Oyinlola Performed Better Than Aregbesola – Faforiji

By Abdulrofiu Agboola

A former Commissioner for Education in Osun State, Dr Bayo Faforiji has described the former administration of Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola as the best in the history of the state.

According to Faforiji, Oyinlola’s administration was better in term of good governance and delivery of dividends of democracy than the present administration of Governor Rauf Aregbesola.

Faforiji in an interview with CityMirrorNews in Osogbo, on Sunday wondered why Aregbesola will be running an administration for over two and half years without a cabinet.

Absence of cabinet formation, refusal to conduct local government election and non readiness to make political appointment are responsible for the untold hardship the people of Osun state are passing through under the Aregbesola’s administration, according to Faforiji.

He berated the APC government for not conducting the local government election for almost seven years it came to power.

Faforiji said “Oyinlola is a better manager of human and material resources. He is a team player, very transparent; he will never do anything without consulting with his state executive members. He always listens to superior arguments on so many things.”

“Look at what is happening now, there is no cabinet, no local government election, and indeed, Aregbesola is running the state like a sole administrator.”

Faforiji also criticized the governor on his governance style, noting that some of the government’s achievements are replica of those done by his predecessor.

“When Aregbesola came in, he started his own OYES, copying our Oyin Corps, he attributed to himself the free school feeding to primary school students, that is incorrect, this thing was initiated by Oyinlola, at that time quality food was being served at the primary school level, we did not call it O’MEAL, but we said we wanted to make public schools attractive, that was what we did.

“The guarantee of one meal per day made a difference. Before the end of that session, our public schools were jam-packed; parents discovered the government could assist to feed their children.

“Talking about the handling of materials, we all know that the Gbongan-Osogbo road is a federal government road and that we thought it should be dualised, but Oyinlola said that the traffic between Gbongan and Akoda is not that much and that the one between Akoda and Abeere where the secretariat is gradually building up, we decided that we should divide it into three and that was why we did it from Ajegunle to Akoda where there was huge traffic”.

The factional PDP Chairman in Osun State expressed hopes that the crisis bedeviling the party will end by June this year, saying that possible reconciliation cannot be ruled out.

“I know all these crises won’t go beyond June this year because I know the lawyers of the Markarfi group will apply for accelerated hearing at the Supreme Court to make a pronouncement before long.

“I know this crisis must end because of the Ekiti and Osun elections, I know Anambra has elections in November this year, so that even in more critical condition, So, I believe that this crisis must end before June or at utmost June ending”.