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Tag: Ogun state governor

  • Ex Ogun governor underscores entrepreneurship

    Former Ogun State Governor, Otunba Gbenga Daniel, has appealed to youths to remain focused and be tenacious in pursuing their dreams and entrepreneurship ideas, adding that fortune only favours the brave.

    Daniel spoke at the third annual Young Leaders Entrepreneurship Conference (YOLEC) organised by Sparklight Entrepreneurship Show which held at the Afe Babalola Hall, University of Lagos.

    The event tagged: ‘An entrepreneurial mindset: A solution to the high unemployment rate in Nigeria’ brought together hundreds of students, youth corps members, and unemployed graduates within and outside the university system.

    It featured a seminar, breakout sessions, CV Review, mentoring session and sessions on digital skills and technologies like data science and analytics, cyber-security, cloud computing, block chain.

    Daniel, who praised the organiser for putting the event together, mentored youths on the importance of leadership training and how youths could be financially independent as entrepreneurs.

    “Above all, if you look at the lives of successful entrepreneurs in the world, there is one thing that’s common to them all- perseverance. None of them gave up at any point in time,” he added.

    He noted that challenges and obstacles will always come but successful entrepreneurs are people who never give, but are rather tenacious in achieving their dreams.

    Earlier, a lecturer in the Department of Business Administration and Acting Director, Entrepreneurship and Skills Development Centre, University of Lagos, Dr. Sunday Adebisi, said the University of Lagos has turned all its courses to entrepreneurship.

    He said:”We have started to support entrepreneurship ideas among the students and provide the needed institutional support to grow those ideas. Our desire is to create as many Mark Zukerbrg in UNILAG,” he said.

    He, however, stressed the need to create an eco-system that will make entrepreneurship to thrive in Nigeria as the rising spate of unemployment is mind blogging.

    He said Nigeria is the second country with the highest rate of unemployment in Africa with over 46 million active citizens unemployed or underemployed.

    He called for a national entrepreneurship policies that would guide and give the youths the impetus that their ideas and aspiration are been supported.

    “We need an entrepreneurship starts up bank that will provides soft loans with less encumbrance for five years. This will help to develop the skills ideas and accelerate its benefits within a short period of time because the eco system is favourable,” he said.

  • Buhari, Amosun meet in Aso Rock

    President Muhammadu Buhari on Sunday met behind closed doors with Ogun State Governor, Ibikunle Amosun at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
    Amosun, who won Senate seat during the National Assembly elections in Ogun State, was on Friday suspended by the All Progressives Congress (APC) for anti-party activities.
    Discussion at the closed doors meeting with the President may not be unconnected with the latest suspension.
    Apart from campaigning for the reelection of President Buhari, Amosun has been backing the Ogun State governorship candidate of the Allied Peoples Movement (APM), Adekunle Akinlade, for the 9th March Ogun State governorship election in the state.

    Read also: ACPN denies endorsing Okowa

    Akinlade, before moving to APM, was governorship aspirant on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC) but lost to Dapo Abiodun, who eventually emerged as the APC Governorship candidate for Ogun State.
    But National Headquarters of the APC is solidly behind Abiodun.

  • Rescheduled Elections: Give INEC benefit of doubt, Amosun enjoins Nigerians

    The Ogun State Governor, Senator Ibikunle Amosun has called on Nigerians to exercise patience with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), and give it the benefit of doubt.
    Reacting to the rescheduled Presidential and National Assembly elections, as announced the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), during inspection of some road projects in Sagamu and Ijebu-Ode, he said
    “as disappointed as we are as a nation, we should give them the benefit of doubt, because they said it was to give Nigerians a free, fair and credible election.”
    The governor commended the people of the state for conducting themselves in a civil manner, following the announcement.

    Read also: Election: UN, Intl observers urge INEC to strictly adhere to dates

    Amosun, who inspected ongoing road projects across Ogun East Senatorial district with his Deputy, Chief (Mrs.) Yetunde Onanuga and some members of his cabinet, assured the people that his government will work till the very last day in office.
    On complaints in some quarters that his government neglected the district in project implementation, the governor noted that aside the construction of four flyover bridges, his administration has constructed Ejinrin-Oluwalogbon, Ikangba-Ilese roads in Ijebu-Ode and Oba Erinwole-Sabo road in Sagamu.
    He inspected the Degun, Italapo-Obalende, Balogun Kuku-Oke Aje and Igbeba roads, in Ijebu-Ode, which are in various degrees of completion as well as the ongoing 250-bed modern hospital in Oke-Mosan, Adigbe and car wash-Adatan roads all in Abeokuta, the state capital.

