The All Progressive Congress (APC) candidate in Mushin Local Government, Lagos State, Hon Semiu Ishola Karaole (aka KAMS), has urged Nigerians to vote wisely during Saturday’s general elections.
He said APC and its candidates must be voted for based on their achievements.
Karaole, who spoke at his Mushin campaign office, said that Nigerians should be careful, urging them to vote out the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), claiming that its members had been lying and fooling the people since 1999. He accused the PDP of failing Nigerians in the provision of security, education, infrastructure, health and agriculture, among others.
He said APC had fulfilled its promises in several ways and was ready to take democracy to the citizens’ door steps.
He said the choices in the coming general elections must be based on whether the promises made by the opposition party members since their election were fulfilled.
Karaole said democracy is a change of promises and a social contract which must be based on trust. Noting that a candidate that fulfils his promises in the first tenure will not stress much before being re-elected, he said a new candidate that run his campaign on promises, while an incumbent should run on his records.
A state of the art Cardiac and Renal centre owned by the Lagos State Government went into operation last week, raising the hope of local treatment for those suffering from cardiac and renal-related diseases. OYEYEMI GBENGA-MUSTAPHA reports.
Nigerians with either renal and/or cardiac medical problems need not travel abroad anymore to get treatment following the commissioning of a state of the art facility in Lagos to take care of their peculiar medical needs.
The one stop medical facility owned by the Lagos State Government was constructed on a once flood prone piece of land within the premises of the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH) Annex, Gbagada General Hospital, Gbagada, Lagos.
The 67-bed facility already opened to the public, spreads over three floors and provides a state of the art cardiac care and renal centre, with eight specialized out-patient clinics, Catheterization Laboratory or Cathlab (the second in the country) and a 64-CT scan.
•Some of the state of the art equipment
A catheterization laboratory is an examination room in a hospital or clinic with diagnostic imaging equipment used to visualize the arteries and chambers of the heart, and treat any abnormality found.
The Centre built by Deux Project Limited, has a four-bed intensive care unit; a modular theatre unit with two theatre suites with laminar flow air-control, central sterilization and supply unit; four bed recovery room echo lab; stress lab; 24 dialysis machines; pharmacy; laboratories; ophthalmology clinic for eye screening; physiotherapy/rehabilitation unit; conference rooms; seminar rooms with Telemedicine facility; consultants’ and resident doctors’ offices and four unit. It also has two units of five bed high dependency wards.
Commissioning the facility last Wednesday, Lagos State governor, Mr Babatunde Raji Fashola said: “This will be a centre of reference for cardiac and renal patients allowing for cardiac investigation and treatment through catherisation and insertion of pacemakers, open heart surgery, cardiac by-pass operations and a host of similar life-saving procedures.”
Fashola reiterated the determination of his administration to fulfill the promises he made to the electorate in providing sustainable healthcare, adding that “the turning point was when we took President Yar’Adua to a Saudi Arabia hospital to manage a kidney ailment. It was a low point for us because we have it on good authority that the Saudi hospital was built by Nigerian doctors who left the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH) in the 80s.
“Many of them, who I met on my travels, complained that they wanted to come home and practice but there was no hospital comparable to where they were accustomed to working. I told them that we would do something. We now have a hospital that has 24 dialysis bed stations, 20 beds for general ward use, two high dependency wards with five beds each for patients in intensive care, four post-surgery beds for patients who just finished surgery, two post-cathlab beds, two surgical theatres built to the most contemporary standard to cater for people who are critically ill”.
He said: “Every detail has been taken care of, including the fact that there will be no strike by any of the employed member of staff, in the employment of the state’. Care, he also said, has been given to details in the construction and equipping of the centre to ensure that all equipment, instruments and fittings in the hospital are of international standards.
“All the equipment, instruments as well as clinical and non clinical furniture have been sourced from the leading manufacturers in the world. In the last sixteen years, the government of Lagos State has invested a lot of resources in revamping the health sector, as it is a centre of excellence driven to cater for taxpayers and its citizens.”
Governor Fashola said: “Even the road network was considered. Gbagada residents including Medina Estate, Deeper Life Church, the hospital itself and others in this area always experience flooding. We were advised to replace the laterite with concrete for the roads. That has been done and it will last for at least fifty years.”
Knowing what Nigerians go through abroad when seeking for treatment, Fashola said: “We also foresee the start of medical tourism from across West Africa into Lagos. So, we have planned accommodation within the complex for relatives who may want to accompany (their ailing) relatives here for treatment and the land for construction and management has been set aside. We will discuss with some hotel owners, if they can also set up some branches here. If our sick people and their accompanying relatives pay abroad for accommodation and feeding, there is no excuse not to make these payments to these investors. “
The Health Commissioner, Dr Jide Idris said the state embarked on the project as a result of the government’s determination to provide quality healthcare, following a result of the statistics gathered from the different missions, which hitherto helped it in deciding what medical facilities to provide.
He said: “Statistics from the free hypertension and diabetes screening programmes conducted in the state in the past seven years revealed that on the average, 20 per cent of the clients had hypertension, while five per cent had diabetes mellitus. The prevalence of end-stage renal disease in Nigeria is estimated at 290 per one million. For these patients, renal replacement therapies in the form of dialysis or kidney transplant are critical to improve the quality of their lives and prolong same.”
Dr Idris said: “Apart from the fact that cardiovascular diseases (CVD) are the conditions that affect the heart and blood vessels throughout the body, they range from the common ones, such as hypertension and coronary heart disease to the uncommon congenital malformations (that are acquired from birth).
“In Nigeria, only 50 units provide dialysis services with 15 or 30 per cent of these in Lagos, while 80 per cent are in the private health sector. The state established modest heamodialysis units at the Gbagada and Alimosho General Hospitals as well as the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, with only few public health facilities performing renal transplant procedures. The construction of the new cardiac and renal centre was really inspired by the medical missions that came to the state and did some procedures on patients between 2004 and 2011,” he said adding that the facility, though put in place by the state government, but is being run as a concession by Renescor Health Limited Liability Partnership.
“Not only that, we also do know that these two diseases jointly cause serious complications in people who have these problems; and once you have these problems, you have them for life if they are not properly treated”, Idris explained.
The Commissioner said the State government had over the years earmarked as part of its free health policy quite a huge chunk of its budget to sponsor people abroad on various medical problems that could not be treated in the country where the needed expertise and facilities are not available stressing that it is the copulation of these factors that prompted the State government to build the Cardiac and Renal centre.
