Osun: Adeleke And The Incorrigible Opposition By Sarafa Ibrahim

There is a popular saying that you can not give what you do not have. This popular saying has a strong bearing with the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Osun state, which seemed tucked in its woeful idea of governance that it continues to remind us of the horrible experience that its ruinous time in the government of this state reflected.

From time immemorial, the opposition has run on the concept that it will constructively engage the ruling party in the advancement of a better output for the citizenry. In fact, the opposition should mirror the pulse of the public through an objective critique of government policies, programmes, decisions, and even inactions.

But that has not been the experience with the APC. Since it was booted out of power by the Osun electorate last year, the APC has made a terrible mess of its opposition role just as it was woeful in government, with a series of infantile and ridiculous notions that profoundly capture its inadequacies in almost everything. If it is not prying into the private life of Governor Ademola Adeleke under the guise of playing an opposition role, it will be pushing out patent falsehood to misinform the public.

Governor Adeleke has demonstrated unparalleled zeal to undo the damage of the past and set a course for a prosperous future for Osun State. In the last 10 months that he has been in office, he has restored sanity to governance, unwinding the many landmines that posed an enormous hindrance to the effective delivery of good governance and making the meager resources of the state count for the people.

Every sector in Osun state has received a significant turnaround in the little time that Governor Adeleke has been in the saddle. This is the truth that is not lost on Osun people because they daily see the manifestation of the incredible leadership of Governor Adeleke, and are in many cases, direct beneficiaries of his pro-people government. That is where the shallowness and vacuousness of the Osun APC who push really hard to sell the impression of Governor Adeleke underperforming, is on stark display.

Although I understand where the APC is coming from going by its uninspiring record in the government of the state and the monumental damage it triggered. But the thing the APC must be missing here is that the impacts of its failings while at the helms of affairs in the state are too pronounced for Osun people to forget in a hurry.

It was the seed of the disastrous time of the APC administering Osun state that Governor Adeleke is working day and night to uproot. For the 48 months that Gboyega Oyetola was Governor of Osun state, he did not attempt to pay the 30 months half salary owed to workers and pensioners even though he was an integral part of the government that incurred it. Yet, Governor Adeleke who knew nothing about it has paid 3 months within 10 months in office.

Between November 27 and now, Governor Adeleke has expended over N17 billion in pensions and gratuities payment out of the humongous over N76 billion liability inherited from the previous government. In April this year, Governor Adeleke effected the implementation of the financial implication of promotion for civil servants by the previous administration. Mind you, the promotions were done by the Oyetola administration in 2019, but workers were left to hang on false hope for his entire time in office.

And so far, the Adeleke administration has constructed and delivered over 50 kilometers of roads across the state while about 50 kilometers of roads are at different stages of completion. Broken culverts were restored for public use while channelization of waterways was undertaken by the Adeleke administration to prevent homes from being washed away by flood.

Some weeks ago, the Vice Chancellor of the state-owned university, Professor Clement Odunayo, relayed the remarkable transformation that the institution has seen under Governor Adeleke, detailing the unusual intervention of the Governor that revived a 52-office complex that was abandoned by the previous administrations.

That is awesome, right? But that was not all. Public school buildings across Osun state are getting a major facelift to give students and teachers the right environment to advance qualitative learning. Unlike the experience in the past, students will now learn in well-structured classrooms with the right facilities, while teachers will no longer have a need for tree shades to hold meetings or conduct their official businesses due to dilapidated offices.

Talk of healthcare, Governor Adeleke has done exceedingly well in just a little time. Through the Imole Surgical and Medical Outreach, no fewer than 50,000 people have benefited from free healthcare services that range from surgeries for cataracts, pterygium, hernia, and some swelling on the body. Some other beneficiaries received treatments for eye problems and even got free glasses while basic ailments like malaria also got treatments. This health intervention was only a short-term fix as the administration is working assiduously in putting healthcare centres across the state in proper shape to deliver better healthcare services to the people of the state.

In Osun state today, there is hardly a ward out of the 332 wards that is without a motorized borehole to serve the water needs of residents in the short-term. Already, the Adeleke administration is embarking on a major repair of water workstations across Osun state to make sure that homes can enjoy portable and clean water in the long run. This is in addition to the ambitious climate agenda of the administration in protecting the environment from the catastrophic impact of climate change.

All of these and more are what Governor Adeleke has been able to achieve in 10 months. Let’s assume that the Osun APC feels awkward and distraught because the progress that this administration has recorded in a short time thumped its impactful years in the government of the state, it should show remorse for the woes it brought on the state.

Instead of thinking it could warm itself back to the heart of the people with lies, innuendos, and conspiracy tales, the Osun APC should focus on an honest assessment of the damages its time in government wrought on the state and the monumental pains it caused the people. It should stop distracting Governor Adeleke from cleaning the mess it created, because so far, he’s doing well in that regard, and Osun people can clearly see the effects.

• Sarafa Ibrahim is a Special Assistant to the Osun State Governor and writes from Osogbo. He can be reached via neyoclass09@gmail.com through email or @SarafaNgr on Twitter