The excitement is building once again as local and international tour­ists count down to the yearly Osun Osogbo festival. For culture enthu­siasts and tourism die-hards in Nigeria, Africa and the Diaspora, the release of the calendar for 2014 edition, which has be­come one of the hallmarks of the people of Osogbo as well as indigenes of Osun State, is an indication that the aim is to surpass the previous celebrations on all fronts. The excitement which usually precedes the event, was on hand again at a corpo­rate cum stakeholder’s forum held at the Convention Centre, Eko Hotel and Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos, where the organiz­ers unveiled some of its plans for a better outing this year.

Chief Jimoh Buraimoh, a high chief and chairman of the Festival Advisory Committee assured that this edition would be better organized than previous ones especially with the array of local musicians that would be on parade even as he affirmed that the annual event has helped to build goodwill, cultural awareness and peace not only in Osogboland but beyond.

“Today, the enlistment of Osun Grove in July 2005 by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site has helped a great deal in ascertaining this fact, Buraimoh noted.

He announced that the Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola leadership has transformed and is still transforming the Osun grove since assumption of office and has actually structurally created an in and out crowd control entrance and exit to the grove. The government has demolished the existing pavilion in the grove and has constructed a theatre-like stage and re-modifying the festival route with construction of a road drainage system with designated car parks and so on.

On the issue of security, Chief Buraimoh assured that the government is taking the challenge of security of lives and property within the state seriously as adequate arrangement has been made for the grand finale presentation of the 2014 edition.

Confirming the dividends, Ayo Olumoko, Managing Director, Infogem Nigeria Limited, the official marketing consultant of the festival said a powerful delegation of Osun devotees is expected from the Diaspora as well as other African countries and numerous tourists from around the globe.

Although the number of foreign tourists has grown steadily since it became a world heritage site, one of the challenges of this growth is the impact of mass tourism to the grove.

Speaking at the event, Oba Jimoh Oyetunji, Olanipekun II, the Ataoja of Osogbo, commended the sponsors for their steadfast commitment and support to the festival and the Yoruba culture.

“Certainly, the Osun Osogbo Festival is regarded as very important festival, not only in Yoruba land and Nigeria, but also in the world. The event is a huge tourist attraction that lures the global community to Osogbo. The sponsors’ identification with the celebrations show their commitment to the customs and values of the Yoruba people, and we are happy about it,” he said.

The paramount ruler enthused that quality sponsorship of the festival would make the celebrations more memorable than previous editions. “As organizers, we always try our best to make sure that everyone who participates in the festivities takes away a unique experience. With the involvement of public and private stakeholders in this year’s edition, we are sure that it would be even bigger and better than what we had in the past.”

With partners including Intercontinental Distilleries, MTN, Alomo Bitters, Nigerian Breweries and others still planning to join, the number of musicians expected to entertain during the festival has doubled, while sponsorship fever has remained high.

Mr. Mfon Bassey, the Brand Manager, Goldberg, Nigerian Breweries Plc, said the brand was very happy to be associated with this age-old festival that is very dear to the people of Osogbo and the western region in general. According to him, Nigerian Breweries has partnered with this festival over the years  and for the second year running, the Goldberg brand is proud to be part of the festival as the “Official Beer Sponsor”.

He said the brand has continued to keep its consumers actively engaged all year round through exciting social platforms as well as promotion of the traditions of the people adding that the festival is one cultural celebration that everyone looks forward to with great anticipation.

Giving details of Goldberg’s participation at the festival, he revealed that the brand would be showcasing a 21-day Beer Fiesta where the people of Osogbo and visitors would be exposed to an unforgettable beer experience with lots of music, comedy and rewards. In addition the brand will also be sponsoring key programmes of the event which holds from August 18 -22, to add value to the overall content.

SUNNEWS

Osun State Governor, Rauf Aregbesola, has warned the political class against militarization of Nigerian politics.
The governor, who spoke through his Special Adviser on Environment, Mr. Bola Ilori, at a press briefing in Osogbo, on Wednesday, said that deploying troops for election duties was a violation of the constitution and a gross abuse of office.
Ilori said that it had become so ridiculous that soldiers were now being deployed to mediate in land disputes.
According to the special adviser, the frequent deployment of military personnel in purely civil matters could work against the advancement of democracy.
He said, “If you use the military to hijack power, you should expect that the military would not sit back and watch you enjoy what you did not work for. They may strike and that will be too bad for our nation.
“The Nigerian political class is giving ideas to the military that they can hijack power with the way some people are using them to hijack power. The political class has gone to the extent of inviting soldiers in land dispute”, Ilori said in apparent reference to the incident between the Lagos State Government and Minister of State for Defence, Senator Musliu Obanikoro, who brought in soldiers to stop work on a government project.
While expressing the confidence that Aregbesola would win the August 9 governorship election, Ilori said the governor had performed very well and the people of the state were ready to vote him in for another four years.
INFORMATIONNG

The Emergency And Citizen’s Enquiry/Contact Center is for Osun citizens to have a hit line they could make an emergency call through free toll while rescue/responses are guaranteed.

