“He explained that during the time of Bola Ige, “the government bought equipment for us and we paid back. The difference is that only Aregbesola has given us interest-free loan in the history of this state.”
 
Notwithstanding the challenges the Osun State Government is experiencing in the area of paying workers’ salaries, the success story of the loan scheme evolved by Governor Aregbesola-led administration last year in order to boost the economy of the state is worthy of note. The initiative aimed at moving the state away from being a civil service state to an economically-viable one through the revolving loans.
This is the view of the General Manager, Osun Micro-Credit Agency, Mr. Dayo Babaranti, who explained to Southwest Report that “the agency has extended credit facilities to 133 small and medium enterprises, 800 co-operative societies; 9,955 individuals across the 30 local government areas and the Area Office in Modakeke.
He said: “The agency came into being in June, last year and was launched at Freedom Park Osogbo where the people were told of the enormous opportunities accruable to them through the interest-free loan.
“The government has warned that nobody must be left out in the programme. One good thing is that we still have the opportunity of accessing the N2 billion micro-small and medium enterprises development fund from Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
“So, we have accessed N1.675 billion from that money. In fact, the CBN has sent a delegation to inspect what we are doing and they confirmed from all the beneficiaries of the loan that we actually disbursed the money.
“The belief of the government is that micro-finance banks are closer to the petty traders and that was why they said we should use micro-finance banks because the people who are in need of the money are those people selling pepper, foodstuffs and the likes.
“Secondly, our own demand is not as cumbersome as orthodox commercial banks. People are very appreciative of the gesture and more so, it is interest-free. When the programme was launched, some people did not believe it. It is unlike the Islamic banking system which shares profit equally with the customer. In this case, the government is saying, use this money for one year, don’t pay any interest; just pay back the principal. You can see that it is rare.
“The interest element on this money that the beneficiary should have paid is a cost borne by the government. The state government underwrites the interest just to alleviate poverty and take burden off the citizens of Osun State.
“The zero-interest of the facility has forced all micro-finance banks in the state to review downward the hitherto high interest rates to borrowers. The participating micro-finance banks have also employed more staff to manage the funds under the scheme.
“We have placed priority on the co-operative groups for the disbursement of the loans under this programme because they know themselves. We have one year, three years and five years tenures, among others. There is nowhere in the word that they will give you N100, 000 and ask you to pay N100, 000 back after one year. That is why this scheme is far better than the so-called interest-free Islamic banking system. In this scheme, nobody is sharing profit. Your profit is gross to you, just pay back the principal.
“The state government is responsible for our salaries. It is an agency of government. We have a full room that contains the form of applicants.”
Speaking on the impacts of the programme, Babaranti said it has improved employment. The SMEs we give are those that are manufacturing and or producing different type of things. As a result of increment in their capital, they have employed extra hands.
“People who have benefited from this programme are paying tax which improved the state’s internally-generated revenue (IGR). Most of those motorcyclists have learnt one trade or the other. It was during the documentation that we discovered this. It was because of lack of capital to buy instrument and start their own businesses that turned them to street boys, okada riders and people who foment trouble. This has also led to the reduction in crime rate as we have given money to those classes of people to start their own businesses.
One of the beneficiaries, who is also the General Manager, Lawod Metal Limited, Mr. Funso Olawoye, said: “We benefited from Osun Micro-Credit Agency. It has enabled us to improve on our productions as more workers were also employed. Babaranti, however, commended the beneficiaries for being committed to the repayment guidelines and procedures.
“There was a moratorium of six months during which we will begin paying the loan; which is from this month. It is interest-free and a three-year term. I have procured more equipment with the money.”
He explained that during the time of Bola Ige, “the government bought equipment for us and we paid back. The difference is that only Aregbesola has given us interest-free loan in the history of this state.
“We must praise Governor Aregbesola and at the same time we want to urge the government to expand the scope on this free-interest loan. We want them to patronise local manufacturers and pay us on time,” he said.
On the number of employees in his company, Olawoye said: “We have over 50 personnel that are permanent in this company and we hope to increase it to 100 if there is fund to increase production.”
Recounting his experience, Director Alaral Technical, who is the state chairman of Nigeria Association of Small and Medium Produce Spare Parts Mr Ali Alabi said: “Personally, I have benefited from the micro-credit loan and I know many of our members also benefited, particularly in the N220 billion Federal Government SME’s funds.
“Incidentally, N2 billion of that belonged to Osun State which the state government, through the Micro-Credit Finance have disbursed.

