Why Dapo Abiodun Deserves Another Term In Ogun State By Femi Oyewale

 

To know the good from the bad, study a man or woman’s history of actions, not their record of intentions.

Suzy Kassem

Arguably,  the Ogun State Governor,  Prince Dapo Abiodun deserves another term in governance. His strategic intentional act about transforming Ogun state amidst scarce revenue is worthy of honour.

Objectively, Governor Abiodun is a responsive and responsible first-class citizen of Ogun State. Despite the political and bureaucratic tentacles, entanglement, and traps surrounding him, he has been able to wriggle his way out in advancing the course of governance in the state.

Of a truth, many naysayers will not agree with the fact that he merited a second chance because, but the truth remains that for continuity,  performance, and advancement,  you can’t change a winning team. No leader is perfect and no leader can meet the needs of the citizens fully, but a performing governor needs more time to actualize his visionary agenda without politicking…

One thing you can’t take away from Dapo Abiodun is the fact that he is a responsive governor. For instance, the condition of St. Kizito’s High School, a secondary school in Iwopin, Ogun Waterside, Ogun State this year shook the internet. A video capturing this condition showed a classroom of students writing their promotion exams on the bare floor. The goal of the video was to shame Governor Abiodun as he prepares for the 2023 gubernatorial election, and turn the heart of the Ogun State people against him,

However, Governor Abiodun rose to the occasion and not in the manner anticipated by his detractors. Rather than point accusing fingers at his predecessor, which is what many other governors have done when faced with the same situation, Abiodun immediately sent furniture over to St. Kizito’s High School. Moreover, Abiodun’s constructive response came less than 12 hours after the video started making rounds, showing that he cares more about the students than about holding up the reputation they had attempted to ruin.

Moreover, even neutral onlookers have noted that although Abiodun could not have known about such a situation in his state, it is already quite amazing that he responded quickly and without submitting an excuse or counter-accusation.

With this achievement, Governor Abiodun continues to hold his position as one of the country’s more responsive, progressive, and visionary governors.

Also, from the rebuilding of the Abeokuta-Sagamu interchange road to the Epe-Ijebu Ode Expressway, and the different infrastructural development, including improvement in Education and quality Health-care,  Governor Abiodun’s strategic intentions about transforming Ogun state into an industrial capital of the continent, particularly with the new Ogun state Agro-Cargo Airport which is dubbed to be the first truly International Cargo Airport in Nigeria and the fastest constructed airport in the continent. Cannot be contested.

Amidst distractions and limitations, He has been firing on all cylinders, ensuring that the ISEYA mantra comes to reality. From road infrastructure to housing, health, education, agriculture, and the digital sector, evidence abounds of policies and plans executed to change the development narrative and take the state to enviable heights. As described by Governor Dapo Abiodun himself, the projects executed by his administration “have the inputs and are informed by the needs of the people as expressed by them at different engagement fora.” This, he avers, “is because we anchor our Building our Future Together Agenda on inclusiveness, equity, fairness, transparency, accountability, justice, and obedience to the rule of law.”

No less a personality than the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), attested to this vision when he inaugurated projects in the state, including the Ijebu-Ode-Epe road, a strategic arterial road that links the Lekki/Epe corridor of Lagos State to the eastern corridor of Ogun State at Ijebu-Ode, provides a ready alternative to the Lagos/Ibadan expressway for those going to Lekki and adjoining areas and provides a fillip for socio-economic activities in the South-East and South-South zones of Nigeria through the linkage of the road to Sagamu-Benin Expressway for easier access by motorists to Lagos, Nigeria’s largest economy. The president inaugurated the 42km Sagamu Interchange-Abeokuta Road, the main arterial road that leads to the state capital and which comes with a dual carriageway with streetlights, median and other road furniture vastly redesigned and reconstructed to address the daily challenges being experienced by commuters.

