‘I’m not owner of Technical University’ – Ajimobi

NEWS

‘I’m not owner of Technical University’ – Ajimobi

Governor Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo State on Monday said that the The First Technical University, Ibadan, belonged to the state government wholly and not any individual, including himself.

Ajimobi made the clarification while receiving the state’s traditional rulers led by the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi.

The monarchs, were on a courtesy visit to his (Ajimobi) office.

Other traditional rulers during the visit were Eleruwa of Eruwa, Oba Samuel Adegbola; Aseyin of Iseyin, Oba Abdul-Ganiy Salawudeen; Olugbon of Orile-Igbon, Oba Francis Olusola; and Balogun of Ibadanland, High Chief Owolabi Olakulehin.

Ajimobi, while speaking used the occasion to avail the royal fathers of his administration’s achievements in education, agriculture, peace, security and infrastructure, among others in the last eight years.

He said the state government had not expended any fund on the establishment of the university till date, as all the structures in the institution’s premises were built by foreign donors and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

Ajimobi said: “Let me use this opportunity to dispel the rumour going around that I am the owner of The First Technical University, Ibadan. People are expected to talk, especially when they lack proper information, but if we fail to dispel the rumour, it may stick and become the truth. I want to say without any equivocation that I do not own the Technical University, Ibadan. It belongs to Oyo State Government wholly. It is easy for people to come up with such rumour because of the successful establishment of the university.

“It is the first of its kind in Nigeria, and we are happy that we succeeded in achieving this in our time. Nobody believed we could achieve it, especially during a period the country was grappling with economic challenges. Oyo State has had no financial input in the establishment of the university till date. All what you see there were done by lovers of the state, indigenes living abroad, international institutions and the CBN.

“I give gratitude to the Almighty Allah for giving me the opportunity, in spite of my natural deficiencies as a human being.

“To serve humanity through the governance of Oyo State, which is unarguably the intellectual capital of Nigeria with highly politically-sophisticated people, is a rare privilege. I appreciate you all our royal fathers and indeed, the entire people of the state immensely, because you made it possible for us to govern the state with uncommon success in the last eight years.”

Oba Adeyemi, while reacting, said there was no institution that could correctly appraise the achievements of any administration in any state than traditional rulers.

He said the election of Ajimobi for two consecutive terms was a testimony of people’s love and support for him and their acknowledgement of his administration’s success in some critical areas like education, health and infrastructure.

Oba Adeyemi said: “I believe very much that if there is any agency that can make a correct appraisal of any government’s performance in any state, no agency is better placed than the traditional rulers in such a state.

“The reason is not far-fetched. Among the traditional rulers, there are those who have experienced some administrations, which qualifies them to make fair assessment of all. In my own case, and with gratitude to God for my longevity and the good people of Oyo for their support and cooperation at all times, I have experienced many administrations, both military and civilian.

“Let me start from a non-controversial statement of fact as far as Governor Ajimobi is concerned. It is that till date, he is the longest serving governor to occupy the Agodi Government House since the Western Region days. There can be no better empirical testimony of his acceptability by the people of the State than that. I doubt if anybody can deny the fact that the last eight years have been marked by peace in the state. He is always in constant touch with all security agencies, with his ears literally on the ground for vital information.”

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Oyo must not return to era of violence and Brigandage – UI VC tells Makinde

POLITICS

Oyo must not return to era of violence and Brigandage – UI VC tells Makinde

The Vice-Chancellor of the University of Ibadan, Professor Idowu Olayinka, on Thursday charged the incoming administration of Engineer Seyi Makinde in Oyo State to do everything possible to prevent the state from slipping into the era of violence and brigandage that pervaded the state before Governor Abiola Ajimobi took over in 2011.

Olayinka gave the charge while speaking at the investiture of Ajimobi as a Fellow of the Society for Peace Studies and Practice (SPSP), held at the University of Ibadan.

The VC, who was the chief host at the occasion, commended Ajimobi for demonstrating what he called the courage of conviction to restore peace to the state which had, before his administration, assumed the status of a garrison headquarters where violence and brigandage were the order of the day.

He said, “The point has been made by the organizers of this investiture that they were not looking for a saint. Nobody is a saint. So, Governor Ajimobi is also not a saint, but you cannot get anybody more deserving of this honour than the governor.

“The point has also been made that Ibadan was the capital of the old ‘Wild, Wild West’ in the First Republic and at a time it also became a garrison headquarters. What we used to hear everywhere was ‘Up National, Up National’.

“But, in the last eight years, things have really stabilized. Now that there is peace, we just hope that the peace we are enjoying will be sustained. The reality of the situation is that over the last eight years, the governor has demonstrated how to maintain peace and ensure security of lives and property.

