s due for commissioning anytime soon.


Finally, Aregbesola’s message and vision is clear. With prudent management of resources, innovative ideas and emplacement of policies that will attract both local and foreign investors into the state, Osun will be the model state that other needs to follow. And to those who criticize Aregbesola’s government, they need to look beyond politics and study critically and objectively because State of Osun has witness phenomenal growth since his assumption in office, the financial cyclone is at its peak, yet he makes things happen against all odds which begs for an answer as to where the governor is getting his funding or is he engaging in Money Rituals?


Written By Remi ODEWALE, a political analyst from Ifetedo in Ife South Local Government. State of Osun.

Happy birthday in Arrears, Ogbeni Aregbesola