“We used to have what we call Small-Scale Industrial Credit Scheme, which was inherited from the old Oyo State. The state government also partners with Bank of Industry (BOI) for SME funding which some of our members also benefited from.
“The most recent is the intervention fund by the CBN released for SME which is particularly of interest to me because it is interest-free. It is not interest-free at the national level but the Osun State Government decided to pay the interest. It was disbursed with no interest to all those that applied through the SME.
“I can authoritatively say that the interest is written off by the state government and that is a very big plus. Before now, we have been clamouring for fund for development with generous interest rate but this one is a good one. We have been asking the Federal Government and the BoI to reduce the rate of SME development fund to 2% or 2.5% that is obtainable in the Southeast Asia, India and China. The maximum interest rate for SME is between 2% and 2.5%.
“The tenure given to us is a good one; it ranges between five years and 15 years. There is nothing you want to do with that money that you will not make it on the long run.
“One, the interest rate is very low. Two, the moratorium is there. Then the tenure is also long. That is what we have been clamouring for in Nigeria. If we have to compete with the developed countries such as China and India, our funding must be competitive.
“Though the money has helped us a lot, the major problem we experience currently is that the economy is so dull. We pray that the change in government will change the tide of things because the situation is very terrible.
According to Alabi, Osun State remains a civil service state. We supply spare parts to Nigeria Breweries, Cocoa Products Industry (CPI) in Ede and many other places.
Commenting on whether the state could be moved to an industrialised one away from civil service state, he said: “It is possible. Look at CPI Ede, when it was functioning, not less than 1,000 people were benefiting indirectly from it. The area was like market every day. In fact, people used to come from Ghana to buy ashes there. They employed not less than 500 workers. They have some contractors which I am one of them. We supply spare parts and also carry out repairs for them.”
THE NATION

The Osogbo, the capital of Osun, will be agog on Aug. 21 as devotees of Osun goddess, tourists, cultural enthusiasts and indigenes, celebrate the grand finale of the Osun-Osogbo festival.
The 2015 edition began on Aug. 11 with the clearing of the traditional paths called “Iwo Popo’’.
The grand finale will witness a votary maid (Arugba Osun), going to the river with a calabash filled with antiquities to worship the goddess of the river on Aug. 21.
Osogbo town and the Palace of Ataoja of Osogbo had been bustling with activities in preparation for the grand finale of the Osun-Osogbo festivity.
MTN Nigeria, Alomo Bitters, and Nigerian breweries sponsor of the event were seen putting finishing touches to boast festival.
A trader in Osogbo, Mr Tunde Akinboboye, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that “he makes more money during the period with his colleagues’’.
Akinboboye said he made the money from tourists who come to Osogbo to witness the Arugba Osun as she goes to the groove on Aug. 21.
Mr Victor Remilekun, a staff of Gani Olaoluwa Hotel, told NAN that hotels in Osogbo were fully booked.
Remilekun said tourists from other countries and government officials across the country had booked almost every hotel in the town including theirs.
He said the event would add value to the socio-economy lives of the people as tourists and people from the state and country troop into the Osun.
“I know the activities will create avenue for informal workers to make money during the festival,’’ Remilekun said.
A security operative, Mr Fagboyinbo Abiodun, in Dada Estate in Osogbo told NAN that the police had been on 24 hour surveillance before, during and after the Osun-Osogbo festival.
According to him, everything is in top gear and security personnel will be dispatched to every nook and cranny of the groove and the entire state to fight crime.
He advised criminals to flee the state.
The Ataoja of Osogbo had said that the 2015 festivity would be promising and colourful as well as add more cultural and socio-economic value on the people.
The state government has declared Aug. 20 as public holidays for the traditional festivity of the Isese celebration.
The Ayo Olopon contest (Native ayo contest) comes up Aug. 20, while the final holds on Aug. 21 and Aug. 22.
The Osun-Osogbo Trade Fair will be closed as the festival rolls off for 2015.
THE GUARDIAN