The president lauded the Gateway City Gate, an architectural masterpiece made of composite materials towering to a height of 27m and warmly welcoming visitors to the state, and the two Housing Estates for low, medium, and high-income earners at Kobape and Oke-Mosan. Kobape has 300 units of one, two, and three-bedroom flats described as a “Smart City” where people can live, work and play, complete with solar streetlights, a sewage system, a primary health centre, drainage, water, electricity, tarred road, and a police post. And his verdict is quite instructive and ennobling: ‘‘When state governments deliver impactful projects, in consultations with stakeholders, as we have witnessed in Ogun State, the trajectory of our national development will be enhanced.” This verdict becomes extremely hard to contest when the series of fiscal and policy reforms initiated by the Abiodun administration, including the reinvigoration of the Security Trust Fund; establishment of the Public-Private Partnership Office; the Ogun Digital Economy Infrastructure Projects, and the Ogun State Land Revenue and Management Systems are considered together with the business reforms that have ensured that Ogun State is in now Nigeria’s top investment destination.

Tinubu Nigeria’s BATman On The Political Screen.

By Bolaji O. Akinyemi.

Artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger created the Batman superhero character in an American comic book published by DC Comics, the character debuted in the 27th issue of the book in March 30 1939.

The acceptance of the series and it popularity led to the production of the Batman movie. The movie explore the strength of emotion and the sentiment it can generate. Bruce, after witnessing his parents’ death learnt the art of fighting to confront injustice, when he returns to Gotham as Batman, he must stop a secret society that intends to destroy the city.

In like manner, Nigeria’s Batman appears, not even history can state in clarity his parentage. Our real life Batman chose the line similar to his imaginary counterpart, to fight injustice and stop the secret society in the military that wants to destroy the nation, it worked perfectly well as Pa Ayo Adebanjo and others fell for it, what could have been Funso Williams was plucked out of his grip for the Batman upon his return to the country.

Tinubu’s first shot at a political contest was in 1992 on the platform of SDP to represent my Lagos West Senatorial District. The city boy from Chicago looks harmless with hidden ambition, but the rage of energy generated from avaricious passion for power is as destructive as ever, both self and society have always been its victims!

Bola Ahmed Tinubu is no doubt one of the most intelligent and strategic thinkers alive in Nigeria today, the plot of his script is a proof of my assertion. His ambition is obviously dated back to a time yet to be revealed but the annulment of June 12 1993 Presidential election won by MKO Abiola provided the activation, his take away from that election was not just the Muslim/Muslim ticket, but the Southwest/Northeast combo of Abiola/Kingibe, re-enacted in the Yoruba/Kanuri formula that did the job in 1993, which is now the Tinubu/Shettima; the secret of this will be revealed in the days ahead.

Playing a self scripted role designed to foster him as the hero of the Yoruba people of Southwest Nigeria and by extension the larger Nigeria society. Tinubu brought up the worst type of politics in Yorubaland where he became THE POLITICS, deceiving the institutional leaders of existing Yoruba political hegemony and dividing the family harmony through his extreme “generousity”. It was practically very easy to acquire persons needed, use and dump them once done. He has successfully retired practically all of Awo’s men he met on the scene. The real Yoruba valued politics of building consensus on where we stand as “awa” (we), as examplified by Awo’s philosophy has given way to “emi” (I), hence the genre “emi lokan”. Make no mistake, Tinubu is very clear in his communication, because, “enikan ki je awa de”, meaning, a single person shouldn’t announce arrival as we are here!

“Awa lokan” (It is our turn) was the philosophy of Awolowo’s leadership of the Yoruba nation, today, it has exchanged for Tinubu’s philosophy of “Emi lokan”, (It is my turn).

His understanding of the dynamics of a democratic society from America’s perspective made the deception procedure undetectable.

Democracy as a government of the people must thrive through the fourth realm of the estate that must speak for the people and help them form common opinion and of course the Civil Liberty Organizations who must champion the people’s fight.