”A copulation of these factors prompted the need for us to build facilities locally, find a way of staffing them locally to provide the needed services to treat people of these ailments, reduce the number of money we are spending to sponsor people abroad, and more importantly to build local capacity,” he stated.
Dr Idris said setting up of the facility will help bring back home Nigerian medical specialists referring to the facility as a form of ‘brain gain’ to defeat the ‘brain drain’ phenomenon stressing that over the years quite a number of indigenous medical personnel have left the country for greener pastures outside of the country due to lack of infrastructure and facilities with which to exhibit their skill (locally).”
”We have over 2000 specialists in the United States, similar number in Europe and Canada. And this is one way of brain gain instead of brain drain because if you established a facility with the right equipment and infrastructure, we can use that to attract the specialist abroad back home where they can exhibit their expertise and at the same time build local capacity here. That was the basic underlining reason why we decided to embark on this project,” he said.
Giving detailed description of the features of the facility, Senior Nursing Supervisor, Mrs Kemi Ogunyemi said: “The 67 bed facility sits on 2, 317 square metres or 24, 792 sqaure feet of land. The design provides access to all the floors by two bed lifts and a wide ramp which allows two trolleys to pass simultaneously. Fire service stair ways are provided at the side of the elevators and at the back of the building.
“The Ground floors is the Renal centre. There are four specialist clinics with reception/waiting area, offices for social workers, counseling, dietician, clinical psychologists, a large conference room with vending machines. So also are Medical Records office; Triage area, pharmacy; four large dialysis cubicles with five bed stations each; four other dialysis rooms, i.e., two private and two isolation rooms; technical room; kitchenette ; treatment room and Sluice room.”
She said the Cardiac centre is located on the first floor. “It has four specialist cardiac clinics with reception/waiting area; resting and stress test electrocardiography (ECG) rooms; Echocardiography laboratory and exercise room; Cardiac rehabilitation room; community conference room; two private wards; six cubicles with five bed each-two of these are specially equipped for high dependency critically ill patients and Side laboratory.
“While the Second floor has Telemedicine conference room; theatre suites, two with reception and central sterile services department (CSSD); anesthetist, recovery and perfusion rooms; five bed intensive care unit; 64 slice CT scan; Catherisation laboratory and two bed recovery room; offices for specialist physicians and surgeons; ECG room and side lab and treatment/medical room.”
The Managing Director of Renescor Health Limited Liability Partnership, Dr. Ladi Awosika who signed the concession agreement with the government gave kudos to the State government for building the state-of-the-art facilities which he described as first of its kind in sub Saharan Africa taking out South Africa and Angola.
He said the Cardiac and Renal centre has been built to very good specification and, “specialists who have signed up with the company attest to it. The centre has facility for telemedicine which will make every procedure going on in the facility to be reviewed by colleagues anywhere in the world thereby ensuring that training and cutting edge facility therapy will be available at the facility.
Awosika explained that Messr Renescor is made up mainly of Nigerian specialists in Diaspora who could not get any space to work in Nigeria, and that when they saw what was on ground; they pledged to contribute their quota through the facility.
”As at today we have about 200 Nigerian specialists who have signed on to be a part of this. Some of them have decided that it will not even be for money, rather they will take one or two week vacation to be at this centre to impact their knowledge and skills to the people of Lagos in particular and Nigeria in general”, he said.
Awosika said more facilities of the magnitude of the cardiac and renal centre is required in the State to be able to satisfy the demand of more than 21 million residents of the State and promote medical tourism in Lagos. He thereafter pledged that his company will not let down on the concession.
Imuwen, a quiet community on the fringe of Ijebu-East Local Government Area of Ogun State, came alive last weekend when the Southwest province of the Holy Ghost Fathers and Brothers, a Roman Catholic congregation, laid the foundation blocks for a missionary college to be sited in the town.
When completed, the college would be the only post primary school institution in the area following the collapse of the government owned secondary in the town many years ago.
Expectedly, the people were excited by the foundation laying ceremony and the mood of the community was captured in the performance of its cultural troupe, which welcomed guests to the occasion.
For the project to be accomplished, the community gave out 21 acres of its land to the Holy Ghost Fathers and Brothers to build the missionary college, where its children can get quality secondary education.
The community residents were led to the ceremony held at the project site by the community head, Chief K.E.T. Adesanya, who described the project as “the lord’s doing”.
In his homily at a two-hour mass held during the ceremony, the Bishop of Ijebu-Ode Catholic Diocese, Most Reverend Father Albert Fasina, described the project as a manifestation of God’s promise to mankind, taking the first Bible reading from Psalms 24:1.
After creation of the earth, Fasina said God gave mankind power and intelligence to explore the land and develop it for people’s benefit. Given the community gesture to give out the land free of charge, the Bishop said the project was inspired and ordained by God.
Fasina said: “From all indication, we can see that God Himself inspired this project. The Holy Ghost Fathers and Brothers approached the community elders to acquire a land for the purpose of education and evangelism. The community wholeheartedly embraced the purpose of the project and donated a chunk of its land without asking for money. This is a sign that God is with us on this land. We shall continue to praise and glorify His name for the purpose of this project.”
The Bishop described the community gesture as an act of sacrifice, noting that students that would be trained in the college would pay back the gesture with academic and spiritual greatness.
Fasina, who hailed the state government for approving the project plan, solicited for support to complete the school. He said: “The Holy Ghost Fathers and Brothers are spiritual alms beggars for God. They don’t have gold and silver to give anyone. They are changing lives through their self-sacrifice and evangelism. We must support this initiative with all we have to make it successful. The Imuwen community and our brothers have given us an initiative that will endure forever.”
Chief Adesanya noted that some religious organisations had offered the community huge amount of money to buy the land, but said Imuwen Development Council (IDC) gave out the land free of charge to the Holy Ghost Fathers and Brothers in principle. This, he said, was followed by castigation by some people, who felt the land should not have been given out without pecuniary benefit.
He said: “I rejoice with Imuwen people and congratulate them on this occasion of foundation laying for the Holy Ghost Model College. I am also congratulating the Roman Catholic Mission for being the first religious group to build missionary school in Imuwen. This is the day the Lord has made. We shall all rejoice and be glad in it.”
The province head of the Holy Ghost Fathers and Brothers in Southwest, Reverend Father Hyacinth Ogbodo, said the project was initially conceived to be sited in Ijebu-Ode but said the gesture by the community residents made the group to accept the offer.
