Tag: Oyebanji

Former member of the House of Representatives and chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Bimbo Daramola, spoke with Assistant Editor ERIC IKHILAE on the two years of Oyebanji Administration in Ekiti State and expectations about more dividends of democracy.

The Governor of Ekiti State, Biodun Oyebanji is two years old in office. In what areas has he positively impacted the state?

I think Governor Biodun Abayomi Oyebanji of Ekiti State has provided leadership in real terms over the last two years.

We are in a position to talk about this because we have seen what people have done in the past and outside of our state over this period.

When people go to the polls to put their personal sovereignty in the hand of anybody, they have expectations. And these expectations border on life and death.

They are expecting that before the end of the four-year term, we  should be able to find out, just as the Americans would say: has our lives been better for it?

So, the question I am asking every Ekiti person at this point in time is: has your life been better for it since the last two years that you have invested in voting Governor Biodun Abayomi into office?

For me, I will says absolutely, the lives of the people of Ekiti is better for it. Some may want to dissect it and talk about infrastructure, human development and all of that. I would agree that those are indexes that we must look out for

We must also look out for other factors.

I believe strongly that every leadership or government would be rated based on the level of sensitivity that such leader exhibits or shows. Leadership implies that you should be able to consider how your time in office affects the lives of the less privileged, the lives of the young people, the lives of the people who are beleaguered, and all of that.

And, of course, for our example in Ekiti State, I believe that Governor Biodun Oyebanji has done reasonably well.

In what areas do you think he has made positive impacts so far?

In the area of investment in human capital, I know too well that in the past two years, this governor had invested substantially, not only in the training and retraining of the civil servants, he has also invested in our state’s owned institutions, including the university and related academic institutions.

Only recently, maybe like two days ago, and this is like the fourth time, he had a pay out of N3.9billion in pensions and gratuities to citizens who had served the state at the prime of their lives. What bothers me is that in Nigeria we are too casual when we see things that have beyond provisional dimension.

If you have a 95-year old man or 97-year old man like mine, who had spent 40, 30, 35 years of his life in our state and he has something to look forward to at the end of his time in service, a governor, who is conscionable knows that he should not withhold  their pensions and gratuities.

The question to ask is that: how come he (Oyebanji) is paying areas of pensions and gratuities in the first place?

I had also been sensitive and alive. I spoke about leadership being sensitive and all of that. Do you know that for some of these people, the ultimate satisfaction they want in life is that day that they will collect that pay cheque and say thank God my career has ended on a glowing note.

This governor, on a softer side, said: ‘I don’t want publicity, I don’t even want to be celebrated for that. I am just living up to the responsibility of my office.’

He paid N3.9b and this is like the fourth time he is paying those gratuities and pensions, not only to Local Government people, but also to state employees, who had put in 35 years.

To what extent has the governor improved on security in Ekiti State?

Not only that, let’s come to the issue of security. You would recollect that about five months ago, two of our Kabiyesis (traditional rulers) were killed by bandits. And, you know this governor’s style, without making noise about it, he picked up the gauntlet and proceeded to Abuja to harvest contacts and relationships.

Within two or three days, the President assented, the Inspector General of Police assented, the Chief of Army Staff assented to the request and they deployed people on the ground in Ekiti State, working with the Amotekun structure and the local workforce. And today, we can say that our state is relatively safer for it.

*Has the governor improved on the road infrastructure in your state?

In the area of road infrastructure, he has also done well. Let people go and verify all that I am saying. Let them go there.

In 2014 I was the head of Dr. Fayemi’s campaign. I was moving all over the state at that time. There was stretch of road that was not in a good shape. The road is called Obisesan/Ala road. In 2014 the road was like a foot path. But in 2024, Governor Oyebanji has opened up that place. And today, I have been told that there are not less than 15 or 20 of such roads.

I am aware of the one he has done between Itapa, Omu and Ijelu. I travelled on that road recently.

On the issue of electricity, for the last 20 years, in Omuo Ekiti in Ekiti East and the place they call Ekamefa, Epole Ilero, Ikogosi, Erijiyan among others communities in South Western part of the state, no body who is 20 years old could say he/she had seen electricity light.

But things have changed within the last one year.

