We Won’t Abandon Any Project – Osun Deputy Governor

The Deputy Governor of Osun, Mr Benedict Alabi, has disclosed that the policy of Governor Adegboyega Oyetola-led administration on infrastructural development practically makes abandoned projects impossible.

He explained that construction of roads and other capital projects were basically Contractor- financed driven.

Alabi made this known on Monday in his office at Abeere, during a media chat with Rave FM press crew, adding that the brilliant idea was the initiative of Governor Oyetola, to ensure quality project delivery for the benefit of the people.

“This brilliant policy of Contractor-financed system should be adopted by the federal government, as a strategy to forestall abandoned projects across the country”, Alabi added .

The Deputy Governor, who doubles as the Chairman of Osun COVID-19 Task Force said owing to the rare managerial savvy of the governor and his prudent nature, the adverse effects of coronavirus pandemic have not hindered the regular payment of full salaries to workers in the state, and other recurrent obligations.

He, however, described as product of crass ignorance, a piece published by some individuals in the print media recently, where Osun was being projected as near insolvency, saying those behind the piece have no single knowlge of macroeconomic theories and indices of Fiscal Sustainability Index.

While admitting that Osun is indebted like many other states in Nigeria and beyond, Alabi argued that there is no logical parity between incurred debt and insolvency in any market economy around the world .

He, therefore, reiterated the resolve of the present administrationbut in the state to continue improving the standard of living of the citizenry and providing enabling environment for their growth and safety.

He said :” Our government remains committed to regular payment of salary and pension, as an integral part of our policy statement to make life more abundant for our people, against every pessimism from the opposition parties .

“I hope those of them who were sceptical about our position on the regular payment of full salaries at the inception of our administration have now been ignominiously disappointed.

“It is gratifying to note that even at the peak of the pandemic, the government of Osun continued to pay salaries of workers in full and without delay, this is indeed a pointer to the fact that whoever is prophesizing doom for our state needs to be isolated for special mental examination”.

Speaking on the landmark achievement in the health sector and proactive management of COVID-19 outbreak in the state, Alabi opined that the Health System in the state is now the best in the country, as it beats other states with the newly renovated 332 primary health centres in all the wards across the state.

The Deputy Governor further revealed that the African Centre of Excellency for Genomics of Infectious Disease located in the state, as well as contributions of leading health professionals like Prof. Isaac Adewole, and a renowned Virologist, Prof. Oyewole Tomori, have really helped the state in flattening the curve of the dreaded virus.

Alabi stressed that the proactive response of governor Oyetola at the point when the index case of the virus surfaced in the state had made the efforts to contain the spread of the disease possible, adding that the process of rigorous contact tracing and sampling test is ongoing, as the state presently have three functional and well equipped isolation centres at Osogbo, Ejigbo and Ile-ife.