He promised that the school would be a model for all secondary schools, adding that two pupils from the community who perform excellently in primary school would be given scholarship to study at the college.
Ogbodo used the occasion to appeal for funds to accomplish the project, saying the school would put the name of the community on the world map when completed.
The highpoint of the event was the laying of the foundation block for the school, which was conducted by Bishop Fasina. Residents hailed the cooperation between the Catholic mission and the community, hoping that the school would bring development to the quiet community.
Four weeks and three days into his new assignment as Commissioner of Police in Oyo State, Alhaji Muhammad Musa Katsina is celebrating victory over criminal with a warning that his command will not tolerate their activities. TAYO JOHNSON reports.
“Oyo State is a peaceful state, and we will not allow criminals and hoodlums to create a state of anarchy here. I am ý warning criminals and political thugs in the state, because the Command will not watch the state being thrown into confusion through their activities.”
These were the words of the Oyo State Commissioner of Police, Alhaji Muhammad Musa Katsina, while parading suspects allegedly involved in various criminal activities including armed robbery and car snatching to the public in commemoration of his 33 days in office.
Katsina, who assumed office as Commissioner of Police in the state a little over a month ago, told journalists at the state command headquarters, Eleyele,, that no fewer than 23 stolen cars were recovered by his men from the criminals and their accomplices both in Oyo State and other states like Lagos, Ogun, Kwara and Kano.
He said the Command’s intelligence gathering paid off recently, when officers and men of its Special Anti Robbery Squads (SARS), conducted a painstaking discreet investigation leading to the recovery of assorted cars which were either snatched from their owners at gun point or stolen from where they were parked.
Giving details of how the cars were recovered, Katsina explained that:” Two cars were recovered from Lagos, five from Ogun, two from Oyo, 11 from Kwara and Kano States respectively.
“One Adejuwon Olanipekun aka Marshal, a member of a notorious armed robbery gang which specialised in snatching posh cars at gun point was arrested on 19th February, 2015 at about 9:30am along Lagos/Ogun State axis”
Other suspects arrested along with Olanipekun according to the Commissioner of Police include; Funshoý Aderope Jeffery, Oyelade Ganiyu, Bala Aliu, Yahaya Mohammed (receiver based in Kano), Oladotun Oluwafemi, Babalola Kazeem Shuaibu Busari aka Damendra.
He stated that two locally made cut to size single barrel gun with two live cartridges and 49 live berretta pistol ammunitions were recovered from them.
In an interview with The Nation, one of the suspects, a notorious car snatcher, said he had been arrested before for the same crime, adding that:”I do not use gun to snatch cars from their owners, most Oyo State residents are careless with their cars, most of them don’t lock their cars. Most car owners in Ibadan are not security conscious. We will just enter the car easily and drive it away”.
In a related development, Katsina disclosed that a Land cruiser jeep belonging to Deltaý government with registration number: DT 25B31 was snatched at gun point but was intercepted by a team of policemen led by Inspector Samuel Godwin along Saki/Ilesha Baruba road when one suspect named Opuoro John was attempting to cross the border into Benin Republic.
“When he was caught he tried to bribe the police but he was rebuffed. All effort s have been put in place to apprehend his accomplice” he said
But the suspect, Opuoro explained that it was one Alhaji Sokoto who resides in Cotonou that called him from Lagos to collect a car in Ore from one Emeka.
“When I collected the car, I was calling Alhaji on phone and he was directing me on how to move and the routes to follow but when I got to Saki I was feeling sleepy, so I told him and he advised me to park the car and sleep. He promised to come and collect the car there, but where I was sleeping there was a police check point nearby, so two policemen came to me and asked me who the owner of the vehicle was before I was arrested.
“Alhaji didn’t tell me that it was a stolen car. He told me that it was from the customs men that he buys his cars. I warned the policemen not to pick my call after I was arrested because I knew that Alhaji Sokoto would come for me but they rushed to pick the call and told him that I have been arrested. Its only two cars I have helped Alhaji to cross over to Cotonou” he said
Katsina further disclosed that 17 Bajaj motorcycles were also recovered from syndicates that specialised in snatching motorcycle from their victim and rebranding such to look as new before selling to unsuspecting members of the public.
Meanwhile, five suspects who specialized in selling human parts were also arrested by the Oyo State police command. According to Katsina, the suspects had excavated six graves at a Muslim cemetery located around Lifefort International School, Apete, Ibadan and human parts taken from the dead.
“Following a petition to the police command that there is a criminal activities taking place at Muslim cemetery atý Apete, my men swung into action and arrested five suspects who confessed to the alleged crime” he said
The suspects include; Abati Kolade, Tayo Akinrinola, Ramon Korede, Mojeed Adediran and Saki Adediran.
•Recovers 23 vehicles, over 3,000 ammunition
Similarly, following a tip off by members of the public, the state police command recovered over 3,000 rounds of 7.6mm live ammunition from some hoodlums around Idi-Iroko community in Soka area of Ibadan.
The police boss said:” Following timely information through a telephone call at Sanyo division that some hoodlums were noticed ýaround Idi-Iroko community in Soka area, Ibadan, a team of detectives led by the DCO was dispatched to the area. The hoodlums on noticing the presence of the policemen jumped off their motorcycle and ran into the bush. 3,000 rounds of 7.6mm live ammunition were recovered alongside a motorcycle”
Commending the policemen, Jamiu Adebayo whose brother’s car was among the ones recovered by the command thanked the security operatives for their efforts at combating crime in the State.
He said:” I was sent on an errand with my brother’s car at 8pm on the 6th of March, but on getting to Oke –Ado area of the city, three people on a motorcycle told me that I should stop that my tyre was flat, on getting down they just grabbed the door and threw me away. I called my brother immediately and we reported the matter to the police and our car was found two hours later”
Katsina assured the members of the public that the criminals arrested will not be spared as they will be made to face the full wrath of the law immediately investigations were concluded.
A leader of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) in Nigeria, Alhaji Amoda Bello has warned some factional Afenifere Leaders against attacking the National leader of the All Progressives Congress, (APC) Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Bello said the former Lagos State governor has good plans for the Yoruba race, stressing that whatever political step taken by him would always be to the benefit the Yoruba people.
The NURTW leader, who spoke with reporters in Akure, the Ondo state capital said Yoruba should be grateful to Tinubu for not allowing them to play the second fiddle in the country.
