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It is twelve months to the administration of Governor Rotimi Akeredolu in Ondo State, one of the politically-conscious states that form Southwest, Nigeria. With all the natural endowments in terms of agriculture and solid minerals, Ondo State has what it takes to be an agriculture and economic powerhouse of Southwest, but some people and politicians, especially members of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), a party which handed over to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in last one year, feel that Akeredolu-led APC is not doing well in terms of good governance and socio-economic growth and development. Ondo State Correspondent, YOMI AYELESO takes a look at all the happenings and reports.
On Saturday 24th February, 2018, the government of Oluwarotimi Akeredolu in Ondo State clocked one year in office following his victory at the Ondo State 2016 Governorship Poll.
Akeredolu, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, who is the 6th democratically elected governor in the state, succeeded former Governor Olusegun Mimiko, who completed his two term of eight years as governor on 23rd February, 2017.
The Governor in his inaugural speech, tagged “Journey to Redemption” after taking the oath of office assured the people of the state that his government would focus on making life more meaning to the people and that he would create jobs through Agriculture and Investment.
The APC-led government, most importantly boasted to diversify the State’s economy from civil servants driven to industrialised economy. They also promised to ensure an enabling environment for private investors to thrive.
To this end, the government constituted the Strategic Development and Policy Implementation Committee that developed a blueprint, which will guide the government towards effective service delivery and a purposeful tenure.
The committee, which made up of experienced citizens of the state from different fields of human endeavour had submitted their reports in all sectors of governance to the governor.
No doubt, the government in the last twelve months has been able to make a number of considerable successes and also some noticeable failures had been recorded.
Achievements
The government came into power when the economy of the country is in recession. Where allocation coming to the state was dwindling and not enough to meet the financial obligations of the government.
It is not new that the Akeredolu government inherited six months of salaries arrears owed to the civil servants in the state from the immediate past government of Olusegun Mimiko. He has also been able to offset three months of the backlog, leaving three months as outstanding. Civil servants across board in Ondo State are not owed any month(s) of salary by the government, except the remaining three of the Six months outstanding from tge previous government.
In an ideal society, prompt payment of workers’ salaries should not be celebrated by any government as achievement; it will not be out of place to mention that the government stood their ground and pay up to date in the face of economic crises in the country.
The government in one year in office started and completed some roads in the three senatorial districts of the state. They include; Oke Afaa road, Supare Akoko(1.4km) , a 2.5 km road in Owo, Abusoro and Iwalewa road in Akure(3.05k), St Joseph & Bakers road, Idanre (3km), Road Network at the Ondo State University of Science and Technology (OSUSTECH) Okitipupa, among others.
Beside, the notorious Oke-Oka road in Akoko South West local government of the state, which is the road that link the state with the Northern part of the country were reconstructed and commissioned by the government. It must be mentioned that this road had recorded more fatal accidents in the last few years and it is hoped that these accidents will be put to rest with the reconstructed road.
The government signed some memorandum of understanding (MoU) with organisations which had since yielded positive results to the economic life of the state.
The government entered an agreement with Air Peace Nigeria Limited for transport service Operation on Lagos-Akure-Lagos Flight Route operating six days a week. This agreement in the last few months has attracted and open up the state for more investors into the state, generates employment opportunities and contributes to the internally generated revenue (IGR) of the state.
Failures
The expectations by the people from of the state from the government were high following their obvious frustration with the Olusegun Mimiko-led administration.
Perhaps, the people expected a government that would hit the ground running with their plans and policies with more than three months before inauguration after their victory at the governorship poll. Alas, the major setback of the government was the inability of Akeredolu to form his cabinet in record time.
Like President Muhammadu Buhari, it took Akeredolu six months to put his cabinet together, which ultimately affected governance in the state. This proved to be the stumbling block for the government in achieving much in one year in office.
In the last one year, another apparent shortcoming of the government is that there is a disconnection between the government and the people. People in the streets across the state are in the dark about the activities of the government thereby making them to form an opinion against the government so early.
