Osun, the State of the Living Spring is Yoruba’s home of virtues, culture, tradition and heritage. The State was carved out of Oyo on 27th August, 1991 and named after River Osun, which has her source in Igede Ekiti and flows through Ijesaland. She enters Osogbo from the West. Osun and joined by other tributaries like: Oora, Ajubu, Ogbaagba, Asaba and Elekunkun rivers. Osun River is the abode of Orisa Omi- the Water Goddess, considered to be one of the most powerful deities in the Yoruba pantheon. Osun represents fertility, purity, love etc. She has her abode at the Osun groove.
Osun State, the home of cultural resources, has gone through the hands of many managers in the last thirty-one years of a journey typical of mix grill. At inception, Col. Leo Olusegun Ajiborisa was made the military administrator by the Babangida regime in August, 1991. He laid the foundation for the setting up of Osun State. Like in all human venture, some were bravely crafted, while some were not. Under the Ibrahim Babangida diachial political arrangement, Alh. Isiaka Adetunji Adeleke a.k.a Serubawon (1955-2017) a candidate of the Social Democratic Party was elected and took over government as the first Executive Governor of Osun State in January 1992. Alh. Isiaka Adetunji Adeleke was an offspring of Senator (Chief) Ayoola Adeleke, the Balogun of Ede and Madam Esther Adeleke.
He established the Osun State Polytechnic, Iree; Osun State College of Technology, Esa-Oke and completed the Osun State Broadcasting Corporation. After the palace coup that ousted the Interim National Government led by Chief Ernest Shodeinde Shonekan from power in 1994, the Adetunji Adeleke administration in Osun State abruptly ended in November, 1993.
Navy Capt. Anthony Udofia was posted to Osun State as the Military Administrator in December,1993. He was reportedly focused on the harassment of Alh. Isiaka Adetunji Adeleke, his predecessor in office, which hampered his private business. His telephone lines were also bugged. Navy Capt. Anthony Udofia set up a four-man judicial panel of enquiry on 18th April 1994 to investigate allegations impropriety on materials meant for the construction of waterworks project. He was also confronted with the leadership tussle among leading traditional rulers in the state and the quest for development. Col. Anthony Obi succeeded Capt. Udofia on 22nd August, 1996. The impact of his administration was not felt by the people. Col Theophilus Bamigboye took over from him in August, 1998. He corrected the chieftaincy errors of the previous administrations and consolidated developmental strides in the state.
He handed over government to Chief Abdukareem Adebisi Akande, a former Secretary to the Government of old Oyo State under the Bola Ige administration on 29th May, 1999. Chief Bisi Akande contested on the platform of the Alliance for Democracy (AD).
His administration witnessed many developmental strides in spite of the state’s low internally generated revenue and funds from the Federation account. Chief Akande excellently managed the economy of Osun State. His administration built the state secretariat and achieved a number impactful milestones. Akande fell out with the people as a result of his policy of down-sizing the workforce of Osun State goveernment. He dissolved the state’s Council of Obas and Chiefs in 2001 on the premise that it was too large. A cross section of opinions said he had issues with then Ooni of Ile-Ife, Oba Okunade Sijuade, Olubuse II, because of his embattled deputy, Otunba Iyiola Omisore.
However, Chief Bisi Akande committedly implemented his party’s programmes; free education and free medical treatment. His waterloo was his massive lay off of Osun public service workers. In the midst of the crisis, Chief Bola Ige, then Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation, was killed in his house in Ibadan on 24th December, 2001. In 2003, Chief Akande lost his re-election bid to Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola fondly called Lagun, son of Oba Moses Oyinlola, the Olokuku of Okuku (1934-1960) and Olori Comfort Ololade oyinlola (who hails from Otan Koto now Otan Ayegbaju) who contested on the platform of the People’s Democratic Party. Prince Oyinlola brokered peace between Ile-Ife and Modakeke communities, who have been at war with each other for more than a century, Prince Oyinlola was sworn into office on 29th May, 2003.