He urged the Afenifere leaders to accept the former Lagos State governor as the leader of Yoruba race, saying Tinubu shares the same political ideologies with the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo.
His words: “No amount of campaign of destruction that could stand in the way of Ahmed Bola Tinubu. He is a great leader. The achievements he has made, no Yoruba leader has ever made such, except Chief Awolowo.
“He has two things that he has done for us as Yoruba. He has single-handedly formed a political party and the political party is accepted all over the country. This is a great achievement.
“A man that has promoted a lot of people who are now leaders of their respective states. They are the governor Osun State, Rauf Aregbesola, Dr. Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti State and Governor Raji Fashola of Lagos State, these are products of Tinubu who we can be proud of. Come and see the person he is grooming in Ondo State, Bola Ilori, if this man speaks with you, you will notice that he is an intellectual.
The promise by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to create Ibadan State out of Oyo State, if it wins the general elections, has been described as not only deceitful but also laughable by a member representing Oyo State in the All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Committee, Mr Ayodeji Abass-Alesinloye. He had a chat with BISI OLADELE and SIKIRU AKINOLA.
Your party, the All Progressives Congress (APC) was seemingly coasting home to victory in the general elections scheduled for February 2015, before the sudden postponement. How would you rate your party’s chances at the re-scheduled polls?
Our chances are very bright. Ask the ordinary Nigerians about the two candidates and they will tell you it is General Muhammadu Buhari who so many Nigerians have seen as their incoming president, whose popularity has made the incumbent to push for the postponement of the elections.
Do you think Buhari still has the kind of rating he had before the postponement, considering the fact that President Goodluck Jonathan has used the period of the postponement to gain foothold in the South west following his series of meetings with some Yoruba traditional rulers?
Honestly, Buhari still has that rating. Of course, people are more prepared now and for the first time too. We have to be honest with ourselves, we saw it coming. The popularity was too much. It was obvious and that was why they shifted the election. They had thought that by extending the election for six weeks, they would be able to correct some mistakes and that is why you see them running helter-skelter. But unfortunately, people are just collecting his (President Jonathan’s) money, they are more than before committed to ejecting him from Aso Rock. People want change. You give them money today but you have not been able to stop the killing and maiming of Nigerians (by the insurgents). So if you are giving money to those who cannot convince anyone to vote for you, it does not matter.
You alleged that the PDP candidate is going round the South West, giving people money to vote. Are you saying the APC and its candidate are not doing the same?
Yes. As I am talking to you, I can boldly say I am working like a volunteer which is okay for me. What we are saying is that we want things to change in Nigeria. And I want my name to be mentioned as part of those who effected the change. Even General Buhari did not give a dime during the primary and he won. Why? It was because we knew he has something to offer this nation. PDP has said so many things about Buhari but none has pointed to him as a corrupt man. He has not given money to anyone. We saw the tempo at which President Jonathan has been going around campaigning in the last couple of weeks, giving out money. And three out of the four weeks (he was engaged in doing this) Buhari was outside the country and still, the people love him.
What is your take on PDP’s strident opposition to the use of the card reader in the general elections?
On the card reader, there has never been a country where people will say they don’t want election malpractices and they will reject card reader. The card reader is like one man, one vote. Just like the umpire is canvassing for the usage of card reader, we are also re-echoing it. Why will a party like PDP be canvassing against the card reader when in actual fact, all the developed countries of the world, including those not as big and influential as Nigeria, have tested and used it? Why should our case be different? I think the whole world is going hi-tech and we cannot be left behind. I think what we are saying basically is that we as opposition party don’t want INEC to support anybody. What we want is free and fair election.
Many states across the country have not been able to meet their financial obligations, and yet as you alleged, the PDP is doling out money to people. Don’t you think this will influence voters to vote those who can meet the immediate needs?
Nigerians are so wise. People know what they are doing. When we had election in 2011, the rate of sophistication was not much. Go to the social media and see what is going on. Having given out the money, go and see people’s comments and reactions. Go and see the reactions of those who collected money. We know the money they are spending. Now, states cannot pay salaries. As I speak with you, February allocation has not been shared and March is going to an end. And you can see them doling out money but I pity these people who give money because Nigerians are watching. People will voice out their anger. Remember that the late Obafemi Awolowo said that a time would come when, no matter the party you are in or the tribe you come from or the status you attain, people will come under one platform to challenge their oppressor.
The governorship candidate of the PDP in Oyo State has been promising the creation of Ibadan State if the PDP wins both governorship and presidential elections. Don’t you think that may affect the chances of your party, especially in Ibadan?
Go and write it down, the PDP gubernatorial candidate in Oyo State will not make the top three positions when the result of the gubernatorial election is announced. Here is a man who was in the Senate for eight years, four of which was as Senate Leader. He never for once made a move towards the creation of Ibadan State. Let him tell us what he did for Ibadan in those inglorious years. What he could not do for Ibadan as Senate Leader, can he now do it on his own? What he is saying is even not in tandem with the current reality. This is an issue that has been discussed at the national conference and which is undergoing a process in the House of Representatives. And it is not only Ibadan State. He is not doing anybody a favour as this has been on for a numbers of years. And of course, state creation is only feasible during military regime and not in a democratic dispensation. So, anytime the people hear the jingle (on his promise) they always laugh. They would see the result.
Prominent Yoruba leaders gathered in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, last Thursday to review their stake in Nigeria and came up with a charter of demand in line with their aspirations as common people, BISI OLADELE reports
N 1955, the House of Chiefs, Parliament Building, Agodi Ibadan played host to prominent Yoruba sons and daughters from across all walks of life who had gathered to discuss issues affecting their common destiny.
Drawn from across Yoruba land, the leaders, at the end of their discussion came up with demands that they believed would protect their interest and put the country, then still under colonial rule, on a fast development lane.
Exactly 60 years after, leaders of the present generation of Yoruba have taken the same step, suggesting that the issues of the last six decades were yet to fade away.
It was the same city and the same venue. Only the conferees were different. Yet, the gathering was for the same purpose: which way forward for the Yoruba nation in Nigeria?
Convened by the revered retired army general, Alani Akinrinde,Yoruba leaders converged for a summit to discuss issues affecting Yoruba nation in all spheres of life in Nigeria. As it was in 1955, the leaders, who cut across all professions, included traditional rulers, youths as well as Yoruba in Kwara and Kogi states. And the host was the Oyo State Governor, Abiola Ajimobi.