An Owo-born columnist with the New Telegraph Newspaper, Bola Bolawole on Wednesday, 21st February,2018 described the last one year administration of Akeredolu as “drab and dreary”
He explained that the governor and his media handlers have failed in letting the people of the state have a feel of government and its activities making people to conclude that “there is no government in state.”
“Does he want his performance only to speak for him? He must be told that in politics, what is not seen to exist does not exist. He has to draw positive attention, if not to himself, then, to our state, and grab the headlines. Perception is vital; governance necessarily must be action-laden. A leader must mobilise and energise his people; he must be seen and heard and cannot be self-effacing. He must exude confidence and fire our spirit.
“Leadership is also about ‘action’; Aketi must wake up from his slumber and give us some action. He must begin to speak up and speak out. We want to hear him; the world wants to hear him. How will he draw attention to our state if he behaves like a monk or recluse?” Bolawole asked.
The health sector in the state in the last one year is nothing to write home about. There is dearth of personnel, especially doctors and nurses at the hospitals, thereby putting the lives of patients in danger during emergency.
A patient who spoke with correspondent on condition of anonymity said: “At the Hospital in Akure, it happened to me when I was there and they said they are still expecting a doctor from Oshogbo, Osun state that will come and attend to us. Very Pathetic.”
Hitherto free delivery at the Mother and Child Hospital by the immediate past administration where pregnant women in the state had their safe delivery without paying any fee has now been abolished. Sometime last year, a mother and her new born child were detained at the hospital over failure to pay for the fees demanded by the hospital. It took the intervention of a philanthropist who raised the said amount before she could be released.
In the three senatorial districts of Ondo State, there have been pockets of security threats, ranging from Kidnapping, Armed Robbery, Cultism, and lately the invasion of the state by Fulani herdsmen. The people of the state expected the government to have matched words with actions in ensuring the safety of lives and property of residents.
The continued silence of the governor in taking decisive action to curb the ravaging herdsmen, who have caused untold hardship in the state in the last one year has been criticised and condemned.
Another shortcoming of the government is the withdrawal of payment of the Senior School Certificate Examination fee of students writing the West Africa Examination Council (WAEC). Over the years, successive governments had been responsible for the payment, which had been a huge relief to parents in the state. The new policy of the government to stop it has also been condemned by stakeholders in the education sector.
But the government justified the decision, saying education cannot be left alone for the government. The government added that parents should be ready to sacrifice for their children, that government needs to invest in other areas.
The opposition party in the state, People’s Democratic Party (PDP) said the APC government had done nothing in the last one year that worth celebrating. The party said the government had not performed to the expectation of the people of the state in the last one year.
While speaking, the PDP Director of Media and Publicity, Ayo Fadaka, noted that Akeredolu did not prepare to govern the state, alleging that he had wasted one year on planning without any positive results.
“If I want to conclude in one sentence, how this government has performed in one year, I will say that it is nothing short of arrested development in the sense that nothing has happened.
“The government has been flagging off some road projects. For you to have flagged off a project, it presupposes that you have awarded the contract for each of the projects flagged off, there is no contract awarded. No advert placed and state executives council has not approved those projects flagged off,” Fadaka said.
According to him, “It is part of the fact that the government has nothing to inaugurate. It is just to create an impression that the government has been working for the past one year.
“Ondo State was moving on a fast lane before this government came in but now it has suddenly grounded to a halt. We expected planning to have come in about three months a government comes on seat, for actions and results to follow thereafter, but that is not the case.”
However, in a swift reaction, the state Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Yemi Olowolabi, who spoke on behalf of the government, said the current administration had performed better than immediate past administration of Olusegun Mimiko-led, when comparing first year of both administrations.
In an interview with our correspondent, Olowolabi said: “It has been one year of development, one year of restoration. In the last one year, the state has commenced a monumental turnaround in infrastructural upgrade, and in welfare package.
“There is no government that has constructed as many roads as Akeredolu has done in the first year of their administration.
Mimiko did not construct one meter of road in his first year. It is unprecedented that in every spheres of government has surpassed his predecessors.
“If with lean resources, we can do all these in one year, in the next one year, Ondo State will flourish, Ondo State will blossom, Ondo State will witness a total turnaround.”