If you go to Ikogosi now, the warm spring and related facilities have been concessioned to be managed by private operators. If you go there now you will think you are in the Bahamas. It is managed by private sector because of maximum productivity. It has been shown remarkably well in this country that government has no business in business.

What has the governor done in the areas of agriculture and youth empowerment?

*In the agriculture sector, he is empowering the youths. I am aware that the government acquired a large piece of land around Itapaji Yemero, known for its very supra fertile land and he has encouraged about 1000 young people to be cultivating the land.

The governor had tilled the ground, provide the youths with improved seedlings and fertilizer.

I am also aware that less than two weeks ago, the governor personally visited these farmsteads in Ipole Iloro and other places, talking about conviction.

I guarantee you that by this time next year, there will be remarkable food security in Ekiti State.

I have political capital in Ekiti State. I am not joking. By reason of what people know me for and by reason of what God had given me the opportunity to do when I was a member of the House of Representatives. I am not one who plays to the gallery. For everything that I have said about the Governor Oyebanji’s administration, people should fact check me.

It is a growing practice among politicians to abandon inherited projects once they assume office. Is that the case in Ekiti?

Believing that government is a continuum, this governor has also not abandoned the projects he inherited from past administrations. One of which is the airport project. I never believed in the airport project from day one. I wrote against it. I was vehemently against it. But, he (the governor) said what do we do with the investment that we have  put into it. That was what he asked me when as asked him if the his government will continue to throw money at the project.

He asked me if it was wise to allow what had been spent on it to go to waste. That is a governor who is mindful about every penny of Ekiti State.

What are those things that you admire in Governor Oyebanji?

What appeals to me most about him is his incredible capacity to reconcile contending factors.

I was a foundation member of the APC. I started as a member of the ACD, AC, ACN and then APC. I went to the parliament as a member of the ACN.

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We were those at the seventh National Assembly that maintained the base of the triangle for the APC.

At some point, the immediate administration in the state did not want to see us. Myself, Oyetunde Ojo, Senator Dayo Adeyeye, my egbon, Senator Ganiyu , Obafemi Ojudu and a number of people. We were practically hounded and hunted out of town. But within the time he came into office and now, he has reconciled everybody. The heating and reconciliation were done by the man I call a man with the spirit of togetherness, in the person of the incumbent governor.

Today, Governor Biodun Oyebanji has reconciled virtually everybody. Senator Opeyemi Bamidele is on the table, Ojudu is on the table, uncle Dayo is on the table, Oye Ojo is on the table , Bimbo Daramola is on the table, and many more.

Up until the governor came, there was a political fatua placed on all of us. But today, is it not incumbent on us, having seen what works, for us to begin to say, okay, it makes a lot of sense to allow this man to run out his tenure in peace.

Another part of this man that interests me is his frugal nature. He is not extravagant and he lead by example. The is a governor who has not acquired a new governor’s fleet. He has been using the one he inherited. If he had bought it it would have cost the state not less than N50million in treated armoured vehicles.

The governor said no, that is not my priority. I met his wife on the plane one day and I said, madam you are travelling with only two aides. I expected to see a large entourage, but she said her husband warned her that it was important that they be sensitive to the people and the environment where we lead.

This man has been in government for two years, and he has not celebrated his birthday ostentatiously. He does not have any programme on the television to advertise him. I once volunteered to facilitate his appearance on television, but he declined, saying ‘let the Ekiti people and our works advertise us,’

Sometime ago, he had an assignment Imo State, another in one of the South South states, a third one in Lagos and another one in Abuja. Somebody that I know offered him an aircraft, a private jet. But, he respectfully declined and told the man ‘how many Ekiti people will I tell that I am not using their money to fly private jet?’

He has been to Abuja a number of times and 95 percent of those trips are driven by development and partnerships. He has been abroad twice in two years. If you see his convoy, the vehicles are not more than four; very Spartan.

This is a man who has seen it all a PHD holder, a former lecturer in the university, a former Chief of Staff, a former Secretary to the State Government (SSG), a former commissioner in the state.

What do you think informed Governor Oyebanji’s approach to governance?