Attendees include governors Rauf Aregbesola of Osun State and Ibikunle Amosun of Ogun State: Amosun was represented by the Secretary to the State Government, Mr Taiwo Adeoluwa; Socio-political leaders such as Chief Ayo Fasanmi; Senator Olabiyi Durojaye and General Akinrinade (rtd); erudite lawyers including Chief Niyi Akintola (SAN); and Oluwarotimi Akeredolu (SAN); academics and technocrats including Professors. Akin Oyebode; Bunmi Ayoade and Dr Goke Adegoroye; traditional rulers including the Olubadan of Ibadan, Oba Samuel Odulana Odugade 1 who was represented by High Chief Eddy Oyewole; the Akarigbo of Remo, Dr Adeniyi Sonariwo and the Aseyin of Iseyin, Oba Ganiy Oloogunebi; religious leaders including the Bishop of Ekiti Diocese, Felix Ajakaye and Chairman of Muslim Community in Oyo State, Alhaji Kunle Sanni; top politicians including former Osun State Governor, Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola and former Ekiti State Governor, Kayode Fayemi.
Through various presentations, the leaders reviewed salient developments in the last 60 years in Nigeria, especially as they affected the Yoruba and took a common position.
Setting the tone for the talk shop was the host, Governor Ajimobi.
In his welcome address, he highlighted the strategic importance of the city of Ibadan in the political history of the Yoruba across ages and stressed that the venue was as apposite as the time for the summit.
•Gen. Alani Akinrinde (rtd) and Oyo State Governor, Senator Isiaq Abiola Ajimobi
Ajimobi said: “Permit me to express my profound pleasure and appreciation at this unique opportunity to address the great sons and daughters of Yoruba land here gathered. Again, talking about historical significance, this great chamber – the House of Chiefs – for those who were old enough to know its political history, has hosted great men and women of renown in Yoruba land, at various historical junctures. As history would someday record that, at a critical period of our people’s lives as this, we gathered here today to dissect the way forward for the Yoruba in the Nigerian federation, so also did the Obafemi Awolowos, Samuel Ladoke Akintolas, Adekunle Ajasins, Bola Iges, to mention a few, gathered inside this House of Chiefs, innumerable times, to brainstorm on the future of our people. Indeed, today, I feel as if I am addressing the crème de la crème of Yoruba land at the 1951 Yoruba national conference held here on the soil of Ibadan.
“Distinguished ladies and gentlemen, we do not need anyone to remind us of our rich ancestry and wide geographical contours. We are an ethnic group that spans Southwestern Nigeria and Southern Benin in West Africa. According to the CIA World Factbook, we constitute over 35 million people in total, majority of our population found in Nigeria. These statistics confirm us as one of the largest ethnic groups in Africa. Indeed, we share borders with the Borgu in Benin; the Nupe and Ebira in central Nigeria; the Edo, the ¸san, and the Afemai in mid-western Nigeria. The Igala and other related groups are located in the northeast, and the Egun, Fon, Ewe and others in the southeast Benin. The Itsekiri who live in the north-west Niger delta are cousins of the Yoruba, even though they maintain a distinct cultural identity. You could find a significant Yoruba population in Ghana, Togo, Ivory Coast, Liberia and Sierra Leone, (where you almost cannot find a difference between them and the Saro and the Creole).”
The governor recalled that so many Yoruba have done Nigeria proud as pace setters in various noble careers which partly accounts for why Yoruba have always been in the driving seat in developmental efforts of the country.
His words: “We have a rich political history as Yoruba people, which is apparently linked to our early education, civilization and exposure to western education, far earlier than any other ethnic conglomerate in the country.Christopher Alexander Sapara Williams (1855–1915), a son of Yoruba land, was the first indigenous Nigerian lawyer who was called to the English bar on 17 November 1879. Sir Samuel Layinka Ayodeji Manuwa, (1903–1976) was a pioneering Nigerian surgeon, and was the first Nigerian to qualify to become a Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons (FRCS), having graduated from the University of Edinburgh in 1934. He was one of those whose efforts led to the establishment of the University College Hospital here in Ibadan. I can mention them on and on.”
Ajimobi consequently deplored the alleged marginalization of the nationality in Nigeria in recent times, particularly in the current political dispensation.
“It will interest you to note that, in the wheel of power at the centre, there are only two Yoruba people. Indeed, out of the 50 most powerful men and women in the executive, legislative, judicial and even security components of power in Nigeria, there are only two Yoruba people. These are the Chief of Staff to the President, whose choice was almost an afterthought and the Accountant General of the Federation. Never had the sons and daughters of Oduduwa been treated with such ignominy and disregard by a country their forefathers shed their blood to make a shining sun under the heavens.
“In the present political configuration at the federal level, not only are we totally vacant, in spite of our rich political evolution and profound political traits in Nigerian politics, in cases where Yoruba are ever underscored, the worst of us are promoted to lead the best of us. The Machiavellian tactic of dividing us to effectively rule us is on the upswing and they promote an understanding of Yoruba leadership that is laughable and warped in the least. In the same vein we must examine the role being played by that biblical god of money, Mammon, in the fate of Yoruba sons and daughters, especially vis-a-vis the recent violence unleashed on Lagos by the Odua Peoples Congress (OPC). Was that violence part of our Yoruba culture for which we are known by the rest of the world?
“These are some of the issues that this Assembly must address today. Indeed, the title of this conference should be, to borrow the title of a piece written by that great columnist and former editor of the Nigerian Tribune, Ayo Ojewumi, Where Do We Go From Here?
“We must collectively resolve whether we want to continue to remain in the current servitude under the PDP or liberate ourselves from the shackles on our feet. A proposed government in which we have been offered the vice presidential slot holds a great hope of tomorrow for us and our children and nostalgia of the past where we participated effectively in shaping the destiny of our nation.” He said.
Taking the microphone from him, the convener, Akinrinade, expressed satisfaction with the turn-out of Yoruba leaders, saying it was an example of the way Yoruba can easily forge a common front against injustice.
He also highlighted the qualities and values of the Yoruba and thereafter rolled out the quality of leadership Yoruba desired.