Osogbo is agog with activities as the festival holds. Tourists are flooding the ancient town to witness this 600 hundred year old festival. The fiesta has evolved over the years to become one of the most anticipated celebrations in Nigeria and the world. It is held in August and commemorated to renew the pact Osun people had with their deity.

It is a fun filled and enthralling event that leaves tourists desiring for more. They should be prepared for a two week idyllic adventure as it features key activities. Jovago.com, Africa’s No 1 hotel booking portal highlight some of these joy-springing traditional performances to look forward to.

Procession to Osun River

Natives believe the Osun River has healing and spiritual powers. This mystery adds to the frenzied atmosphere of the festival thus, everyone looks forward to this trek.

The procession starts from the palace of the Ataoja to the Osun Sacred Grove where the river is located. It is led by the Ataoja of Osogbo and Arugba-virgin maiden. The Arugba, a female that has not been deflowered becomes the cynosure of all eyes as she carries out the responsibility of carrying the rituals meant for the Osun goddess. At the river, tourists pour out their desires to the river god and it is believed their wish will be granted.

Oloju-Merindinlogun 

The Atupa Oloju-Merindinlogun, meaning lamp, is a significant feature during the celebration. The lamp is 642 years old and has 16 points. It is  lit on the 6th day of the festival from 7 am to 7 pm with the Ataoja, his wives, Ifa priest, Osun priest, and traditional chiefs walking circles around it thrice while dancing to the admiration of the people and tourists.

Iwopopo

The Iwopopo or street cleansing is one of the early activities of the festival. The people come out in their numbers to pay respect to the Ataoja of Osogbo as well as pray for peaceful co-existence in town. The programme is spiced by musical performances.

Competitions

The festival has a handful of competitions lined up to entertain visitors. These  are mainly traditional games.

Children are also part of the fun as games are organised to encourage them appreciate culture. It is in four divisions namely dancing, drumming, and Yoruba spelling bee.

BLOGPOST

The Controller of Nigerian Prisons Service in Osun, Mr Tajudeen Olalekan, has urged the state government to construct a prison yard in Osogbo.
Olalekan made this remarks when he visited the Speaker of Osun House of Assembly, Mr Najeem Salaam, in Osogbo on Wednesday.
He said it was unfortunate that there was no prison yard in the state capital, stressing that building one in Osogbo would complement and decongest the Ile-Ife and Ilesa prisons.
According to him, it will also assist the command in the improvement on the existing facilities for the use of prison inmates and their trial.
He called on the state government to grant the request as fast as possible.
In his response, Salaam said the government had started work on what it would take to build a prison yard in Osogbo.
He said the construction of the prison was included in the 2013 budget but it could not be done due to paucity of funds.
Salaam said six acres of land had been allocated for the construction of the prison, adding that when the fund was available, the project would begin.
“Although, we are not prisoners in Osun, there is the need for us to have a prison yard in the state capital for the rehabilitation of incarcerated convicts,’’ he said.
(NAN)