I think his approach is driven by the fact that, at a young age, he had the privilege of being the youngest  member of the Ekiti State Creation Committee and he was the secretary. Maybe he was able have a sneak preview into the vision of our forefathers, who fought for the creation of Ekiti State. Maybe that is why he is so modest and his modesty is reeking all over the place.

At a pint in our state, the royalty and the government were in crisis. We were suspended. At a point in time Baba Afe Babalola was not on the same page with the government. At a point in time, Chief Wole Olanipekun was not in tandem with the government. If a state could be that gifted to have the likes of Baba Afe Babalola, and then Chief Wole Olanipekun, Femi Falana and  others and yet we can’t distil values from them. But today, all of them are on the  page. Only recently, the Senate Leader himself, Michael Opeyemi Bamidele declared, this is somebody who would have been another gubernatorial hopeful in 2006, he said no, he was not ruling. That would be the umpteenth that he would be saying that.

So, you will expect that there are what these people have seen in this man.

And for me as a person, this is like the new day of Ekiti politics. I think this governor is going to birth a new political order that will be accommodating and all embracing, because it is only in the moment of peace and environment of amity that we can savour the delight and opportunities that are inherent in our state.

*What areas should he focus on in the remaining part of his tenure?

In the next two years, I would expect that the governor will step up and improve on whatever he is doing now in infrastructure, human capital development and reconciling people and all that. I think he has done well with reconciliation because of what we have seen.

Recall that Ekiti State is one of the few states where the youths did not protest during the #EndBadGovernance protest.vWhat that suggets is endorsement. You must have secured the trust of the people before they say no, no, we won’t go to this street. And that was not because he induced anybody. Don’t forget that young people in Ekiti are very, very critical. They are cerebral. They know what they want.

So, if anybody had sufficiently communicated, engaged enough to secure the buy-in of virtually all the catchments in Ekiti State, I believe that that should be an incentive for him to deliver much more. And I look forward to the next two years as years of consolation on every one thing that he had done over the last two years.

My wish and prayer are that since he represents the future that we want and he has adopted the TEAM (Together Everyone Achieve More) principle, I expect that more roads would be tarred, both in Ado Ekiti and outside, more sensitivity will be deployed into leadership as he has demonstrated over the past two years.

And, I have no doubt in my mind that we would be better for it. Ekiti today, we are back in reconning in terms of his achievements and Ekiti has been rated as one of the most peaceful states. The only thing a want to added is that we should continue to give this governor the support he needs so that he can deliver much more and give us the kind of state that not only our forefathers envisioned, but that we, the present generation and the future generation desire.

Ekiti State Governor Biodun Oyebanji spoke with reporters in Ado-Ekiti, the state capital, on his achievements, style of governance and how his administration is actualising its six-point agenda in ensuring a shared prosperity for the state, Correspondent RASAQ IBRAHIM reports

Your Excellency, you have done much in two years with little resources coming to the state. We will like to know how much your administration has borrowed to finance these projects and the state of the Internally Generated Revenue ?

Since we came into office, we have not embarked on any major borrowing other than the monthly overdraft we usually take from banks to pay salaries before the federal allocation comes into our account. We have not borrowed a dime from any financial institution to run the state in the last two years. Where are we getting the money? There has been an increment in the revenue allocation from the Federal Government, and also there has been a major increase in our IGR. We met our IGR at about N600 million per month, but I can tell you that as of today, we are doing N1.5 billion per month and it keeps increasing every month.

Before now Ekiti has always been in the news for the bad reasons politically. It was one day one crisis over struggle for political power but since you came in, the hitherto existing enmity among the policians who saw politics as slugfest has vanished. How have you been able to achieve this?