  • Osinbajo, Amosun meet in Aso Rock 

    Vice President Yemi Osinbajo on Thursday evening met behind closed doors with Ogun State Governor, Ibikunle Amosun at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

    The meeting started around 6.10pm when Amosun arrived the Vice President’s office.

    Read Also:Osinbajo restates Nigeria’s commitment to human capital development

    Amosun was part of the nine All Progressives Congress (APC) governors that met President Muhammadu Buhari earlier in the day over faulty primary elections in their states.

    The meeting with Osinbajo was still in progress at the time of filing this report.

    Details Later…

  • Pray for me to end well, Amosun tells Ogun residents

    Pray for me to end well, Amosun tells Ogun residents

    Ogun State Governor Ibikunle Amosun yesterday asked residents to pray for him to end well.

    The governor has about 16 months left to leave office.

    He said the achievements the state had recorded since 2011 were due to God’s benevolence  and support of the people.

    Amosun spoke at the “Uplifting the Aged” programme organised by the office of his wife to mark his 60th birthday at the June 12 Cultural Centre in Abeokuta, the capital.

    The governor said he could not have accomplished so much without their prayers.

    He pledged that the elderly would continue to enjoy his administration’s support and more dividends of democracy to the people.

    Amosun said: “There could not have been any better gift for my birthday than the support I got from the good people of Ogun State. By the help of God and prayers of our people, we can touch every facet of the economy.”

    His wife, Olufunso, who rallied the elderly for the birthday, said her husband “deserves to be celebrated at 60”.

    Mrs Amosun recalled that since her husband became governor, he had been marking his birthdays in low-key by identifying, mainly, with the less privileged, particularly the aged and widows.

    She said it was her contribution to improving the welfare and living standard of the aged and needy.

    According to her, the aged are important and deserve to be catered for.

    Mrs Amosun advised youths to see the welfare of senior citizens as an obligation and a responsibility.

    Over 5,000 people have benefited from the monthly stipends and foodstuff for their upkeep, while the aged also received free medical screening.

     

     

    APC greets governor at 60

    The All Progressives Congress (APC) has congratulated Ogun State Governor Ibikunle Amosun on his 60th birthday.

    In a statement yesterday by its National Publicity Secretary,  Malam Bolaji Abdullahi, the party attested to “the governor’s fitting accolade as the architect of modern Ogun State, who has doggedly implemented his administration’s mission to rebuild the state”.

    The statement added: “In the past six years, as a result of Governor Amosun’s strategic investment in the state’s socio-economy, agriculture and infrastructure, particularly in road and rail transport, Ogun State is fast becoming a choice destination for investors and a business hub in the country.

    “We are proud to identify and celebrate with Governor Amosun, whose sterling performance and achievements have positively impacted on the good people of Ogun State.

    “The party wishes Governor Amosun many more fulfilled, rewarding and healthy years in service of the nation and party as he continues to positively impact the lives of the people.”

     

     

     

  • Ogun state owes N103b – Amosun

    Ogun state owes N103b – Amosun

    The Ogun State Governor, Senator Ibikunle Amosun on Thursday broke his silence on the debt profile of the State.

    Amosun said, contrary to figures being bandied about the opposition, the state owes N103 billion comprising local and foreign debts.

    The Governor disclosed this while addressing teachers at the Arcade ground, Oke-Mosan Governor’s Office, Abeokuta, the state capital during the 2017 edition of World’s Teachers Day.

    He explained that the N103b debt included N48.9 billion inherited from his predecessor, Gbenga Daniel, and a foreign loan of about N40 billion incurred by the state since the days of Olabisi Onabanjo.

    Amosun also justified the recent loan request of $350 from the World Bank, saying it is only rational to take the loan at 1% interest rate in the interest of state development.

    According to him, in a manner akin to the experience of Lagos and Edo states, the loan would be beneficial to his successors as his administration may not access over 10% of the loan before its expiration.

    Amosun said: “clearly, every debt is about 103 billion including foreign and local. Even if you take the foreign loan which was about 40 billion, I didn’t take the loan, our forebears did.

    “If those ones are grants with 0.5%, they are just like ‘dash’, when people are shouting that we are taking loans, World Bank is not stupid, what they probably have is $1billion and they are giving Ogun State alone 35% of that, $350m dollars at 1% or 1.5%.

    “That money is because of love we have for Ogun State, if not, I would have stopped the loan because of these talks, but this is the time, I will not be the administration that will collect this money, at best, we will be given 10% next years because world bank has procedures.

    “Officially, Ogun State is owing little over 70billion, the one that is local that can be ascribed to this administration. How can anybody that is rational see a loan of 1% and you’re saying ‘don’t take’, they clearly do not know, and you can’t give what you don’t have.

