Any Act To Meet Water Needs Is Progressive – Group Replies TOM

Coalition for Good Governance (C4GG), a non-governmental organization, has called a statement about the Osun Government 100-day program credited to a group named Osun Masterminds a disservice to activism and advocacy.

In a statement released on Saturday and signed by its Executive Director, Adetayo Adegbemle, and Secretary, Hafsat Alimi the group slammed those it tagged “cash and carry cashivists” who sold their conscience for peanuts for four years and are now shamelessly parading the space against programmes designed to meet the immediate needs of the Osun people.

The statement reads “We read with regret the effrontery of a group, Osun Masterminds, who worked tirelessly to support the former Governor Oyetola, to criticise a government that has mapped out six short term palliative plans to address the needs of Osun people. For four years, Osun Masterminds was issuing illegitimate defence of Oyetola even when the former refused to accept the will of the people arising from July 16 election.

“For four years, Osun Masterminds ignored the pains and rigours of several towns and villages in Osun State, and in playing politics with serious matters, also became blind to millions of dollars spent by their principal that has yielded no results. . Random research into the state of Potable Water Supplies will reveal the endemic nature the water problem is. Almost all the water works are not working. Many of the water works and mini-water schemes in the state are in different states of dilapidation and disrepair, the $106m Ilesa Water project has achieved zero output, yet, the Oyetola NGO was then busy hailing its paymaster. Osun Masterminds was so discredited that many citizens wondered why members lacked any grain of credibility.

“A Non Governmental Organisation, Urban Alert, had scored the state government under Gboyega Oyetola low in the provision of water supply, saying that the government appeared incapacitated to ensure adequacy in water supply. Under the same Government, A resident of Inisa, Odo-Otin, Local Government, Mr. Waheed Afolabi, said none of the communities in the local government have received water supply since year 2014. All these are facts available to anyone willing and interested in the truth, and not politics.

“As at today in Osun, the government has done well to have mapped out such short term plans to be followed by medium term and long term plans. How can Osun Masterminds expect major water works to be refurbished and fixed under 100 days when its paymaster failed to do same under four years? Is Osun Masterminds so insensitive to its lack of credibility to launch an illogical attacks on a programme widely acclaimed as pro-people and pro-masses?

“Sustainable projects always includes short, medium and long term goals, so while the State Government is reviewing different water projects at different stages of implementation, and looking out for the best for the people of Osun State, such short term palliative Boreholes is the pragmatic and progressive steps to take so that the good people of Osun State would not continue to suffer the consequences of the disappointment of the people they had entrusted their future to, and that has failed them, and are now rejected.

“We want to affirm here that the era of cash and carry activism is over in Osun state. This is the time for good governance when government should be held accountable based on facts and figures, not on political partisanship.

“Osun Masterminds should stop fouling the space. The group did it for four years and it failed alongside its master, Mr Oyetola. Now is time for fair and equitable assessment of government performance. It is even too early for any assessment to be conducted on a six weeks old government.”