As a servant leader, and every leader has a choice of how he wants to lead the people. I am an apostle of what they call soft power and leadership. It means you know that you have the power but you are careful not to misuse it. It means empathy and compassion. When God entrusted this office into my hands, I made up my mind that the only thing I will do on this seat, is to serve Ekiti people in a way and manner that will bring development into this state. One of the basic ingredients of development is peace and I promise myself that as long as it depends on me, I will be at peace with everyone. I believe that politics ended after my swearing in as the Governor of the state and that day I took an oath to protect the constitution of this country and to serve the people regardless of political affiliation. As the Governor, I see all of us as the indigene of Ekiti not belonging to party A ,B or C. I also note that an average human being deserves to be respected and as a leader you need to humble yourself and respect your people; you must show compassion and it will be very easy for them to walk the path of development with you. So, in the last two years, we have exhibited the highest sense of humility, compassion, empathy and transparency. I know that if the led trust their government, it will be very easy to lead them and I try as much as possible to be truthful in anything I say. If something is within my power to do, I will do it and if I cannot do it, I will come back to explain to Ekiti people why I have not been able to do it. So, we have exhibited trust as an ingredient of our politics. The people know that when their Governor makes a promise, it may be late, it will be done. To all leaders in the state, they are critical stakeholders and I need their help in one way or the other and I run to all of them for advice. Let me say that I don’t go to them as a politician, I go to them as Governor of the state and that makes it easy for them to relate with me. That is what is responsible for the peace we have in this state. As a leader, I have chosen the path of peaceful coexistence with everybody  irrespective of political affiliations. It is a choice I have made, it has its own consequences and sacrifices but as long as the strategy translates to the development of our people, it makes me happy.

What are those consequences you faced with this your decision as mentioned?

The price of people not accustomed to this style. You see some of our people telling me that I am not using my power. Some elements within my political party are also not comfortable with this posture. There have been a lot of ripples within APC with the choices I have made, but like I told them, it is in the interest of Ekiti people. We don’t play politics with everything; there is time for politics and governance. So far, so good, I have the backing and support of critical leaders in the party and party members are getting used to this style. Don’t forget it is a new style in our politics in Ekiti and some feathers might be ruffled, but I thank God that our people are getting used to it.

In recent times, you have engaged in a series of town hall meetings across the three senatorial district. What is the feedbacks you are getting from the people?

I don’t know if I am in the best position to assess myself, but so far so good, what we have seen in those places we have gone to is that people are happy with us, people have shown appreciation to the little we have been able to do. The town hall meeting is not new, it is a carryover from the former administration, and that speaks to the continuity agenda. But what is important for me is that we believe strongly that as a government, you don’t just sit in the office and rule over the people, There is need for engagement and also ask the people about their own perspective what they will like to see in the budget, because government is about the people. Let me say that what makes me happy about the meetings is that the last one we just ended, people came out to tell us that last year we came here, we requested for some things and they have been done; so that tells me it is not a waste of time. They mentioned about four to five things they requested for last year, that we have done. Even though we have not done all. Also, when we were campaigning, we went to the people to ask for their votes, it will not be too much for us to go back to them now that we are in government. In fairness to the people, they are our employer, they put us here through their votes, there is need for constant engagement and discussion to even feel their pulse about their government. It serves two purposes- to get their input and to gauge their views on how well we are doing. I can say on both counts, it is worth the while and I will continue to do that regularly.

There have been waves of endorsement for second term by different categories of people in the state including leaders of the opposition parties. When will you respond to all these people calling for you to contest again in 2026?

I am a highly spiritual person and the Bible says the race is not for the swift nor the battle for the strong. My future is in the hands of God, but be that as it may, I am extremely grateful to those clamouring and wish we continue . I see it as a vote of confidence in our administration. It also put a lot of burden on us to do more, because apparently we must have done some things that make them to say we should continue; so we must avoid a situation where people will wake  up tomorrow and say they don’t want us again. We are just at the midterm of this administration and it is nice to hear all those things but I don’t want to be distracted and I will continue to do things that will make them to say that. But our party has a process of electing who carries the flag of the party, the party will take a decision and whatever decision they take, it is okay by me. I thank God for this opportunity and my future is in the hands of God.

But there are strong feelers that some prominent APC members claiming to be close to the villa are gearing up to vy the party against you. Are you worried by this?

People that know me will tell you that I don’t get worried about things like that. This reason why I am not worried is that the seat of the governorship of Ekiti state is open to all Ekiti indigenes that are qualified to aspire. I am not worried at all. When the time for politics comes, we will play it but for now I don’t want to be distracted.

No doubt, you will be commissioning some projects during this second year anniversary, we will like to know the state of work as regards the Ekiti State Cargo airport?