His words: “We, the Yoruba, are too sophisticated to follow one leader or adopt one political belief. What is required of us is to share a common development aspiration and values much more than what obtains now in the present Nigeria. We cannot afford a leadership that is absent of developmental foresight, that lacks innovative thinking and is not capable of producing the right responses and answers to the challenges of multi-ethnic and multi-cultural politics in the country…
“For us Yoruba people, a Nigerian leader must be ready to make the necessary sacrifices and imbibe core value-laden attributes. The national leader that Yoruba people want and would support should subscribe to a body of beliefs based on our perennial and tested values of honour, dignity, integrity, industry, patriotism, which are encoded in the concept of Omoluabi. The leadership the Yoruba want should be the body of men and women who are believers and are ready to live according to the tenets of Omoluabi and work for its continuous propagation and effectiveness. It is this body of values that should guide us in the process of who we vote for in the 2015 general elections, not corrupted endorsements.”
Akinrinade also condemned the protest by members of the Odu’a People’s Congress (OPC) in Lagos, describing it as “an open threat to our space, a society that is naturally and cultural embracing whose receptive nature is now being abused…”
He then called on the Yoruba to use their votes in the coming election to choose the right leaders and reject wrong ones.
In their presentations, experts also X-rayed the plight of the Yoruba nation in Nigeria and proffered solutions
Speaking on the topic: ‘Development Challenges to Nation Building,’ Professor Akin Oyebode emphasized the need for the Yoruba to re-invent their leadership position. He said the rights of the Yoruba people should not be allowed to be trampled upon by impostors.
He lamented that the Yoruba delegates to the National conference held last year were unable to liaise with delegates from other regions to promote their agenda due to sitting arrangements and other logistics challenges.
The erudite scholar, therefore, urged Yoruba to press for a constituent assembly that will adopt fundamental laws leading to adoption of a new constitution.
He rounded off his presentation by stating that Nigeria would not break, hence there is no need to canvass for Odu’a Republic.
In his own presentation, legal luminary, Chief Niyi Akintola (SAN) emphasized that marginalization of Yoruba is real, as according to him no Yoruba is occupying any of the first 14 positions in the country in spite of their population.
Akintola called for a change within a credible legal framework.
In his own presentation, Professor Bunmi Ayooade, who represented the United States (US) based Odu’a Foundation, expressed worry over the state of the Yoruba society, because, according to him, the Yoruba have surrendered leadership in the country.
Stating that the minority of excellence is always superior to the majority of mediocrity, Ayoade called on the region to shun invitation to trade the future of the Yoruba people.
“There is danger in making Nigeria irrelevant to the Yoruba.” He said.
Speaking in the same vein, a technocrat, Dr Goke Adegoroye, who spoke on the topic: “Marginalization of Yoruba under the Current Dispensation,” posited that Yoruba is the single largest ethnic group in Nigeria accounting for 22 per cent of the total population.
In his own opinion, the third position should be ceded to the Yoruba once the first and second positions go to other regions.
But he said as at today, Yoruba cannot even come to the topmost leadership position in many federal arms, agencies and parastatals, including military and para-military agencies.
Prince Bambo Ademiluyi, who spoke on: “Re-industrialization of Southwest,” called for concerted efforts to ensure that the region, which was once the industrial hub of the nation, regains its position.
In his own comment, Oyinlola posited that Yoruba will achieve more once they are able to come together as one, irrespective of party affiliations.
Senator Anthony Adefuye also elucidated on the marginalization of the Yoruba, saying only seven out of 49 principals of unity schools in the country are Yoruba while there are only eight Yoruba among the 67 chairmen of parastatals in Nigeria.
Senator Durojaye called on Yoruba to be firm and resist intimidation on the Election Day by going out to vote for the right candidates.
Chief Ayo Fasanmi described as “a shame” the endorsement of President Goodluck Jonathan by the Afenifere.
He said: “I’m saddened by all I hear on radio in recent times. Those endorsing President Jonathan are on their own. We know who to vote for and that is Buhari.
Fayemi said the gathering was not for politics but for the interest of the Yoruba. He faulted claims that APC governors did not support the National Conference, saying the governors sent delegates to the confab.
Fayemi also recalled that five Southwest governors met Jonathan over the once deplorable state of the Lagos-Ibadan expressway but that he did nothing in spite of the promise to do so. He said they (governors) gave him the alternative of jointly undertaking the project but that he declined. Fayemi said Jonathan did not attend to the road until it became very shameful.
“When you add this to other complaints, you will see that the current government does not like the Yoruba.” He said.
He added that part of the recommendations of the confab could be implemented now but that the Jonathan administration won’t do it because of insincerity. He said devolution of power is part of the APC manifesto to achieve that.
When he took his turn, Ogbeni Aregbesola said Yoruba have never benefitted from mainstream politics. “We know our leaders. We know those who led us yesterday but who have compromised today. True Yoruba leaders are here, not only one governor going about like a stray man.” He said.
The governor charged Yoruba to take their rightful leadership role in Africa but pointed out that they can’t be the light of Africa by collecting money and compromising standards and values.
Calling on the elders to call the OPC to order, he said Yoruba as a nation agreed not to fight one another again by the 1886 accord in Oke-Imesi. “Tell OPC that money will finish.” He counseled.
He explained that under the current administration, the country is losing 400,000 barrels of oil per day, the value of which he put at N155 billion per day.
According to him, the sum is equivalent of what Osun State earns in allocation for four years.
In a further analysis, Aregbseola said the amount will total N3.56 trillion in four years, the amount he said could build 2,000 kilometers of one-lane road in each state of the federation or 1,000 model schools in every state, each of which could accommodate 1,000 pupils.
Rounding off the meeting, the Vice Presidential candidate of the APC, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, commended Yoruba for their patience in the face of Federal Government’s weight of opposition. He advised them to keep standing by the truth as usual, stressing that victory was sure in the forthcoming election.
Representatives of Yoruba in Kwara and Kogi states also made comments while the Itsekiri were represented by Rita-Lori Ogbebor. The Olu of Warri also sent a representative, Chief Sunday Rewane, to the summit as they identified with the Yoruba. Ogbebor said Itsekiri migrated from Ijebu and will continue to identify with the Yoruba who stand tall with right values.
A communique was issued at the end of the summit, detailing the charter of demands of the Yoruba in Nigeria.
Also at the summit were Oyo State Deputy Governor, Chief Moses Alake-Adeyemo; former Ekiti State Governor, Otunba Niyi Adebayo; industrialist Chief Kola Daisi; Chief K. O. Latunji; Senators Sola Adeyeye, Bayo Salami and James Kolawole; former Minister of Aviation, Professor Babalola Borisade; National President, Central Council of Ibadan Indigenes (CCII), Chief Bayo Oyero and former Vice Chancellor, Obafemi Awolowo University, Professor Wale Omole.