His administration gave priority attention to education, agriculture, health, security, poverty alleviation and job creation. Oyinlola was gifted with native intelligence and royal wisdom in handling state matters maturely. I remember the article I wrote, “Oyinlola’s declaration of war on Owa Obokun” published by The Nation Newspaper, sometimes in 2009. Prince Oyinlola invited me through his then Chief Press Secretary, Dr Lasisi Olagunju, to his home in Okuku during the Christmas celebration of that year and took time to explain in details the underlining issues one by one in a very sincere princely manner.
His humility was quite unimaginable. I perceived he had extensively put to use his simple, warm and friendly disposition in governing Osun State. His administration established the Osun State University, Osogbo. He loved and encouraged culture, which he inherited from his father, who was a friend to the great anthropologist, Chief Horst Ulrich Beier, popularly known as Ulli Beier, a German, who in Nigeria and Papua New Guinea, was one of the scholars who pioneered the development of literature, drama and poetry. Oyinlola left office on 26th November, 2010 after a judgement delivered by the Court of Appeal, Ibadan, which affirmed Mr Rauf Adesoji Aregbesola as the winner of 2007 governorship election.
Aregbesola was sworn in to office on 27th November, 2010. According to Nigerian Tribune of 17th November, 2018, Aregbesola claimed his greatest achievement as Governor of Osun State for eight years was centred on human capital development through his administration’s successful implementation of social investment programmes: “O YES” programme, changing the people’s perception in the term Omoluabi ethos, the school feeding programme, which improved the mental capacity of school children.
Aregbesola was criticized for keeping a very large number of political appointees that the finances of the state cannot cope with. Most of whom, he came with from Lagos. It was said of his administration that natives of the state hardly benefited. The education sector took a nose dive during his administration, which ran an inimical policy alien to the Nigeria policy on education. Basic and post basic educational institutions depreciated in standards. Osun fell woefully in the educational ranking in Nigeria. Tertiary institutions were also not left behind in the dwindled misfortune, they were poorly funded. Primary School pupils and Secondary School students wore same uniforms (sown outside the state and of no economic value to the people).
Infrastructure of schools were not repaired, renovated or rehabilitated but left deteriorated. The administration preferred to build new schools. It was said of him that he planned to demolish Fakunle Comprehensive High School, Osogbo for Shoprite Shoprite Mall (www. Nairaland. Com),
Aregbesola administration was very obstinate and hardly listens to the people. His administration could be compared to an “Ajele” – a Colonial Resident officer, cared less about the needs of the people. He embarked on airport project, which may not directly impart the lives of the people. He distributed tablets in schools code name “Opon imo”, the project was handled by his son but soon collected back from the students and no one knew where the tablets ended. Aregbesola left Osun with heavy debt burden, salaries of civil / public servants were not paid for several months until he completed his tenure, some were paid half salaries…
Alhaji Isiaka Adegboyega Oyetola, a native of Iragbiji, Aregbesola’s Chief of Staff and a relation of Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, a former Governor of Lagos State contested on the platform of the All Progressive Congress and won the Osun State gubernatorial election of 22nd September, 2018. He was sworn into office on 27th November, 2018. Oyetola, a thorough breed insurance expert, manager and business executive was confronted with the problems of Osun debt burden, payment of salaries owed government workers, payment of gratuities and pension owed and the revamping of the lost glory of education in the state on resumption of office, Oyetola had to set up a committee of think tanks to do a needs assessment. At the completion of the task, he was was able to set the ball rolling. He started taking the challenges one after the other. He reversed Aregbesola’s obnoxious policies on education: schools reverted back to their old names, uniforns and realigned school curriculum to the National Policy on education in primary and secondary schools, gradually clearing worker’s salaries, made the new legacy secondary schools built by the Rauf Aregbesola administration functional by been inherited by existing schools. He waded into the illegal mining issues thriving in the state, partnered with the Federal Government to look for investors to develop the sector in the state. His administration was also confronted with the break-down of the Covid-19 Pandemic, coupled with the huge burden bequeathed his administration by his predecessor in office. Oyetola claimed his administration had clear all salaries owed and almost cleared all outstanding pension and gratuity but the opposition cried foul.