The Ekiti Airport is a work in progress. I think we are expecting the Ministry of Aviation and other regulatory agencies  to give us the final certification. They have come here twice, and told us to do some adjustments which we have done and once the team comes here next month by the grace of God , and  a clean bill from the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority(NCAA), Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN)  and other regulatory agencies is given, we are good to go. The airport is ready and I am a perfectionist and when it comes to air travels, safety is key. I don’t want to play politics with passengers, safety. And there are many airports operating in the country today that are not as good as the one we have here, that is the truth. By the time Ekiti airport begins operations, you will be proud of what we have done in that place; it is going to be one of the best in the country. Hopefully, if we get the necessary approvals, we have two airlines that we are talking to and they are ready to begin operations. We are also trying to resolve the issue of accommodation for members of staff from the regulatory agencies, they have started posting workers here. Once that is sorted, everything will be in place and I have high hope that the airport will begin operation before the end of the year because all the physical structures have been completed. The control tower is there and of course the car park and the rest are almost done. Let me say that I am extremely grateful to our revered Aare Afe Babalola (SAN) for his support on the airport project because he has really assisted us beyond our expectation..

You have made a declaration of paying N70,000 new minimum wage for workers but there are fears this might affect the pace of development in the state, How are you going about this ?

Like I said earlier, I want to tell the truth all the time and I am not here to do things so that people will clap for me. The minimum wage is a law signed by the President and ratified by the National Assembly. It is a law and I swore to an oath to uphold the law of this country, so I don’t have to make a formal statement in respect to that, that is the truth; I don’t want to play politics with the minimum wage. There is a committee we have put in place that is working with the labour leaders, They have gone far and I don’t want to preempt what will be the outcome of the committee. The only thing I can tell our people is we need to be extremely patient and we should not follow the multitude. If we are going to pay minimum wage in Ekiti, we must start with everybody, I don’t want a situation whereby, we pay state workers alone and neglect  local government workers and teachers, I am not going to be part of that. My charge to the committee is that if they are starting tomorrow, all the  workers in Ekiti state including pensioners must benefit from it. I want a comprehensive report on this, but I can say I am paying the core civil servants and people will clap for me but others  like the teachers and local government workers and the pensioners will have been left out. On whether it is going to affect the infrastructure development in the state, we have to make a choice and like I said , next year budget is on welfare, it is a priority for us. But you need to also consider the percentage of people that will benefit from this new minimum wage and the generality of Ekiti people, we must strike a balance. So, we will do it in such a manner that neither side will suffer- Workers will be happy and also we develop the state and those not in the employment of government will be happy too. We must distribute the cake in a way and manner that both the public service employees, those in the informal sector, and our senior citizens are happy and the committee is working hard in this regard and closing their discussion. I don’t want to join the multitude. I am driven by doing the right thing at all times and like I told you , I am an apostle of soft power which is  about compassion and empathy. I don’t make reckless statements. I can assure Ekiti workers that they will be happy and they know that there is nothing I told them that I have not done. If we pay minimum wage , it is going to increase the purchasing power of the workers , these same workers will go  to the market, pay rents, patronize  the artisans and among others, the money will stay in the state and by the time we start paying, those people providing those services will be positively impacted. That is why we must grow the informal sector so that the person selling will have enough money to stock their shops. We have put in place measures to ensure they benefit from our programmes and that is why we have not owed deductions because those things as small as they are, they make big impact in the economy.

Now that you are at the midterm are you planning to carry out cabinet reshuffle in line with the Key Performance Indicators you set for your cabinet members?

We have the Office of Transformation, Service and Delivery (OTSD ) and they have carried out assessment of members of the executive council twice . And I have the reports, but  I am a very fair person. I know ministries that we have supported, I know those we have not been able to support. We are in midterm now, they will do another assessment, which will make it three and after that I will sit down with the DG of OTSD , to look at the performances of members of Excos and if there are those that need help , we will help. And if there are those we cannot help, they will have to leave the cabinet, there is no doubt about that. I will be guided by facts and whoever that does not measure up to the threshold will leave the government.

Your administration has invested heavily in agriculture most importantly the ‘Bring Our Youth to Agric’ Initiative,what are the plans of government in ensuring  these programmes are of huge benefit to Ekiti?