    “My predecessor officially said they left N49.8 billion dollars, that was what was left in the handover note if all that we’ve added to it is about $20 billion, can’t you see what we’ve done?”

    He reiterated that he opted to repay the bailout facility for 10 years as against 20 years proposed by the Federal Government because of his financial re-engineering in the state.

  • ‘Traditional institution is vital to development’

    Ogun State Governor Ibikunle Amosun has said traditional institution is a critical segment in the nation’s quest for egalitarian society. He said traditional rulers always work towards creating opportunities for socio-economic development of their communities.

    The Governor stated this at the official installation and presentation of staff of office to Oba Olusegun Oludolapo Ogunye (Ilufemiloye Koko 1), as the new Ojotumoro of Abigi Kingdom.

    He was represented by the Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Chief Jide Ojuko. The event was held at Abigi Comprehensive Grammar School, Abigi in Ogun Waterside Local Government Area.

    Police and other security agents were present to ensure security of people and their properties. Traditional rulers, political stalwarts, dignitaries, family members and well-wishers who dressed gorgeously from across the country were present to rejoice with the Kabiyesi.

    Governor Amosun congratulated the people of Abigi on maintaining peace and tranquillity during the interregnum, adding that their patience had led to the successful completion of events leading to the official installation of the oba.

    “Kabiyesi, to whom much is given, much is expected. I enjoin you to collaborate with other obas within Ijebu Traditional Council and mobilise your subjects for effective discharge of their civic and social responsibilities such as prompt payment of taxes and other levies, ensure peaceful co-existence with others in order to maintain law and order,” Amosun said.

    Speaking at the event, the Awujale of Ijebu land, Oba Sikiru Adetona,  who was represented by the Dagbure of Idowa, Oba Yinusa Adekoya, advised the new monarch to use his wealth of experience as a legal practitioner to transform the community, even as he urged him to put tradition first in the scheme of things in order to have a successful reign.

    In his welcome address, the Chairman of Ogun Waterside Local Government Area Hon. Femi Onanuga, described the Senator Ibikunle Amosun-led administration as people-oriented, adding that the governor’s massive rural development agenda had ensured that dividends of democracy reached every nook and cranny of the state.

    In his speech, Oba Ogunye pledged to serve his people with fear of God, assuring that his tenure would usher in massive development. He urged all sons and daughters of the community at home and in the Diaspora to join hands with him to move the community forward.

  • Osinbajo, Saraki, governors meet in Aso Rock

    Osinbajo, Saraki, governors meet in Aso Rock

    Vice President Yemi Osinbajo on Monday met with the Senate President, Bukola Saraki and some state governors at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

    The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara was also part of the meeting.

    The governors at the closed-door meeting included Ogun State Governor, Ibikunle Amosun, Imo State Governor, Rochas Okorocha, Zamfara State Governor, Abdulaziz Yari, Niger State Governor, Abubakar Sani Bello and Adamawa State Governor, Jubrilla Bindow.

    President Muhammadu Buhari left Abuja on Monday for Morocco to attend the 22nd Conference of the Parties (COP) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), also known as COP-22, in Marrakech.

    Before Buhari’s trip out of the country, Saraki had met with him three different times within one week over his request for approval to get $29.9 billion loan.

    The Senate had recently rejected Buhari’s approval request for the loan.

    It also described the 2017 to 2019 Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) forwarded by President Buhari for approval as “empty.”

    The MTEF is yet to be approved by the Senate.

    At the end of the meeting with Osinbajo on Monday, Saraki simply told State House correspondents: “Am sure the VP will issue a statement. But nothing of great alarm. It’s all for good governance, inclusion and collaboration with all arms. The states are here, national assembly executives just came up with ideas on how to make things work even better, that’s all.”

    No official statement on the meeting has been issued at the time of filing this report.

  • Accountability will take Nigeria out of recession – Amosun

    Accountability will take Nigeria out of recession – Amosun

    The Ogun State Governor, Ibikunle Amosun on Tuesday said that the quickest way out of the recession in the country is accountability.

    He pointed out that everything will collapse if all Nigerians in different fields are not held accountable with what they do.

    The governor spoke on the topic ‘Accountability, A collective Responsibility’ during the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN) 46th Annual Accountants’ Conference in Abuja.

    The governor said: “If we have to quickly get out of the recession we found ourselves, we all must be accountable.

    “If we are not going to be held responsible for our actions, then everything will collapse.

    “We must be ready to adhere to world best practices.” He added
    Noting that the ICAN has been up and doing, he pointed out that not all Nigerians have been following the accountability norm.

    Presently, he said that the private sector is doing more accountability than the public sector.

    Even though Nigeria is facing tough times, he said that Nigerians must be ready to face the challenges.