During the July, 2022 electioneering campaign, Oyetola claimed the administration had just renovated and stuffed with medicines and other requirements but the opposition disproved his claim. Alhaji Isiaka Oyetola lost in the very peaceful, free and fair 16th July, 2022 gubernatorial election to Mr Nurudeen Jackson Ademola Adeleke, who had since been given the certificate of his electoral victory by the Independent Electoral Commission (INEC). Osun Sate proved the world wrong that a very credible election could hold in the state without mayhem, violence, fraud and manipulation. President Muhammadu Buhari was one of people, who first congratulated Mr Ademola Adeleke, which great jubilation trailed across the state and beyond.
By Mr Ademola Adeleke’s victory at the polls, the ALMIGHTY GOD has presented to the people of Osun State a new beginning. No doubt, Alh. Adegboyega Oyetola did excellently well as the Governor of Osun State by making a policy reversal of years of Aregbesola misrule and draconian policies. To an extent, unlike his predecessor, he listened to a selective array of opinion. Though a man of few words, he is said to be a man, who is slow and takes his time to take decisions. However, history will be very kind in assessing Oyetola’s administration in Osun State. He will be remembered as a man, who meant well but the people of Osun desired a change… The good people of Osun State must rise above the intrinsic shenanigan of politics and politicians to settle down for the serious business of governance.
The ALMIGHTY GOD has blessed Osun state with one of the most endowed human capital in Nigeria. The people of Osun must close ranks with the incoming Ademola Adeleke administration to rebuild Osun State by leveraging on the gains of the Oyintola administration, and sought for new areas of conducting government business by boosting the internally generated revenue, looking for ways of encouraging investments in mechanised agriculture through revamping of cash crops cultivation, cassava cultivation and processing, investment in livestock and animal husbandry, which has comparative advantage and could be enhanced and developed for export. Osun has great potentials if properly harnessed and avoid waste.
As it is, Osun has a veritable cultural potentials and promising tourism industry, that if properly manned and managed will in no small measure contribute to the economic transformation of Osun State. The people of Osun State and by extension, Nigeria are getting more enlightened every day, questions are being asked and perusal checks of government engagements are been done to evaluate performance. The days of running government on the pivot of propaganda, lies and deceit are long gone. It is so sad that, we have a lot of politicians and politrickians alike, who in government to make money, whose implacability for waste and gathering mundane are quite insatiable.
The incoming Ademola Adeleke administration in Osun State cannot afford to carry on government business as it was done by her predecessors, whose interest was self-driven. You could only benefit from government on the grounds that one is a political associate, friend, or ally of the governor, someone must know somebody, who knows somebody at the top in Lagos.
Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola left a great legacy in Osun State, while establishing Osun State University, his administration gave scholarships and entered into agreement with prospective scholars on postgraduate and doctoral programs, who are Osun State indigenes and on completion of their programs would return to lecture in the state University, while those on bond agreement would work until it is convenient for them to offset their loan. They could either decide to continue to lecture in the institution or otherwise. Today, Osun state has quite a number of students across Nigeria and universities abroad having no support of any kind from their home state, except those who are politically connected and favoured. Even if one request for assistance, usually there are no response from our state government or her functionaries. During the electioneering campaign, the incoming Governor, Mr Ademola Adeleke claimed that as a Senator he was giving people scholarship and that if he gets elected education will be one his focal area of attention.
As said by Chinua Achebe in his political fiction, A Man of the People. He opined that a true leaders are those, who understands the language of the people and not those who possess Oxford and Cambridge degrees… (Achebe, 1966). I humbly foresee a harmonious political journey of inclusivity under the incoming Ademola Adeleke administration in Osun State, where all stakeholders are taking into confidence, when decisions are made. I pray for the re-invention of a new Osun State, where good governance is established andgff you a new lease of life prevails to galvanize transformation, progress, peace and tranquility.
Adeoye Agunlejika wrote from Lagos.
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