Governor Seyi Makinde’s tenure as governor of Oyo State has been a remarkable and eventful one filled with many goals and rising achievements in the state. The governor has overseen a people’s friendly government while implementing policies that have seen him steadied the boat and address common economic challenges with cursory ecosystem affable reforms.
The people’s assessment of his government is even more fascinating as he is known to have never defaulted in civil servants salary payment on the 25th of every month which has helped the people in the state to combat the effect of the bold and highly effective economic reforms of President Bola Tinubu. He has also been known to support infrastructure growth evidence in his major road constructions with Iseyin Ogbomoso road, Moniya-Iseyin road, Iseyin to Oyo road and the highly controversial Gulf Circular road.
Also, Gov Seyi Makinde has acted reasonably in terms of security in the state especially with the bold step taken by the Southwest governors to create the security outfit ‘Amotekun’ that has helped to combat common crimes and menace in various communities of the states. His brave move to oust Mukaila Lamidi auxiliary as chairman of the Park Manager System also did good to unite the different sects of the NURTW members to further harmonise the system and the create peace and tranquility in the state
However, in spite of all these laudable achievements, it is imperative to add that they are neither transformational nor lacking radical growth to bring about a metamorphic progress on the various sectors of the state’s economy. These basic reforms should be vested through a designed template and guidelines which will navigate the administration instead of the populist approach centered on impulsive policy and primarily polarising, emotional and simplistic style of governance without substantive concepts.
If you do a critical analysis on the improvements in the educational, health and agricultural sector as well as Land Housing and Environment, you will deduce that there have been minimal developments in those sectors because of lack of investments on long term incentives. Policies that will effect lasting changes across the sectors have not been harnessed for actualisation.
Before the advent of Gov Seyi Makinde in 2019, the secondary educational system in Oyo State for instance was at a revolutionary state with the School Governing Board system, a broad-based participatory management structure that attracts alternative funding sources for education in the state. The scheme was already on a successful path with key stakeholders like parents, government and the old students from individual schools coming together to salvage secondary education in the state with many infrastructural developments and other outstanding achievements clearly visible in various schools like Loyola College, GCI and Lagelu Grammar School and many others. But like the true populist that he is, he politicised the meagre annual N3,000 developmental levy from the parents through the election and eventually disbanded the SGB system where he wrongly alleged the board of misappropriation of funds before going back on his words to reconstitute them.
Still on education, the state government was brave with the sole ownership of the Lautech institution from Osun State with about N8bn as payment fee however there is more to simply owning an institution. Over the years the Institution is still left battling with low grants and subventions to ease operational challenges, accumulated promotion and new minimum wage arrears, salary structure review and others.
On the agricultural and health sector, we are well aware of the enormous land mass which Oyo State possesses, however we cannot lay claim to being the largest producer of any farm produce or livestock, not even the Botswana maize nor the revitalisation of Akufo, Eruwa and Fashola farm settlements from huge loans taken should be exempted from boasting massive farm produce. The Oyo State government hospitals and health centers are still without basic resources and equipment for improved services. People still get easily referred to other hospitals for emergency services and operations, yet we read everyday that huge costs are awarded for modern equipment and facilities.
On Lands and Housing, we are all living witnesses to the ongoing land grabbing demolition around Ibadan and particularly the new circular road spanning 6 local government areas of the outer city. Gov Makinde clearly has a passion to outsource for his cronies from other states and countries with various land gifts and series of estates in the state. Lands at Agodi Gardens, Aleshinloye market, Araromi Iso Part Market, BCOS and many more have been taken by the state government and converted to estates which have been sold to largely non-indigenes of Ibadan. Outside Ibadan, particularly in Oyo town, a large expanse of land belonging to Fashola farms has been converted to estates as well as various plots shared within themselves.
It goes without adding that the same lack of definite policies played out in environments where the different communities are littered with filth and the waste management process has been shoddy without due process and measures in place to correct the obvious anomalies. Road medians across the different towns of Oyo State are constantly ridden with waste disposals from residents.
The local government autonomy was also openly rejected by Gov Makinde saying he will never support local government autonomy overtly doing everything possible to avoid administrative independence for the LG Chairmen. This is highly disappointing coming from someone who claims to be close to the grassroots, yet ignores the cry of the people with the deplorable state of the inner roads and lack of basic infrastructure across the districts.
Even though it may appear like the governor is doing so much to bring lasting development to Oyo State, he is merely steadying the boat and doing close to nothing to attract investment to the state. If you will recall, in 2024 was among the states in Nigeria with zero foreign investment in one year. This is no way to improve the economy and bring lasting development to the state.
Gov Seyi Makinde is not a visionary leader with the zeal to restore Oyo State to excellence, return us to our glory days as the Pacesetters state in Nigeria. We cannot continue paying salaries only and allow the other sectors of the state economy to whittle out into penury and destruction. We must stop him from working to install a successor when he leaves in 2027, Oyo State must rise and reclaim her mandate as not only the commercial hub but also the modern day authority in economic and educational development.
Tobi Adisa Deeduke ©️
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