It will shock you that those people that are coming to the state to park our yams and other produce are those that gave our farmers money to plant for them; when the Commissioner for Investment told me this, I wept because our farmers don’t have access to capital. In the beginning of the farming season, those who have money will come to Ekiti and give our farmers money to plant and collect the proceeds later and just gave them peanuts. You can’t tell someone who has invested in a business not to make profit  and that is why I said we are looking for money for them through cooperative societies , so that they can go to their cooperatives , take loan, plant and  be in charge of prices when it is time for them to sell. But, we are turning that curve now by the grace of God, and by next year we will do more. Part of the problems also is that most of our farmers have not joined cooperatives and it takes a lot of advocacy to change that orientation. The Bring Back our Youth to Agriculture is one program I am very proud of and I must commend the Commissioner for Agriculture and Food Security  and the state investment promotion agency. When we started the program, people thought it would not be possible; we asked our youths to register and we trained them in partnership with a private sector. We started with 930 youths in six clusters across the state and cumulatively they have cultivated more than 2,000 hectares of all sort of crops ranging from maize to cassava to yam to beans to soya, to vegetables among others. I took it upon myself to go see those farms and what they have done, I was shocked. But there are still challenges we need to confront and as I speak to you, there are people who are ready to put down their money to offtake but my issue is that I don’t want those products to be taken outside Ekiti State. Our plan is to offtake, keep and release to the market next year when there is shortage but there is a challenge of where we are going to store them. The Silos we could have used was vandalized during #EndSARS protest, we even engaged the person in charge of the place to see how we can work together to rebuild, the person said the manufacturers have to do it themselves and they have not done it and we are nearing harvest season. The fears from those in government is that if we store up anywhere in town , they can be looted. Should we sell and let our farmers have the money but it will defeat the aim of the project because it is to crash prices of these items in Ekiti State. We have made up our mind that next year, we will continue to build warehouses and silos so that we can store our farm produce.

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Are you comfortable with the security situation in the state ?

Well, am I comfortable ? No; Has there been improvement ? Yes. Going forward, we will continue to improve but unfortunately I can’t discuss at length on this issue. I can assure you that there has been remarkable improvement except pockets of attacks on the soft targets like kidnappings, and herders crisis with farmers. We are in constant discussion with the security chiefs and if you observe lately the issue we faced in Ado-Ekiti over killings of people including PoS agents sometimes ago, have been nipped in the bud. I must use this medium to commend the security chiefs in Ekiti, they are working together in unison. I hope Ekiti example is what others will study, because they are working together and sharing intelligence and this has really helped us in the state.

What is your administration’s plans for the people of the sate on the issue of electricity which is important to the growth of the economy ?

We have done the electricity audit of the state, the way we are now, we are off the national grid; we get electricity from neighboring states and the federal government is trying to put in place two other sub-stations in Ilupeju-Ekiti and Ijesa Isu and they told me it is going to take two years to finish it.

The only one we have is the 33kva and there is a limit to how far it can radiate electricity. So, take electricity from Kwara, Kogi, and Osun states. When these states experience downturn, they switch us off. On a daily basis, the number of megawatt coming to Ekiti is less than eight, and that is why we came up with the idea of the Independent Power Plant (IPP) to increase the quantity of electricity available to Ekiti people. Since we got to office, the Federal Ministry of Power has commended Ekiti as one of the states if not best that has opened up rural areas to electricity. We have connected more than thirty communities that have not had electricity for over ten to fifteen years. But, when you do that too, a community that has no electricity for ten years, once you energize their transformer, it blows off. The solution is for us to start generating electricity for ourselves, that is the most sustainable solution and we are talking to about three vendors. But, before that is done, we manage the 33KVA sub-station we have here and also put pressure on the Federal Government to complete those ones being built in Ilupeju-Ekiti and Ijesa-Isu communities. We are also exploring the possibilities of renewable energy but this requires a lot of study and once it is done it is going to the combination of renewable energy and the hydro we have in the state. What I can tell you is that electricity in the state has improved because of the new electricity law we have signed; it has bailed us out from the monopoly of the BEDC which has led to the increase in the number hours we are having electricity and with that law, I believe by next year, we will  witness appreciable improvement in power supply to our people.