With this number 080067866786 (12 digits) distress calls can be made toll free and quick responses are asured.

The contract was awarded to Aeronautical Engineering and Technical Services Limited, a Nigerian Airforce company.

This state is joining other states of the world in providing high technology emergency opportunity to Osun people. Thus, it is the first if its kind in Nigeria. – Group Captain Akeen Adenonehin (Head AETSL Hi-tech team)

MKO International Airport, Osogbo under construction is also being handled by AETSL

The Emergency call centre has the capacity to function as an emergency coordination platform as well as a government contact center for its citizens.

With it, residents of Osun would be able to place toll-free calls to the centre while vetted operators would be on hand to answer questions in local dialect and other languages.

Download and Share our Countdown Posters. It is 9 days to the Day Osun Decides. Who will you be voting for?  Share with us on Facebook (Government of the State of Osun) or Twitter @stateofosun

People from every walk of life share their experiences and thoughts on the Governor of the State of Osun in Amazing and memorable Quotes. Share with your friends and give your thoughts and feedback on any of our platforms. Facebook (Government of the State of Osun) or Twitter @stateofosun

Governments across the states of the federation are increasingly enhancing public sector service delivery through the use of technology, writes Shola Oyeyipo
That some governors are spending so much on residents’ identification scheme, being a major prerequisite for e-governance is understandable. This is because a well-coordinated identity management process would ensure availability of accurate data for short, medium and long term planning in the private and public sector of the economy.
And if properly applied, especially in the area of information and communications technology, identity management is expected to usher in radical transformation in sectors such as education, healthcare and agriculture, and it would be expected to result in evident leap in internal revenue generation, cost-savings and fraud reduction, especially in some states that have been battling the problem of over-bloated civil service.
Presently, three states – Lagos, Anambra, and Osun – are prominent among others that are investing in residents’ identification projects initiated to enhance economic planning through the use of accurate population data in the formulation and implementation of public service policies.
Some of the advantages of the process include improved service delivery in the areas of health, education, security, welfare and transportation, among others. By bringing undocumented residents out of the shadows, government is better positioned to plan on how best to allocate resources to meet the needs of the people.
Other benefits of the smart identity card include reduced turnaround time on salary processing, prepaid payment for financial transactions, ability of holders to draw 20 per cent of monthly salary in lieu of payment, automated biometric verification of staff and retirees’ as against manual verification usually accompanied by long queues, and the storage of health data required during medical emergencies, among other functions.
The Anambra and Osun schemes are being executed by Chams Plc to assist the governments of the two states provide better public services at less cost to residents across rural and urban areas of their states.
While the Anambra project is at infrastructure building phase, Osun State has commenced deployment and issuance of smart identity cards embedded with MasterCard prepaid capabilities to civil servants and retirees in the state. Issued to enhance salary and pension payments, the Osun smart identity card provides reliable identification and authentication of 33,000 civil servants and retirees in the state. It eliminates the manual verification usually accompanied by long queues, replacing it with verification by flashing card on the access control machines or kiosk anywhere within the state secretariat.
Launching the smart identity card and the automated pensioner verification exercise tagged: ‘I am alive’, Governor Rauf Aregbesola of Osun State said it was beneficial to government, workers and retirees’ in the state. He expressed the optimism that the initiative would help to eliminate sources of financial waste and leakage being used by some people deprive government of its money, while also helping to block the possibility of defrauding workers and retirees’ of payments due to them.
“It was through the application of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) to our tax administration and revenue collection that enabled us to increase our internally generated revenue by 100 per cent within the first few months of our administration.
“We have since intensified our effort to make ICT an inherent part of our public administrative system. The introduction of this new smart electronic identity card is another component of that overall effort.
“It will expectedly bring about many benefits to all of us – the individual, civil servants and the government. It will be given to all
workers across all ministries, departments and agencies, including local government council workers.
“The smart identity card is electronic and personalised with biometric features to each of its users. It will add immense values to the functioning of workers and will equally improve the capacity and cost of administration by government,” Aregbesola disclosed.
Director of Information and Communications Technology, Osun State, Mr. Bambo Bashorun said the introduction of smart identity cards by the state was timely because it was being executed at a time the nation was facing serious security challenges as well as the dwindling resources.
“The issuance of the card will guarantee proper accountability and plug holes through which resources are wasted. Creating a database of all civil servants in the state is so important especially at this time of our challenging national life from increased level of insecurity to dwindling resources.
“With the data base created, the identity card issued and I Am Alive process automated, the state had ensured that no single kobo is wrongly allocated to undeserved person in the state.”
Demola Aladekomo, Group Managing Director, Chams Plc said the launch of a smart identity card by the Osun State Government was another milestone in the information and communications technology ecosystem in Nigeria.
He said the smart identity card was multifunctional and more than an identity card because it has e-payment capabilities and
can be used as debit or credit card by holders across the country, and anywhere in the world.
“The utilisation of information and communication technology to improve service delivery in the public sector in Nigeria will make governance inclusive – bringing it closer to the people. Inclusive governance and the use of technology to reduce the high incidence of fraud and wastage often associated with the public sector will further catalyse the growth and development of our national economy.
“Globally, governments are investing in meeting the identity management needs at city, state and regional levels because it provides exceptional opportunity to cut capital and recurrent administrative costs, while also protecting vulnerable citizens such as retirees by making it difficult for dishonest persons to steal their benefits.”
He added: “It is a welcome development that Osun is at the forefront of heralding access to improved public services through information and communication technology.”
On his part, veteran journalist and columnist, Tunde Fagbenle, who is an indigene of Osun, said “It doesn’t take much stretch of the imagination to appreciate the overall value and cost advantage of the smart ID both in saved man-hours, personnel management efficiency, and probity.
“Wasn’t it but yesterday the country was awash with scandal upon scandal of billions of naira of pensions money embezzled, not to talk of the ordeal pensioners continually suffer in the process of getting paid their paltry dues monthly?”
Fagbenle thought it an exciting time to be alive in Osun State, and as such, rejoiced that pensioners in the state would no longer suffer and wallow in abject poverty on a daily basis.
“The plights of Nigerian pensioners have been a thing of concern for many years now. The picture of haggard-looking pensioners collapsing on queues for their meager pensions during verification exercises is no longer new. But it may be a thing of the past in Osun State with the deployment of the beneficial technology by the state government,” he added.
With the adoption of residents’ identification programmes by Anambra and Osun States, it no doubt will enhance the ability of the state governments to make short, medium and long term plans for the benefit of their people.
Upon completion, these state governments will no longer depend on sketchy data in their bid to formulate and implement policies, projects and programmes because the number of people to cater for across all sectors – rural and urban areas – are known.
What more, the programmes will also ensure appropriate allocation of resources to various sectors of the economy in a manner that meets the real needs of residents of the concerned state.
“For instance, using data from its residents’ identification project, a state government will be able to classify neighbourhoods based on their population thereby making adequate provision for public utilities in each neighbourhood based on the number of residents,” Fagbenle disclosed.
THIS DAY

