My dear good people of Oyo State. It gives me great pleasure to, once again, address you on this occasion of the second anniversary of your government. You will all recall that this is a government which, but for your resilience at the polls in April, 2011 and resolve to change the unfavorable status-quo at the time, would have been humanly impossible to have in place.
2. The journey of the last two years has been eventful. Indeed, the road has been rough and tough. We are running a race in which we are conscious of our pedigree as administrators and our irrevocable promises to the good people of Oyo State. I recollect that we, on our honour, promised to make Oyo State better than we met it. We promised to make a difference in the chaotic and filthy social order that we inherited, through transparent and good governance.
3. This occasion of our second anniversary affords us the opportunity to assess the journey of the last two years, recount those strides that God, in His infinite mercy, has helped us to achieve and see where we have dashed our feet against the stone. The total projection is that, at the end of the day, we can, collectively, trudge on to a better tomorrow.
4. Right from the start, we were not in any doubt about our resolve to make a difference in the lives of our people. We sought to rewrite our position in the annals of history as a people conscious of their pacesetting heritage.
5. We looked at Oyo State, not in isolation of the global paradigm, but as a member of the community of states of the world. In development economics, a hierarchy that is equivalent to the Maslow’s theory is always constructed. In that hierarchy of development, peace and security are the most fundamental, followed by environmental sustainability and infrastructural renewal. This paradigm has been practiced successfully in Brazil, Indonesia, China and other developing countries whose success stories are the world’s testimony of paradigm shift today.
6. Following this paradigm, we reckoned that peace and security are necessary conditions for development. This explains why, at inception, we committed ourselves to changing the status of our state as one afflicted by violence, thuggery and brigandage. With our adherence to the rule of law, collaboration with security agencies and the establishment of Operation Burst, we have successfully restored peace and security to our state. We are now regarded as one of the most peaceful states in Nigeria and we are resolved to let it remain so.
7. We also reckoned that a dirty Oyo State or a dirty Ibadan - the capital of the state - which the United Nations Development Programme, some years back, ranked as one of the filthiest in Nigeria, was not acceptable to us. We reckoned that a clean and welcoming environment will invariably attract investors to our state, thereby creating employment and expanding our economy, to the benefit of our people.
8. My dear people of Oyo State, I am glad to report to you that in the last 24 months, we have made considerable progress towards achieving this goal. We now have a clean, friendly and welcoming environment. The benefits of these are already here for us to savour. Reputable investors, including one that is constructing the largest soya milk industry in Africa, another building the largest bakery in West Africa, yet another erecting the largest poultry that will produce the highest number of day-old chicks in Nigeria, a major food processing company, a major dairy producer and the biggest outsource agency for the telecoms industry in Nigeria, are already in Oyo State.
9. I must admit that these achievements were not attained without some sacrifices as it is the case all over the world. In the specific instance of street trading and the attendant environmental degradation, we are already providing alternatives in the construction of several neighbourhood business complexes and markets, with healthcare services, fire-fighting systems, conveniences and community services. The markets and business complexes will accommodate thousands of traders who will now do business in clean, safe and secured environment. Our traders would also be provided with interest-free loans as they move into these markets. This initiative is the first of its kind in the annals of Oyo State.
10. Public infrastructure is a major condition for development. The roads that we inherited were deplorable, mostly narrow, pot-hole laden, limited in reach and grossly inadequate to serve the rapid economic development that we envisioned for our dear state.
11. I am happy to report to you that, in two years, this administration has changed the story of the state of our public infrastructure. We have constructed more than 215 quality roads in all the 33 local government areas of the state. We have gone a notch higher by dualizing all the major entry points to major towns in the state. Thus, we have road dualization going on in Ibadan/Ibarapa, Ogbomoso, Oyo and Iseyin, covering all the geo-political zones of the state. At the risk of sounding immodest, those who commute on these roads would testify that ours is a government of purpose and quality.
12. In the area of agriculture and food security, we are uplifting the quality of seedlings used by farmers during planting season, with the aim of ensuring quality harvests. We have also strengthened agriculture by employing agricultural extension officers whose job is to go from farm to farm to educate and assist farmers on the new technology of farming for maximum returns. We have also procured 320 tractors for farmers in the state, the largest by any government ever, not only in Oyo State but in Nigeria as a whole. These initiatives are all aimed at empowering our farmers to produce bountiful harvests for the sustenance of the populace.