The Osun State House of Assembly has said that it was untrue that it received a petition prior to the one sent by a serving judge in the state, Justice Folahanmi Oloyede, against Governor Rauf Aregbesola for alleged financial mismanagement.
Speaker of the Assembly, Najeem Salaam, stated this at the plenary session on Monday, August 17, 2015, in response to the claim made recently by the publicity director of the Civil Coalition for Emancipation of Osun State, Seun Adeoye, on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily that the group had sent a petition to the House earlier and was ignored.
Oloyede sent a petition to the Assembly calling for the impeachment of the governor and his deputy, Titilayo Laoye-Tomori.
Salaam said there was no record showing that any petition was sent before Oloyede’s own, adding that some other petitions came in the form of letters only after the one sent by the judge.
He said: “It is a blatant lie that any petition had been sent earlier. We have the record of what we are doing in the House. The first petition we received on this issue was the one sent by the judge”
According to Salaam, the petition has been treated with fairness, in line with the mandate given to the legislature.
“For that reason I want to implore the people to be careful and say things the way they are, rather than scoring cheap political points,” he said.
He stressed that the House of Assembly would continue to follow the path of justice, in line with the mandate and responsibilities of the legislative arm of government.
DAILY INDEPENDENT

A member of the House of Representatives Alhaja Ayo Omidiran, has predicted that Osun State will soon be out of its economic crisis.
She said with the beginning of implementation of the communiqué of the stakeholders’ conference held on August 10, in Osogbo, the state is set for an economic turnaround.
The conference was organised by the Osun Legislators’ Forum and attended by public office holders and civil servants.
Top players in the organised labour and private sector also attended, the event, where decisions on the way forward were taken.
Mrs. Omidiran, who represents Irewole Federal Constituency, was one of the prime organisers of the conference.
She said Governor Rauf Aregbesola has started to implement the meeting’s outcome.
“The idea behind it was for us to bring the ideas together so that the state can harness its resources to continue to move forward. We were happy the governor supported it and put all the government machinery behind it. We are confident the outcome will positively influence the state,” Mrs. Omidiran said.
Osun is one of the states badly hit by the financial crisis that followed the drop in oil prices, which adversely affected the cash flow into the nation’s treasury.
The state is just clearing the backlog of salaries to its workers.
The communiqué of the conference read by the representative of the labour unions at the meeting, Mr. Richard Afolayan Oyegbami, recommends that:
* government should plug the loopholes in the way revenues are collected;
* Osun people must pay taxes and rates before being compelled to do so;
*the need to review the cost of governance, particularly to ascertain accurately the recurrent expenditure.
*government should embrace public private sector partnerships in agriculture, mining and tourism;
*government should patronise competent local contractors to deepen the state’s economy; and
*parents should contribute a token to augment the free education programme.
THE NATION