Others include former Military Governor, Mid-Western Region, General Samuel Ogbemudia; Chairman, Ibadan Elders Forum, Ambassador Olu Saanu; Chairman, Afenifere Renewal Group (ARG), Hon. Wale Oshun; Alhaji Tajudeen Olusi; Prof. Adebayo William; Director General, Development Agenda for Western Region (DAWN), Mr Dipo Famakinwa and the Group Managing Director, Odu’a Investments Ltd, Mr Adewale Raji.
Also in attendance were the Bishop of Ekiti Diocese, Felix Ajakaye and; Chairman, Muslim Community in Oyo State, Alhaji Kunle Sanni.
Traditional rulers present include the Eleruwa of Eruwa, Oba Samuel Adegbola; the Soun of Ogbomoso, Oba Jimoh Oyewumi, who was represented by Chief Samuel Otolorin; Oba Kolawole Sowemimo of Owode-Egba; the Onigboho of Igboho, Oba John Bolarinwa and the Onijeru of Ijeru who was represented by Chief Elijah Popoola.
The National President of the Association of General and Private Medical Practitioners of Nigeria(AGPMPN)Dr Omo-Ehijele Odafe has urged armed robbers and kidnappers to spare his members from attack because of their humanitarian services to the society.
Besides, he decried the over taxation and other unfriendly levies being imposed on medical doctors which according to him have not assisted in sustaining medical entrepreneurship.
Addressing reporters in Akure, the Ondo State capital during the three- day 37th Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the Association, Dr Odafe expressed concern over rampant cases of abduction and killing of private medical practitioners by kidnappers and armed robbers respectively.
According to him:”Doctors are for humanitarian service, we treat everybody, armed robbers and kidnappers should leave our members alone, we have no money, but we are using our skills and intelligence to help the society”.
He called on the Federal Government to provide security for members of the association who are daily being attacked, adding that hazard insurance for private and public hospitals would boost their operation.
The Private Doctors’ president recalled that the first ever case of Ebola disease in Nigeria was detected in a private hospital before it was vigorously tackled.
He urged the Federal Government to provide a health bank for private medical practitioners to enable them access cheap funds as against the normal bank loans which attract 30 per cent interest.
His words “we want to deploy our resources in funding health care delivery without hardship in order to serve people.
The AGPMPN President hailed President Goodluck Jonathan for constituting a team to look into the issue of the establishment of World class hospitals in the six geo-political zones of the country for the benefits of the masses.
He advised the government to discourage the sponsoring of public servants for medical check-up in other countries when there are good hospitals in Nigeria.
Things are looking good for residents of Ibadan, the Oyo State capital as public water taps that have remained dry for many years are now running again, thanks to the resuscitation of the two major sources of water supply to the city-Asejire and Eleyele water works by the state government. OSEHEYE OKWUOFU reports.
In Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, the residents are in a happy mood, and they have many reasons to be so excited. Their water taps that have been running in fits and starts for many years are now running smoothly again thanks to the present administration in the state that has brought life back to the Asejire and Eleyele water works, the two major sources of public water supply to the city.
For more than seven years before the Governor Abiola Ajimobi administration came on board in 2011, most parts of the city that used to enjoy tap water in their homes had no water due to the poor state of the two water projects.
Though previous administrations tried to resuscitate the facilities and provide the over three million residents of the ancient city with potable water, their efforts were certainly not good enough to address the biting water problem.
So acute was the shortage that many residents, especially women and children had to trek long distance from their homes with jerry cans and bowls on their heads in search of potable water, perhaps from the few boreholes and wells in the area.
And after several unfulfilled promises from past administrations, the residents, understandably, have learnt not to trust the government to provide them with water, but they were pleasantly surprised recently when they opened their taps at home, perhaps by accident, and water started running. It was pure excitement. Now homes connected to public water pipes are getting supply from the Oyo State Water Corporation and the people are happy.
Signs that things were getting back to normal was first noticed by The Nation when this correspondent noticed water oozing out from burst pipes in some parts of the city and technicians from the State Water Corporation fixing the fault, an indication that government had started pumping water into homes.
So excited were the residents to see their taps running that they have resorted to stockpiling the ‘essential’ commodity in big containers and jerry cans in anticipation of when the taps could go dry again, but that may not be any time soon as water has been flowing ceaselessly.
When The Nation went round the city, it was discovered that many of the pipes are no longer in good conditions having gone rust due to old age, and are leaking water. Though residents of the affected areas have made appeals to the water corporation to effect necessary repairs some have however resorted to self help where possible, by engaging the services of plumbers to fix the pipes and ensure constant supply.
It was gathered that in the past few months, the two major water works/dams-Asejire and Eleyele, had been undergoing overhauling by the state government to upgrade the facilities and meet the water needs of the people.
When The Nation visited the dams, extensive works had been carried out especially on Asejire where many of the old equipment have been replaced with new ones in an attempt to optimise the water production capacity of the facility. A new laboratory had been put in place equipped with modern gadgets while some equipment that were still in fairly good conditions were also refurbished. Some of the equipment already installed include the Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer, used for water analysis.
Besides, there was massive rehabilitation at the Asejire water scheme which has increased water production capacity of the scheme to over 80 percent.
Eight different High Lift Pumps were refurbished and replaced to enhance the volume of water pumped to the city from the Asejire water treatment Plant. With the new tools in place, workers were seen in high spirit working hard to deliver water to the people.
The project embarked upon by the state to urgently address the problem of water in the city was started around November 2012 and was completed in December 2013.
The state Commissioner for Water Resources, Engr. Adewale Adeoye explained that before the inception of Senator Abiola Ajimobi’s administration, the Asejire water works was either not producing at all or functioning far below installed capacity, hence the water for distribution was very low.
“But when we came in, we took it as our first priority to provide potable water for the good people of Oyo State, especially residents of Ibadan. The governor then mandated the Ministry to see what can be done to salvage the system and we thank God that from the 10 per cent production at that time, the production has been raised to over 80 per cent. So, now we generate about 251.2 million cubic metres of water from Asejire Waterworks for the people of Ibadan. During the same period, all the pumps were rehabilitated so as to avoid a breakdown during the production process. As we were doing this we also rehabilitated the laboratory where we test the water to ensure that it meets the World Health Organisation (WHO) standard. The laboratory has the best equipment, and many people do come from outside to do their analysis to ascertain their own water safety.
