Osun State governor, Mr Adegboyega Oyetola, was on Friday made Champion Newspaper’s Man and Governor of the Year 2020 respectively, by the newspaper organization.
The event, tagged Champion Awards for Excellence, was held at Sheraton Hotel, Ikeja, Lagos. Welcoming dignitaries on
the occasion, the Group Managing Director/Editor-in-Chief, Champion newspaper, Dr. (Mrs.) Nwadiuto Iheakanwa, said the awards were not given to promote frivolity or for pecuniary reasons.
Rather, she said it was to encourage those, who in spite of the many challenges, were still able to give their best in the service of humanity. Justifying the choice of Osun State Governor for the awards, she said the governor was chosen for his outstanding performance and unprecedented achievements recorded in the last two and half years of his administration.
While attributing the governor’s emergence in the selection process to his outstanding performance across sectors of the economy, the newspaper’s management said Oyetola had an edge over his counterparts in the criteria used to select the winner.
Recall that Governor Oyetola had received the Business Day Newspaper Best Governor of the Year in February and had subsequently emerged the Blueprint Newspaper Governor of the Year.
Blueprint Newspaper’s nomination letter was presented to the Governor in early April this year, while the ceremony
is slated for Thursday this week, in Abuja. “Why did we do this? It is because it is the will of God to have a Governor like you that has been doing great things.
Two years down the line, the people of Osun have a lot to celebrate about you. Is it the road network that they are
enjoying and the flyover that you are building which I saw for myself, among other infrastructural developments
springing up across the State,” champion’s GMD said.
In his acceptance speech, Governor Oyetola thanked the newspaper for the recognition and dedicated the awards to the people of the state, who he noted, constituted the centrepiece of all the administration’s developmental agenda and who have provided the ceaseless inspiration in the administration’s pursuit of a sustainably prosperous Osun.
The governor further said: “I take it that this towering honour is a vote for the creativity, proactiveness, prudence, integrity, inclusion, innovation, transparency, and the sense of purpose we have brought to bear on governance
and the sustained commitment we have shown in revitalising our economy for sustainable impact.
“For us, governance is only meaningful to the extent to which it is deployed in the service of our people. This was
why we hit the ground running from the first day of our assumption of office, putting in place the right policies to
reposition our economy and enhance the quality of life of our people.
“Delivering outstanding service in a Covid-19-induced season that creamed off six months from the year and left about five months for governance can only be a product of proactiveness and creativity. Indeed, the laying of the foundation for the modest achievements we recorded in 2020 began four months into our assumption of office and over one year to the outbreak of COVID-19.
“Despite the lockdown in 2020, we set Osun on the pathway of a sustainable economic revolution that we are strongly building on this year. We proved in 2020 that with the right strategy and political will, governance is doable in the face of adversity.
“But again, this is just the beginning. We shall be motivated by this recognition to do better for our dear state. “While thanking the Champion Newspaper, once again, for this recognition, I dedicate this honour to all our citizens who constitute the centrepiece of all our Developmental Agenda and provide the ceaseless inspiration in our pursuit
of a sustainably prosperous Osun,” Oyetola, who was represented on the occasion by his deputy, Benedict Alabi, said.
Among those who accompanied the deputy governor to receive the award on behalf of the governor are: the Chief of Staff to the Governor, Dr Charles Akinola; Commissioner for Commerce, Industry, Cooperatives and Empowerment; Dr. Bode Olaonipekun; Commissioner for Regional Integration and Special Duties, Mr Olalekan-Badmus; Commissioner for
Works Mr Remi Omowaye, SSA to the governor on regional Integration and special duties, Samson Owoyokun, Special Adviser to the Governor on Public Health; Dr Siji Olamiju and Chief Press Secretary to the governor, Mr Ismail Omipidan.
and then