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By Mallam Olawale Rasheed
As I pick pen to clarify issues raised by learned silk, Chief Niyi Akintola, SAN about governance across the south west, I must acknowledge his own admission of insufficient information before his assessment. Though, it would have been more civil if he had conducted field studies before his faulty conclusions and calling out of Osun state leadership.
Be that as it may, I will take liberty to update the statesman about insufficient data and information at his disposal which probably led to his wrong judgement on governance development in Osun state. At the same time, this may be an opportunity for the SAN to visit Osun and consequently review his positions.
To start with, the high chief may want to note that Governor Ademola Adeleke is less than three years in office while those governors he focussed upon are second term governors. In other words, they have been in the saddle for six or so years. That implies bigger governance outputs.
On a second note, the learned silk may want to be informed that Governor Adeleke inherited huge state debt which is regularly deducted from the state’s allocations. In its last report, the federal Debt Management Office (DMO) noted that Governor Adeleke has reduced Osun debt by 40 percent. From 2022 to date,the Governor has not borrowed a kbo to finance Osun development.
Additionally, the veteran lawyer may not be aware that Governor Adeleke inherited half salary and huge pension debt amounting to over 100 billion naira. From 2022 to date,the Governor is nearing the full payment of the half salary as the government has paid over 60 billion naira in pension debt. Workers welfare is a number item on the governor’s governance agenda.
There is also an apparent mix up in the narration presented by Chief Akintola. The Gbongan – Osogbo road the author mentioned is a federal road stretching from Gbongan -Osogbo -Ikirun-Okuku to Offa in Kwara State. Governor Adeleke completed the Osogbo-Ikirun section in less than 100 days in office and is currently constructing the dual carriage way from Ikirun to Okuku before taking it to the Kwara border. Even at that, Gbongan – Osogbo end is currently being fixed even though the Federal Government has not reimbursed the state for the completed Osogbo – Ikirun end of the road. I bet the Chief did not know and did not ask before airing his views.
On the Iwo – Osogbo road,the Oyetola administration awarded the road a few weeks to the end of its tenure in 2022 without full financial backing. The governor has however reviewed the contract with three firms now handling the road. Work has commenced and the focus is to take the road to Papa, the boundary between Oyo and Osun state. Again , the SAN was unaware and did not bother to inquire.
Aside from the above needed clarifications, the chief appears to have acted like somebody who has been out of the country since the beginning of the year and has actually not read news of happenings at the subnational level. Again,I will humbly inform the Chief that the Federal Government has withheld Osun local government allocations for the past seven months, thereby disrupting state project planning and financing.
What has withheld local government allocations got to do with state projects? I know the Chief won’t ask such a question. For those who care to know, the state government has since the allocation seizure saga been responsible for upkeep of the local governments in the areas of payments of salaries of local government health workers, primary school teachers, running cost of traditional councils and local government employees.
Strangely, the SAN has not for a minute lent his voice to populist calls on the Federal Government to release Osun allocations. It may be an oversight or the Chief may not want to offend his brother and learned colleague, the Justice Minister, Hon Lateef Fagbemi.
Even at that, the Chief reserves the right to defend the oppressed or abandon them to their fate. However, he surely does not have the right to add salt to injury by blaming a state government that is reconstructing federal roads without reimbursement and premising his judgement on insufficient Information and data. A call to his friends in Osun would have saved the learned chief a coloration of bad intention.
Having clarified as above , I crave the indulgence of the Chief to update him on Osun governance and delivery on infrastructure. As of 2022, experts reports affirmed that Osun has an 80 percent infrastructure deficit. From day one, the state governor set a target of reducing the infra deficit to grow the state economy and enhance intra state trade.
In 2023, the governor launched a multi-billion naira Infrastructure plan which involved construction of roads across the 30 local governments, rehabilitation of 200 health centers, rehabilitation of 150 schools, commencement of three flyover bridges, construction of dual carriage roads, rehabilitation of the water works and water systems across the state among others. This includes the federal road from Osogbo to Ikirun.
As of today, the governor has completed 350 kilometers of roads in three years alongside 200 rehabilitated health centers, 150 schools, sinking of 332 boreholes, and ongoing rehabilitation of state water works. The Okefia bridge is 90% percent completed; Lameco flyover is around 65% done; Ilesa dualisation is around 76%; Ile Ife flyover over is around 60 percent.
Despite the withholding of Osun allocations, further dualisation of the federal road from Ikirun to Okuku is ongoing; Iwo township dualisation is proceeding; contractors are on site for Iwo -Osogbo road while spot rehabilitation of Gbonga -Osogbo road, another federal road is proceeding; dualisation of Ila Orangun township road has commenced; Osogbo five star stadium is ongoing. Chief may want to note that the state governor has launched another 150 billion infra projects as a second phase which is expanding infrastructure to fast track the reduction of the state deficit.
If Chief has been tracking developments in Osun state, he would have known that the huge governance delivery in Osun state state is responsible for the many endorsements the governor has been garnering from all sectors of Osun society. So rather than throwing jibes at a Governor that is really delivering under difficult situations, we counter-challenge Chief Akintola to wade into the lingering withholding of Osun local government allocations. At least, the Nigeria Bar Association has taken a position after the report of its special investigative committee.
I must also reiterate here that the Osun state governor and government has close rapport with the federal government and the Presidency. Osun is a prominent player in the federal-subnational interface. The state has received several awards under federal government organised sectoral events. So the insinuation of Osun not being open to federal partnership is a false narrative.
What is playing out is an external cabal which was shocked and alarmed at the rapid delivery of good governance by the Adeleke administration. They devised an evil plot of starving the state of funds to truncate project implementation. The plot failed because from day one the state government has prioritised judicious management of state funds leading to creation of special project accounts, over 100 percent increase in state IGR and blocking of leakages in state finance. Again,the respected SAN is oblivious of the plot which he has unwittingly lent his big name into.
Before ending this piece, it is important to state that Governor Adeleke is an open governance lover who welcomes criticisms for the good of the state. We however seek that critics conduct fact checking operations to strengthen the credibility of their opinion.
For the Chief, he could have directly contacted the governors instead of appearing to be creating a wedge among South West governors who are closely united for the good of the region. He may even have asked me for details. After all, he gave me a job during my masters degree in 1993.
● Mallam Olawale Rasheed is the Spokesperson / Special Adviser to Governor Ademola Adeleke
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