“All the other facilities have also been put to over 80 per cent production capacity, the only major challenge is this electricity issue and the administration is trying as much as possible to address this. We have met the Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company to give us a dedicated line so that we can produce enough water as we have no reason not to give water to the people. In addition to that we have standby generators but you know the cost of running diesel engine generators is very high. I will tell you that Asejire water is as good as what you find in Lagos, and Abuja”, the Commissioner said.
But unlike at Asejire, it is not all that rosy at the Eleyele Water Scheme which serves Eleyele, Ologuneru and environs.
The Dam, it was gathered is yet to recover from the extensive damaged it suffered during the August 26, 2011 flood disaster that wrecked havoc to one of its crucial component.
The Commissioner for Water Resources, Engr Adeoye , while responding to the inherent problems at the Eleyele Dam, the second largest water scheme in the state, said the facility has been producing water but “ there is still a lot of rehabilitation work to be done.”
“If you remember, the flood of August 26th 2011 affected Eleyele dam. So, what happened is that we are producing water at Eleyele for human consumption but due to the flood, we cannot produce as much as we could because of the extensive damage caused by the natural disaster.
But we were able to put some remedial measures to produce water at least to ensure that the people do not suffer much until the repair work is done.
“Even as urgent as the rehabilitation of Eleyele Dam is, what we have done is just the feasibility study. Some days ago, the African Development Bank (ADB) brought the revised design to implement the corrective measure, and we are now set to commence repair work there. Even at that Eleyele dam is producing water but like Asejire we also the challenge of stable power supply. The dam is to serve the people of Ologuneru and other areas but due to expanding nature of the city, we don’t have enough pipes to cover these other areas. But we are working around the clock to ensure they are served including the new settlements.
“We have other schemes like the one in Oyo, Erelu water scheme, the one in Ogbomoso, Saki and other parts of Oyo state. All these schemes are working to distribute water to the people in the other parts of the state but the power challenge is still there. Thank God that the government has a relationship with Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company to give us a dedicated line to ensure that we have an uninterrupted water supply”.
Speaking on constant pipe burst and water waste in the city, Engr Adeoye said “we have pipe burst because most of them are old. Those pipes have been laid for the past 50 years. But immediately any pipe burst was reported, we get our men to the area to repair and lay new pipes because it is not ideal for people to scoop water from that place because the water could be contaminated. So we don’t encourage it. The government like I said earlier is trying to change some of these pipes, we want to prevent pipe burst because we lose water, it does not get to the consumer, so we are trying hard to replace some of the damaged pipes”.
The turnaround in the water supply and the huge investment made by the government to achieve it is not lost on the residents.
According to Mr Matthew Adesokan who lives at Itasaku area of Ibadan, the government has done well to restore public water supply in the city after several years of hardship. Adesokan, a retired teacher recalled the good old days when tap water was fairly regular in Ibadan, saying that it was the duty of every government to provide basic needs, including potable water to its citizenry and any government that failed to do that is definitely a failure.
“At that time we knew which day of the week to expect water from our taps. And it was a regular routine. Every week, we had water on Sundays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays, four days in a week. And our wives used to fill our drums and other containers to store enough water to last till when the taps would run again. But suddenly, all that went away leaving the people to suffer. But, today the situation is gradually being restored and now we know that in a week, at least we do have tap water for two or three times/days. We thank our governor Ajimobi because he is trying his best to bring back the good old days again”, Adesokan said.
At Oje, Idi-Arere, Omitowoju, Inalende, Agodi, Mapo, Oke-Ado,Molete, Oke-Bola, Mokola , Challenge, Ring Road and some other parts of Ibadan the situation was not different as the taps are running.
It was indeed a great rejoicing for the people of the city as they witnessed renewed effort on the part of the government to tackle the incessant problem of water in the state.
But, not all have started benefiting from this massive government investment as some residents who live in newly developed areas still nurse the hope of getting tap water.
A 68 year old trader and resident of a suburb of Ologuneru, Deacon Samson Odiaka has meanwhile, pleaded with the government to extend pipe water to his area where a large population is springing up.
“We know that the government has not extended pipe to these new areas, the city is expanding fast, it is only the old areas that were piped. But help us tell the government to try and pipe these areas too, we are equally suffering from water” Deacon Odiaka who owns a building in the area pleaded.
The people of Iju in Akure North and Ifira-Akoko in Akoko South East Local Government areas of Ondo State are counting their losses after a devastating rainstorm wreaked havoc in their communities. DAMISI OJO reports.
Residents of Iju, Ita Ogbolu and Ifira-Akoko communities in Ondo State are not very happy at the moment following a recent rainstorm in the areas that has rendered many of them homeless.
No fewer than 300 buildings were ravaged by the devastating storm leaving those affected in serious distress.
The rainstorm swept through Iju and Itaogbolu communities in Akure North and Ifira-Akoko in Akoko South East Local Government Areas of the State.
The people who had thought that the rain was going to fall gently as usual were shocked when the heavens opened up and the shower accompanied by windstorm that blew off their roofs.
Private and public school buildings in the area were also damaged by the storm which equally
affected the wall of a health centre in Iju community.
The vice Principal of Elu Iju Grammar School, Mr.Isaac Oke whose school was affected, described the incident as unfortunate.
He urged government to urgently come to their aid.
Meanwhile, government officials had visited the communities affected to assess the extent of damage.
The lawmaker representing Akure North State Constituency, Akin Adeniyi also described the development as disturbing.
He however assured that Governor Olusegun would assist his people on their plight.
In Ifira-Akoko,the first rain that should have brought joy to the people turned sour as rainstorm destroyed several houses.
Eye witness said the rain came with heavy storm which lasted for only 30 minutes but so was disastrous to the extent that two Churches and a private secondary school were badly damaged.
A spokesman for the community, Chief Boboye Ojomo noted that property worth millions of naira were destroyed as the affected house owners could not rebuild the houses again because of abject poverty.
The Monarch of the town, Olufira of Ifira, Oba Olu Olugbeja called on the state government and the National Emergency Management Agency(NEMA) to come to the aid of his subjects as the economic situation in the country was not conducive to warrant the reconstruction of new houses.
Those affected by the rainstorm in the areas are now either squatting with friends or relation or living in rented apartments.
