A brief report of my visit to Mr Gov. following his invitation few weeks ago...... Exactly a week after i received a text message from His Excellency, the Governor of Ondo State, Dr Olusegun Mimiko. On the 24th of September, 2013, i was invited to the Government house by Mr Governor just six days before i left Nigeria for academic purposes. The invitation was received through a phone call from Hon. Wale Leyimu who asked me where i am because Oga would like to meet with me. My response was quite spontaneous as i told him am in Owo at the moment but i can make it to Akure in another two hours. Hon Wale Leyimu whom i had previously had a Facebook encounter with about two years ago when i alleged that the CGC Construction Company handling the dualisation of the Owo Township road lacks the necessary equipment and machinery because the company leased most of the vehicles and trucks they were using at that time. An heated argument ensued over this topic, but weeks later, CGC took deliveries of brand new Construction Trucks, Caterpillars and other motorised Equipments. That was the first of the about three encounters i had with Hon Leyimu on Facebook, the other two were on his Birthday and when i voiced out my concern over the way the bridge at Airways junction in Akure was re-constructed which led to what i jokingly called River Airways then. I went with a friend of mine Asolo Festus, i must confessed i was pretty scared. Hon Wale Leyimu picked us at the gate of the Government house and drove us in, after waiting about an hour or so, Mr Governor stepped out and made out for a private car. Moments after, one of his aides called us and told us the Governor is waiting for us at the Car Park, we went there, and even before we could say Good Evening Sir, the Governor told us to hop into the car. I was so surprised when i realised Mr Governor would be driving us personally. That was the beginning of the about an hour ride with Mr Governor. As Mr Governor drove out of the Government house, their was a brief introduction, after which the interactive session began with Mr Governor elaborating on the fundamentals of governance, citing some of the problems of governance as Attitude and Mindset on both the leaders and citizens. Mr Governors intellectual acumen came to fore, he made references to one of my favourite books authored by a Lee Kuan Yew, a former Singaporean President. The book is titled FROM THIRD WORLD TO FIRST; THE SINGAPORE STORY. Our first point of call was the NEPA Neighbourhood market. On sighting Mr Governor, most of the market women left their stalls to welcome the Governor even without prior information that the Governor is coming. Within a minute, they bursted into praise singing, it was no doubt a very thrilling site to the sense of sight, the Governor took time to expatiate the motives behind the building of these markets and how that have greatly improved the welfare of the market women who mostly were road side sellers years back. He at that point re-affirmed his governments commitment to the improvement and betterment of women whom he recognises as the main driver of the economy. The Governor also emphatically stated that due process was strictly adhered to in allocating the stalls to the market women which ensured those who formerly had stalls there all got new stalls after the market was rebuilt. The Governor emphasised on adding values to the lives of the people of the State, he said there is no way better way of improving on the lives of our people and the society than adding values to their lives in their respective spheres of life. Mr Governor then reiterated his commitment to his primary responsibilities of creating an enabling environment and the ambience that will attract investors and investments which will add massive values to the lives of the people. A classical example according to Mr Governor, is the revolution going on in the Cocoa Industry, he said in the Cocoa value chain, only 4percent goes to the farmers, he said in the next 2years by Gods grace, more than 60percent will go to the farmers as a result of structures and machinery being put in place by his government. He also discussed the revolution going on in the Health Sector with particular reference to the giant strides in the area of Maternal Health, he said the Abiye Initiative has been lauded worldwide, the Mother and Child Hospital in Akure records about 25deliveries daily while that of Ondo records about 15 daily deliveries with a very low mortality. He said about 643 microprojects that have changed the lives of the people have been carried out in the State. On the Dome Project which he described as his most villified project, Mr Governor drove us to the project site which is located not too far from the Ondo State School of Nursing, he said he loves it when this project is being critcised because it will be a big surprise to all when the project is commissioned. The state of work on the project site is no doubt awesome and i must confess that the Engineering works and Architectural design are massive. I hope this very beautiful project will be completed and commissioned very soon. Mr Governor also took quality time to explain the challenges faced by his government in the take off of the Cement factory. He mentioned Power as the main problem, he then gave assurances that following the completion of the Independent Power Plant in the State, there will be a boom in investment which will bring a positive turn around. Constant Power Supply will attract a lot of investors to the State according to him. Mr Governor later drove us to one of the Type-2 Mega Primary Schools in Akure, he explained the idea behind the Mega School initiative, he said there exists a need to bridge the gap between Elitist Schools and Government Schools. The Mega-Schools come with a state of the art facilities which can rival any other Primary School in the country. The Computer room, Sick bay are fully equipped, the classroom were built to accommodate 25 pupils per class and they were equipped with magnetic boards. Mr Governor said the initiative was driven by his personal experience, he said during his days as a Primary School School student, those who attended Public Schools were able to compete favorably with their counterparts from the Elitist Schools when they got to the University. He said 40 of such Mega-Schools are in different stages of completion across the State. The Mega-School was our last point of call, on our way back to the Government House, i asked Mr Governor on what his government his doing on Job creation and Youth Empowerment. The Governor stated categorically that it is absolute falsehood that the State Civil Service has not employed since the inception of his Administration. He said a lot of Health workers, Engineers, Architects, Quantity Surveyors etc have been employed. He also gave assurances that machineries are being put in place by the Government to absolve more people into the Civil Service. He also explained what his government his doing in the Agricultural Sector which has created jobs and will continue to create jobs, he talked on the roles being played by the Wealth Creation Agency and other Agencies in the area of Youth Empowerment. At the end of the day, i urged Mr Governor to do more in this area because it is the area that affects the youths mostly. It was no doubt a very nice ride with the Governor; a very unique opportunity and rare privilege. Whether i agree or disagree with some of the policy directions of Mr Governors administration or any other administration remains personal, it depends and will continue to depend on my understanding of the act of governance which is predicated on the best available option of improving on the lives of our people and making our society a better place to live. I wish the Governor a very successful Second-term and all the very best in his future endeavours. I understand this might not be the perfect time to post this, having in mind the mood in the State following the unfortunate air-mishap, but i have to do this because of some Facebook friends who kept requesting for this report. I pray God grant the bereaved families who lost their loved ones in the crash the fortitude to bear the loss. Olarewaju Olaniyi Precious
Posted on: Thu, 17 Oct 2013 07:09:41 +0000
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