13. It is on record that we inherited a parlous healthcare system. To ensure adequate healthcare delivery service, we have effectively provided the framework of a total overhaul of our healthcare delivery system. We have provided drugs worth over N200 million to our hospitals. We have started the rehabilitation of our General Hospitals, to a standard where sicknesses and diseases would not be a death sentence to an ailing patient. In the same vein, we have provided ambulances which are located at strategic centres in the state to rescue victims of accidents and patients in need of urgent medical attention
14. Furthermore, we have recently employed 1,000 medical personnel to improve healthcare delivery, 300 of whom are medical doctors. These are all done with a view to ensuring an efficient healthcare system for our people.
15. In addition, we have treated over half a million patients through our Free Health Mission, a medium which we take health care service to the door steps of our people in the nooks and crannies of the state.
16. In education, we have altered the deplorable status-quo that we inherited. We are building a strong human capital and developing the latent skills in our children. In this, over 12,000 of our teachers have received training and retraining to broaden their skills. This would make them fit for the role of the 21st century teacher in a fast-changing world.
17. The welfare of our teachers is accorded dedicated attention, with prompt payment of their salaries, promotion of over 1,500 teachers in the last two years and 100 per cent review of their car and housing loans. In addition, we are partnering with the University of Ibadan in providing adequate monitoring of our schools.
18. Perhaps, more fundamental is our commitment to changing the environment wherein our students are impacted the fruits of knowledge. Already, we are renovating 1,600 schools and providing 67,000 pieces of furniture for them. We have also resumed the provision of science and Home Economics equipment which had hitherto been suspended several years ago. We have paid WAEC fees totaling about N800 million for our students, awarded scholarship and bursary to both local and foreign-based indigenes of the state and provided computers and other ICT facilities for schools for the physically challenged in the state.
19. We have upgraded the satellite campuses of the Polytechnic, Ibadan in Saki and Eruwa into full-fledged Polytechnics, so as to open more opportunities of tertiary education to our children. The Technical University, Ibadan which will open its gate for its first intakes this year, is the first of its kind in Nigeria.
20. In the area of youth empowerment, we have assisted the youth in multiple of thousands. For instance, through our Youth Empowerment Scheme of Oyo (YES-O), we have employed 20,000 youths and rescued them from the unpleasant jaws of unemployment. These youths are being given trainings that will be beneficial to them, now and in the future. Many of them have also been absorbed into the civil service. Similarly, our initiative on youth job fare has assisted in placing hundreds of youths in various blue-chip companies through a job placement scheme.
21. We have also extended empowerment schemes to our women, over 50,000 of whom have been given financial support, training and capacity building, as well as supply of equipment for gainful economic activities.
22. The engine room of any government is the Civil Service. Our administration has enjoyed the support of the Civil Service, for which we remain appreciative. We believe that a competent Civil Service is a necessary condition for effective and efficient administration. To date, we have exposed over 34,000 of our Civil Servants to various training programmes. We have paid full 13th month salary for two consecutive years. We have also started providing free transport service to our workers, as well as improving the environment in which they work.
23. The foregoing achievements recorded notwithstanding, we are determined to even do more to ensure better life for our people. In this regard, our focus, among others, shall be on the construction of the 110 kilometre Ibadan Circular Road, which will serve as the epicenter of the development of the new Oyo State. In appreciation of the pivotal role that higher educational institutions play in the rapid development of host communities, we shall ensure early take-off of the Technical University in the state. In the area of economic development, we shall rigorously pursue the development of a Cargo Airport to serve, not only the state but neighbouring states and West Africa. We shall also continue our programme of infrastructure development and a holistic transformation of our education, energy and health sectors.
24. Let me thank you all, the good people of Oyo State, for your support, and understanding which have led to our modest achievements for which we have received commendations and accolades from all and sundry, both within and outside the country.
25. I can only enjoin you to continue in this spirit and for which we promise to do more to justify the confidence and support you are giving us.
26. I thank you all and wish you God’s blessings.
