Tag: Makinde

The  All Progressives Congress (APC) has warned the opposition  Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to desist from blaming it for its  crisis.

Rather, APC counseled the opposition to do a soul searching and address its inability to handle the party’s implosion and decay.

Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde at a  recent  event in Ibadan blamed the APC for the turmoil in PDP and other opposition parties.

But  the APC National Publicity Secretary, Felix Morka, in a statement yesterday  in Abuja advised the governor to focus on his primary assignment of providing good governance to his people  and not to arrogantly pointed accusing fingers at APC for the rot in his party.

Likening Makinde’s outburst to the proverbial bad workman that blames his tools, Morka noted that the governor and his co-confused leaders of the PDP should  stop pointing fingers at the APC and take full responsibility for their  failure to handle the party’s implosion and decay.

Dismissing the governor’s unfounded allegations, the APC spokesman said Makinde “has become the leading but rather shoddy drummer for his 2027 political ambition. While our democracy affords Makinde the liberty to his political aspiration, however, engaging in reckless executive flippancy, at the expense of the job he was elected to do as Governor, is a disservice to the good people of Oyo State.

“Makinde’s unhinged 2027 ambition cannot be founded upon his unguarded and unjustified attacks against our great party or the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu that has launched the boldest and most ambitious reform effort in history to transform our country’s economy and build a solid foundation for progress.”

Highlighting the achievements of the APC-led administration, Morka noted that, “our country now exporting more than we are importing with a trade surplus of nearly N7 billion at the end of Q2 of 2024, improved revenue-to-debt service ratio from 97 percent in 2023 to 68 percent in 2024, with foreign reserve upwards of $40billion, with the economy expanding by 3.19%, achieving impressive non-oil export diversification, with one of the world’s most profitable stock exchange markets, with a massive infrastructure revolution underway,  with remarkable innovation in welfare and social security evidenced by the Nigerian Credit Corps, National Education Loan Fund (NELFUND),  upward minimum wage review and massive cash transfers to over 25 million of Nigeria’s poorest, among other interventions, our country is on the cusp of prosperity and enduring greatness.”

Accusing Makinde of leadership deficiency, the APC noted that his lackluster performance as Governor speaks for itself, and undermines his credibility.

Read Also: 2027: Nobody can set agenda for me – Makinde

“Instead of prioritising the needs of Oyo people who elected him to tackle their local issues, he has chosen to divert his attention and squander the state’s resources in pursuit of unhinged 2027 ambition. Makinde must know that Nigeria’s scale and complexities demand more than his vain and self-indulgent ambition.

“Makinde cannot even speak for the people of Oyo State regarding their future electoral choices or decisions let alone speak for Nigerians. Makinde and his partisan cohorts are only worried stiff that the looming transformation and prosperity from  President Tinubu’s economic policies will consign their 2027 ambitions and calculations into the trash-bin of political irrelevance.”

The ruling party  urged Nigerians to continue to stand firm in support of President Tinubu as the administration’s reform policies begin to yield the desired benefits for all Nigerians.

Oyo Governor Seyi Makinde on Saturday said nobody apart from himself can set agenda for him on what to do next with his political career.

Apparently reacting to insinuations of him declaring for the presidential race in 2027, Makinde said he disagreed with those accusing the ruling party of interfering with other political parties in the country so as not to have opposition in the next election.

Rather, he charged leaders of the leading opposition party across board to look inwards and see how they can work together and salvage the country, adding that the next election will be between the ruling party and Nigerians.

Makind spoke in a remark while commissioning the newly built Olusoji Adagunodo Southwest Zonal Secretariat. 

Read Also: Makinde inaugurates GCI Old Boys’ multi-million naira projects

He was joined at the event by the Acting National Chairman of the PDP, Umar Iliya Damagum, Osun Governor Ademola Adeleke; former Governors Samuel Ortom (Benue), Okezie Ikpeazu (Abia), members of the National working committee of the party, other leaders from the Zonal and country at large.