BAT, a thorough bred capitalist has been able to “translate” himself into an “angel” of freedom of the people from poverty using the media to form opinion of him away from his reality and has conscripted the civil liberty organization into his adventure to usurp power from the people, today Tinubu is Lagos and he is on an adventure to become Nigeria. This much the north is practically aware of.

Today there is no longer “awa”, we, in the Southwest political space but “emi”, I. Tinubu is the people! With him lies all right and aspiration of the Yoruba people of Southwest Nigeria.

The Batman script resurfaced on the 2023 project with ASUU strikes when Tinubu the Aspirant met with their leadership and gave assurances that the President of the Republic couldn’t. 8 month down the line, lines are adding up and the curtain is drawn on the stage play; Batman: Students’ hero, Lecturers’ Saviour, Parents’ helpers! Who among the other candidates can beat that?

WesternPost publication, monitored online exclusively published: How Tinubu facilitated final resolution of protracted ASUU’s strike..

Batman got a beautiful media painting from the publication which stated:

“worried by the disagreement between the lecturers and government which had kept university students at home for eight months, Tinubu first sought and received the approval of President Muhammadu Buhari to intervene in the matter.

He then held series of meetings with the ASUU leadership, Minister of Education, Mallam Adamu Adamu, and some members of the panel constituted to resolve the crisis.

Some of the meetings, it was learnt, were held at the residence of the Minister of Education, while at least one took place at a location in Asokoro.

The meetings were said to have recorded initial success with both parties showing understanding and readiness to resolve the nagging issues.

The bone of contention, however, was getting the Federal Government to agree to pay the lecturers for the period they were on strike since the no- work-no-pay policy of the government is a law of sort.

And the government did not want to break the law it put in place.

However, the APC presidential candidate was able to extract some commitment from the government to relax the rule and at least offer one or two months pay to the lecturers.
Another problem, however, arose when the lecturers insisted on payment for the full period of the strike.

It was while this was on that Tinubu invited House of Representatives Speaker, Femi Gbajabiamila to one of the meetings to be part of the negotiation and resolution team.

At the meeting held at a location in Asokoro attended by ASUU President, Prof. Emmanuel Osodeke, Prof. Biodun Ogunyemi, a former ASUU President, Alhaji Hassan Sunmonu among others, Speaker Gbajabiamila offered to get the House of Representatives to take up the gauntlet.

The House met with the leadership of ASUU and the representatives of the Federal Government, including Mallam Adamu.

While this intervention was on, Minister of Labour, Dr. Chris Ngige, in a move that almost threw spanners into the peace process, dragged the ASUU leaders to the Industrial Court.

The House, however, went ahead with its peace moves (on a matter before the court) as if unaware that the case before the court.

Eventually the legislators first put together a report which the Speaker handed over to President Buhari for consideration and approval. The lawmakers later passed a resolution to accommodate its position and FG’s approval, which paved the way for the calling off of the strike.

Westernpost claims a glimpse of the details of the resolution and stated that the university lecturers were offered two months pay while a contingency plan will be made to clear the remaining salaries and the salary increment agreed to in a supplementary appropriation”.

The truth is from the very 1st day the strike started, I suspected the Batman’s script. His funding and working synergy with Labour Unions in the country is dated back to our desires to see the military back to the barracks. His network with Frank Kokori strangulated the Babangida led junta government to step aside. I hope Nigerians still remember his relationship with the Oshiomole led Labour and how they successful frustrated Obasanjo’s government, was it for it that Oshiomole got rewarded as Governor of Edo State on the platform of ACN? The Occupy Nigeria protest that ended Goodluct Ebele Jonathan’s control of government can’t be disconnected from Tinubu’s influence.

Obi and his movement has proven to be a force to be reckoned with, though their platform of political identity; Labour Party, should be of concern. LP in my personal estimation is the most compromised political party in this country, their antecedent speaks volume in this light. The armies of online Obidients are yet to find any political creative leadership from the Party.

