The Governor of Osun, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, has on Monday predicted a brighter future for the state.
Aregbesola hinged the future rosy future prediction on the fact that his administration has laid a solid infrastructural foundation upon which the future of this state could be erected.
The Governor gave this assurance in his address to the people of the state on the occasion of the anniversary of the state creation.
Osun was created in 1991 from the parent Oyo State.
Aregbesola said his administration has laid the foundation for prosperity and enduring development in eight years.
According to him, his government has also reawakened in the people of the state the Omoluabi consciousness, which he described as an infrastructure of the mind that prepares people for greatness through hard work and goodly disposition to fellow humans
Aregbesola said eight years under his watch, the economy of Osun received a huge boost.
However, the governor, sounding optimistic, noted that the best is yet to come for the state, adding that the path before Osun and its people is very bright like the northern star.
The Governor also reiterated the importance of education, one of the cardinal programmes of his administration, as central to growth, development and the path to greatness.
“The path to greatness remains a good and qualitative education. We must all strive to provide it for our children and those in need of it around us. We must remain creative and use our God-given talent to solve problems around us. We must all work hard and love and have peaceful disposition towards our neighbours.
“In our own way, we have contributed significantly to the growth and development of Osun and in spite of the daunting financial challenges we faced in the second term of our administration, we are leaving Osun far better than we met it.
“Osun has recorded political, economic and physical development in the last eight years, more than at any point in its history. From the 30 local government areas and one area office, Osun now boasts of additional 31 Local Council Development Areas, three Area Councils and two Administrative Offices.
“Elections were conducted into them under the parliamentary system of government and the councils have since been inaugurated and are providing democratic governance to our people at the local level.
“Under our watch, the economy of Osun has received a big boost. We engaged over 40,000 youths in social work, empowered more than 150,000 artisans and traders with more than N20 billion soft and interest free loans.
“We have transformed education with reforms in all areas which include the building of brand new 21 Elementary Schools with 531 classrooms; 30 Middle Schools with 770 classrooms; and 11 High Schools with 792 classrooms, in addition to refurbishing old ones. The fortunes of secondary school leavers who wrote external examinations have improved tremendously under our watch. From the 15 per cent matriculable pass archived in WAEC by the administration before us, the figure has shot to 54 per cent under our administration,” he said.
Aregbesola stated that his government provided security for our people, took care of the aged in a way that has never been done before.
He noted that with constructions of intra and inter-states roads as well as rural roads within the state, Osun has been opened up and every nooks and crannies are now accessible with little efforts.
He also disclosed that his administration’s emphasis on sanitation and healthy environment has left the state clean and neat than it was eight years ago.
He called on the people of the state to vote the candidate of All Progressive Congress in the governorship election on 22nd September so as to guarantee continuity of the progress and achievement recorded in the past eight years.
The Governor continued: “More importantly, we have transformed the physical environment of Osun. We did this through the construction of more than 2,000 kilometres of roads, including 10 kilometres in each local government area. We have taken care of the environment and curbed flooding. Osun, particularly the capital city, Osogbo, is neater and more beautiful than we met it.
“On September 22, less than a month from now, there will be Governorship election, preparatory to our disengagement. It is a historic point in the annals of Osun.
“I can only implore you to build on the foundation we have laid by ushering in a progressive government that have served you these past eight years by way of continuity.
“We should display the Omoluabi ethos during the election, conduct ourselves peacefully, avoid violence and manipulation of the electoral process and think of what is best for the state, all our people, our children and the future of our state.
“I must thank and express my deepest appreciation to all those who have taken this state to where it is, beginning from all former administrators in the state – military and civilians – and the pioneer civil servants.”
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