The building personally funded by Governor Makinde is named after late Olusoji Adagunodo, a former Chairman of the party in the Southwest.

The Nation reports that Governor Makinde had on the death of Adagunodo promised to build a structure and name it after him, to keep the memory alive.

He alsot announced the appointment of the son of the late Adagunodo as his Special Adviser on Regional Integration. 

The All Progressives Congress in Ondo State has faulted Governor Seyi Makinde’s call for the removal of Mrs. Babalola Oluwatoyin as the State Resident Electoral Commissioner ahead of next month’s polls.

It said neither Ondo State nor the electoral body was an appendage of Oyo State “where he rules as an administrator.”

The Ondo APC said Mrs. Babalola has demonstrated integrity, competence and capacity to handle any election.

Spokesman for the Ondo APC, Alex Kalejaiye, in a statement, said it was ludicrous for Governor Makinde to give such a directive when he neither influenced the REC’s transfer to Ondo state nor is he a player on the political space of the State.

The statement said, it was insulting for Makinde to have advised Ondo electorates not to sell their conscience, saying that Ondo people were politically sophisticated entity that acted out of conviction and not cheap.

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It said the Ondo APC has unbeatable structures across the state capable of defeating any party in any election.

According to the statement, “Besides, the recent defection of notable political giants from his Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has further fortified the chances of APC in November.

“It is therefore clear that our party won’t need to indulge in those undemocratic gymnastics employed by the PDP to win Oyo for Makinde in 2019. Fear not, Mr. Governor.

Similarly, a statement by Oyo APC Publicity Secretary, Olawale Sadare, urged INEC, security agencies and relevant stakeholders to watch out for some desperate elements who might want to employ cheap blackmail and intimidation in their desperate bid to mess up the proper conduct of the November poll in the Sunshine state.

“We found the public conduct of Governor Makinde in Ondo state as highly embarrassing as he did not represent the good people of Oyo state who have a chequered record of peace keeping and brotherliness with the rest of the country particularly in the whole of Yorubaland.

“It is rather unfortunate that a supposed leader from the Pacesetter state would go to a sister state to intimidate the indigenous population in the guise of giving an address during a political campaign.

“Also, we make bold to say that Gov. Makinde lacks the moral rights to accuse anyone of plans to compromise the conduct of an election since his emergence as the winner of the 2019 and 2023 governorship elections in Oyo state were made possible on account of abracadabra and unprecedented sharp practices.

The Nigeria Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has announced Oyo state as the most employment-friendly state in the southern part of Nigeria.

Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Prince Dotun Oyelade said the NBS, a federal government agency, made the declaration in the latest employment statistics published for 2024.

The document, according to the commissioner, revealed a significant decline in Oyo state’s unemployment rate, recording an impressive 2.0 percent, thereby announcing Oyo state as leading in employment creation, surpassing 31 other States in the Federation including the FCT which recorded a 14.1% unemployment rate as at September 26, 2024.

According to the Commissioner, the NBS figure is not surprising because employment in the state has been consistently high.

He said: “Recently, the Oyo State Universal Basic Education Board, OYOSUBEB, announced the employment of 7,000 new staff.

“Two weeks ago, the Oyo State Teaching Service Commission, TESCOM, also announced the employment of 7,500 teachers and 3,000 non-teaching Staff.

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“This is in addition to the 5,000 teachers employed to TESCOM by Gov. Makinde in his first term.

“In the health sector, the state government just concluded the employment process of 375 personnel into the State Hospital Management Board, including medical doctors, nurses, specialist consultants, hospital administrators, pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, medical laboratory scientists, medical laboratory technicians, physiotherapists, and other junior cadre officers.

“And as we speak, the employment of 791 staff into the Oyo State Civil Service Commission is ongoing.”

He said further: “In the same vein, the Seyi Makinde administration has effected the pardoning, reinstatement, and promotion of 1,800 workers.

“In a rare approach to governance, Governor Seyi Makinde had ensured that his performances in all sectors, including people’s welfare and employment surpassed his first four years even when the administration is less than two years into the second term.”