Recently, Nigeria lost one of her foremost traditional rulers, Oba Okunade Sijuwade Olubuse II, the 50th Ooni of Ife who joined his ancestors on July 28,2015.
The late Sijuwade who was grandson of late Ooni Sijuwade Adelekan Olubuse I, was born on January 1, 1930 in Ile-Ife, Osun State. He attended Abeokuta Grammar School and Oduduwa College in Ile-Ife. On leaving college, he had a three-year stint in his father’s company, before working as a journalist with the Nigerian Tribune newspaper for two years. He later went to the United Kingdom to study Business Management at the Northampton College. On return home, the late Ooni joined the Leventis Group as a manager. In 1963, he left to become a Sales Director with National Motors in Lagos.
It was during a visit to the then Soviet Union in 1964 that the young and enterprising Sijuwade spotted a business opportunity. Armed with immense experience, he launched a business career that later spawned conglomerates in car retailing and real estate in his hometown of Ile Ife. It stands to his credit that the modern housing estate he built in Ile-Ife, provides housing for senior staff of the Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), thereby helping to relieve acute housing shortage for the institution. For Sijuwade, it was not only a business investment but also his contribution to the development of the University town. As a businessman, Prince Sijuwade maintained a diverse social, political, ethnic and ideological group of friends at home and abroad.
Before ascending the throne as Ooni in 1980, he was a renowned philanthropist. Fittingly, he brought this attribute to bear all through his 35-year reign. In his lifetime, Oba Sijuwade was a rallying point and bridge builder between traditional and other religious institutions in the country. Even at that, he also had several encounters with controversies that pitted him against some fellow traditional rulers including the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi; the Awujale of Ijebuland, Oba Sikiru Adetona and even the Ogunsua of Modakeke.
For example, in January 2009 Sijuwade was quoted as saying that the Alaafin of Oyo was ruling over a dead empire (the Oyo Empire, which collapsed in 1793). Oba Adeyemi’s riposte was that the Ooni “was not in tune with his own history.” There is a general belief that one reason Osun State was created out of the old Oyo State was to resolve the battle for supremacy between Alaafin and Ooni. This was because both monarchs were very powerful at the time, and their conflict was causing division amongst Yoruba Obas. In spite of that, the late Oba Sijuwade was a consummate peacemaker.
Observers credited him with bringing peace between Ife and Modakeke communities at the height of the internecine crisis over land ownership in 2009. The late Ooni helped mediate the dispute, leading to the elevation of the Ogunsua of Modakeke as an Oba. Also, in August 2010, he mediated in the ownership dispute between Oyo and Osun states over the Ladoke Akintola University, at a meeting attended by then Osun Governor Olagunsoye Oyinlola and Otunba Adebayo Alao-Akala, former Governor of Oyo State, which resulted in an action plan.
His mediatory role is among the enduring legacies for which the late Sijuwade will for long be remembered. In his tribute, President Muhammadu Buhari said the late Oba Sijuwade would be remembered for his “worthy service and invaluable contributions” to the sustenance of the cultural heritage of his people. He had lived a very fulfilled life, and has left worthy legacies for his successors to build upon.”
It is befitting that Oba Sijuwade who died at the age of 85 years, would not only be remembered for his immense contributions to Ile-Ife but also to the entire country and humanity.
DAILY TIMES

Pictures of the Governor State of Osun, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola with the newly posted Controller of Prisons to Osun Command, Mr. Tajudeen Olalekan Kehinde, during a familiarization visit to the Governor in his office at Government Secretariat, Abere, Osogbo on Thursday 13/08/2015.

Governor State of Osun, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola (right) with the newly
posted Controller of Prisons to Osun Command, Mr. Tajudeen Olalekan
Kehinde, during a familiarization visit to the Governor in his office
at Government Secretariat, Abere, Osogbo on Thursday 13/08/2015.

Governor State of Osun, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola (right) presenting the
State Emblem to the newly posted Controller of Prisons to Osun
Command, Mr. Tajudeen Olalekan Kehinde, during a familiarization visit
to the Governor in his office at Government Secretariat, Abere, Osogbo
on Thursday 13/08/2015.

Governor State of Osun, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola (2nd right); Secretary
to the State Government, Alhaji Moshood Adeoti (middle), newly posted
Controller of Prisons to Osun Command, Mr. Tajudeen Olalekan Kehinde
(right), Deputy Controller of Prisons Administration, Mr. Charles Esan
(2nd left) and Command Public Relations Officer, Mr. Olusola Adeotan
(left), during a familiarization visit to the Governor in his office
at Government Secretariat, Abere, Osogbo on Thursday 13/08/2015.

Governor State of Osun, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola (middle); Secretary to
the State Government, Alhaji Moshood Adeoti (3rd left), newly posted
Controller of Prisons to Osun Command, Mr. Tajudeen Olalekan Kehinde
(3rd right), Deputy Controller of Prisons Administration, Mr. Charles
Esan (2nd left); Command Public Relations Officer, Mr. Olusola
Adeotan (left), Assistant Controller of Prisons Operations, Mr. Suhaib
Ayodeji (right) and Mr. Ramon Olayiwola (2nd right), during a
familiarization visit to the Governor in his office at Government
Secretariat, Abere, Osogbo on Thursday 13/08/2015.