30th July, 2015
By Bisi Yusuff
Looking at the events unfolding in the State of Osun, “Ipinle Omoluwabi,” especially in the past few months and concerning the payment of salaries for civil servants in all cadres and pensioners in the state, is enough for me to make some clarification.
Many headlines, articles, commentaries had taken over national dailies, magazines, the electronic media as well as the new media – Facebook, Twitter amongst others – on a daily basis.
While a lot of commentators saw the event in the State of Osun as a national phenomenon which wasn’t peculiar to the state alone, but brought about by the maladministration of the Jonathan government, others, especially the opposition Peoples Democratic Party, and its allies spread across the nation, saw it as an avenue to rubbish the good work done in the past five years by the indefatigable leader and people’s Governor, Ogbeni Rauf Adesoji Aregbesola.
The projects done by Ogbeni are monumental in the State of Osun and are today used as models by all and sundry. For example the O-meal free feeding meal for school children is now been adopted by United Nations International Children Emergency Fund, UNICEF, in some developing countries of the world. Through this initiative Ogbeni was invited by the House of Commons in the United Kingdom because it was a noble feat.
How do people now forget these good works in a hurry? However going through the dailies precisely THE PUNCH NEWSPAPER of Monday 27th, 2015 (Pg. 44), I saw a fascinating headline titled: ‘World Bank Hails Osun’s 225km Rural Roads’ and I heaved a sigh of relief, encouraged that at last, Ogbeni is been vindicated and his giant strides are being reecognised internationally again as bringing succour to the people and even the downtrodden. It also caused me to remember the biblical saying that a prophet is never appreciated by his own people.
For a reputable International organisation like the World Bank to recognise this laudable project shows that Ogbeni has done good than harm for the people of the State of Osun.
As regards the months of salaries owed the workers, I know that succour is on the way as Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, a compassionate leader, is working round the clock to see that the backlog of arrears are cleared, but one thing must not be forgotten, Aregbesola’s giant strides in the State of Osun will surely outlive him and surely, his name will be written permanently on the sand of times.
Yusuff is a member of the Lagos State House of Assembly.