“The very first function of any government is to ensure security of lives and property, and all of us will attest to the fact that he has achieved distinction in this department. So, we congratulate him on this achievement.

“Eight years ago when he mounted the saddle of governorship, there were only two universities in Ibadan, UI and Lead City but now, we have seven universities, including the state government-owned First Technical University. We can directly attribute this to the reigning peace in the land.”

SPSP President, Dr. Nathaniel Danjibo, said the fellowship was conferred on the governor in recognition of his unprecedented achievements in the sustenance of peace and security in the last eight years.

Ajimobi, who delivered a lecture, entitled “Peace and Security Architecture for Sustainable Development in Oyo State”, attributed the peace and security that reigned during his eight-year tenure to some drastic measures taken by his administration to put an end to the state of anarchy which he inherited in 2011.

Before he came on board, the governor said that the state had been taken over by violence and brigandage being perpetrated by members of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), who he said were being used by some powerful politicians.

The governor, however, said that he demonstrated leadership by summoning the courage to step on toes and take difficult decisions that he was convinced were in the best interest of the state.

He said: “When I came in 2011 and the leadership of NURTW came on a visit, saying ‘Your Excellency, we are for you’, I said No! Be for peace. If any of you breaks the law or foments trouble, he will face the full wrath of the law.

“To make an omelette, you must break eggs. For you to attain sustainable change, you must be prepared to step on toes. But be prepared for the backlash because those legs will definitely fight back.

“We thank God for giving us the opportunity to serve; and the service we have delivered well, and we are happy. If there is anything we want to be remembered for, it is peace and security. It is the foundation of government, and it is the basis of governance.

“As I am standing before you, I still have 18 days and nine hours. So, within that period, we will still continue to maintain peace. It is what we are known for, and that is what our legacy will be.

“I will advise the in-coming administration to ensure that it sustains peace as a matter of priority for them to be successful and deliver the dividends of democracy to our people.”

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'Investigate us and if we have stolen, arrest us' - Governor Ajimobi tells incoming govt

POLITICS

'Investigate us and if we have stolen,  arrest us' - Governor Ajimobi tells incoming govt

Out-going Oyo State governor, Abiola Ajimobi has asked the authorities to arrest him if they find him wanting of misappropriation at the expiration of his tenure in 18 days.  

Ajimobi made the comments on Thursday at a public lecture and fellowship investiture organised by Society for Peace Studies and Practice at the Subomi Balogun Conference Centre, University of Ibadan. 

He said: “We will work till the last day of this administration. We don’t care about what some people are saying all about… As I am talking to you today, this administration still has 18 days and some hours to expire.  “When they get there, let them cancel all the contracts we have signed. Let them investigate us and if we have stolen, they should arrest us.”  

“We have given our best to the state and we will continue to do this. The feats recorded by our administration placed Oyo as one of the five safest havens of investment in the country.  

“We are also the fourth investment-friendly state in Nigeria according to the Nigerian Bureau of Statistics; with a four-star rating for investment friendliness by the Nigerian Export Promotions Commission.”  

In March, Seyi Makinde, the incoming governor, accused Ajimobi of awarding N30 billion worth of contracts in a single day. He vowed to review all the contracts signed by the outgoing governor when he takes over.

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Nigeria Insecurity: Ajimobi mocks govs’ chief security officer title

POLITICS

Nigeria Insecurity: Ajimobi mocks govs’ chief security officer title

 

Oyo Governor, Senator Abiola Ajimobi, has mocked governors in Nigeria over reference as “chief security officer” of their states.

He spoke while insisting that only state police would save Nigeria and stem the tide of insecurity threatening the peace of the country.

The governor restated this position while hosting the Assistant Inspector-General of police in charge of Zone 11, Mr Leye Oyebade, in his office, in Ibadan, on Wednesday.

Ajimobi said that state police would have the benefit of good community relations, adding that increase in the funding of the police force and adequate provision of logistics would also boost the morale of the personnel.

Ajimobi said, “I am one of the pioneer advocates of state police. There is nowhere in the world where crime is effectively combated without state police. We refer to state governors as chief security officers, but we have no control over the commissioner of police.

“Some will argue that the governor will take undue advantage of a state police under his watch. But, do they consider the challenges of having only one person controlling the police in the 36 States and the federal capital.

“Until we do some structural adjustment to the policing system in Nigeria, we may not have the desired results. Having said that, generally Nigeria, and Oyo State in particular, still have security challenges.

“In order to ensure effective and more efficient policing, I opine that the police needs modern technology. Technology must help policing. Look at the developed countries, when a crime is committed, even before it happens the police would have been hinted.

“They have informants that are working very well. They have a communication system that is very effective and they have the public supporting them. How well are members of the public supporting the police here?”

The governor, however, urged the rank and file of the police to change the perception of the masses who did not see the police as their friends as the police would want them to believe.

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