The foreseeable consequences of #EndSARS killing at the peak of political season on the second anniversary of the victims of military murder was imminent. BAT being the strategist that he is read the tide and plotted his stability scheme. He needed an orchestration that can creat a soft landing on the 2nd anniversary of #EndSARS and that he got through the cooperation of ASUU to drown the #EndSARS movement agitation on his ambition that may arise around the anniversary. Aren’t you suspicious the issue got resolved few days to the EndSARS 2nd anniversary which was yesterday. And his son Seyi Tinubu whose company pulled the light switch that brought the cover of darkness on the youth at lekki toll gate for the military blue murder to be perpetrated under the cover of darkness is convening youth walk this Saturday. ASUU’s call off of the strikes and the resumption announcements from schools is already a strategic disorganization of whatever arrangements the youth had in place for the memorial of their murdered colleagues. Of course under a government that has weaponized poverty and with millions of women who streamed out for Women Walk for Tinubu to earn as low as 2000 naira according to the allegations, followed by the “success” of MC Oluomo’s walk, who already gave a clue of what Seyi’s walk is likely going to be about in his speech of his walk. It is going to be a combination of the hungry mothers coming out to earn along with Oluomo’s crowd, add that to hired crowd of youth that Seyi will be recruiting from millions of youth in dire need of daily survival. We are about to witness unprecedented crowd who will come out to dance upon the grave of Nigerian youth. It’s part of the horror script of the Batman series that has become a reality show. Will Nigerian youth rise up to the challenge and refused to come out for hire! Your doubt is as strong as mine!

NEW CENSUS LONG OVERDUE IN NIGERIA – Joshua Shobiye

It is high time for a population census in Nigeria as the need is inevitable for adequate economic, political, and development planning of our nation. Data from the last population census in 2006 is not sufficient enough to postulate efficient and effective national programmes.

In 2006, the National Population Commission (NPC) conducted the last population census in Nigeria with an estimated population of 180 million people. This number makes Nigeria the most populous country in Africa, interestingly, Nigeria still retains the same position 16 years on the roll. Thereafter, arguments have been generated from many interest groups across the globe, believing that the reported estimated figure is far below the actual population. It is a significant concern that has affected Nigeria’s economy and development plans.

Yearning for a new population census is long overdue after 16 years. There has been an attempt by various past governments to embark on this exercise but without success. Early this year, the Federal Government promised to carry out a national census after the general elections in 2023. How well will the promise be fulfilled, considering what is attached to it in many ways?

Having a precise and accurate population is very important to any country. Census enables a country to know the number of people living in its territory at a given time. Census gives an idea of the number of people in each state (both rural and urban areas). A nation with an accurate population census will make an informed decision based on the current situation as per the data available. With an accurate population census, there will be adequate control of available resources. Resource distribution and allocation will be made based on ready data.

Census data is essential to investors both local and foreign. Data helps business decisions and aids the boost the economy of any nation. Census attracts the attention of foreign grants and development support. Essentially, Nigeria as a developing nation enjoys support from foreign donors such as United Nations (UN), World Health Organisations (WHO), the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), International Monetary Fund (IMF), World Bank (WB), African Development Bank (ADF), and many more. The availability of an accurate census will suggest areas of focus for development and how best foreign donors can come to our aid.

Politically, the census is most needed in Nigeria at the moment as there will be a change in government by 2023. The new government needs the census to set a realistic agenda. When there is an inappropriate census, it tends to frustrate the agenda already set by the government and make it seems ineffective, inexperienced, and incompetent.

Noteworthy to mention how technology can help to achieve this in no-distance time and with a meager and effective budget. Relevant technology can be used with trained personnel taking the data and submission on the spot without duplication. This was achieved with Bank Verification Number (BVN) a few years ago by ensuring one number was allocated to every individual. This can also be achieved for the new population census in Nigeria.