Osun State government has said that it has uncovered plans by some people, said to be going round major cities in the state marking buildings for demolition in a bid to incite the populace against the government.
A statement signed by the state commissioner for information and strategy, Mr Sunday Akere and made available to newsmen, said the state government was not embarking on any kind of demolition.
Akere told residents of the state to challenge anyone that marks their building for demolition and report such to the police for proper action.
Akere also denied claims by the opposition party, particularly, the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, that the state government has concluded plans to introduce a new tax regime, if Aregbesola is re-elected, adding that Governor Rauf Aregbesola’s administration neither intends to introduce any tax regime nor intend to increase its usual tax levy as allegedly claimed by the PDP.

Heavy presence of men of the Directorate of State Security (DSS) is now in Osun ahead of the August governorship poll.

However, the unusually heavy presence seems to have angered most residents who expressed anger at the open display of weapons without any signs of provocations by the residents.

Residents claim they started noticing the heavy presence from Tuesday as about 70 white Hilux vans and Peugeot Boxer Coaster buses filled with the gun-wielding DSS men cruised round the state capital Osogbo and many other parts of the state.

Residents started discussing the development in hushed tones from Tuesday, as many looked at the masked men with disdain.

However, by Wednesday when gun shots rent the air in many parts of the states sending many people scampering for safety, many of the residents later came out saying they would not be intimidated by the masked men.

At the Oke Fia area of the city, our correspondent gathered that several bullets were fired into the air as the long convoy of the men in black uniform drove recklessly through the towns.

An official of one of the banks located at the Oke Fia Roundabouts in Osogbo said the activities of the men of the DSS was creating a lot of panic adding that the Federal Government would be doing a lot of damage to the country’s already tense situation by shattering the peace Osun had enjoyed.

State Government of Osun today rolled our debit cards to farmers in the state for direct and easy access to farming inputs, which include improved seedlings, pesticide and fertilisers.

Governor Rauf Aregbesola commenced the debit cards distribution on Wednesday at the official launch of the Farmers’ Input and Credit Support Programme, at the Distribution Centre, AISU, Ede.

He said that the task of arresting and eradicating the scourge of hunger and poverty as well as usher in an era of agriculture-based prosperity for farmers, the people and government will continue to form the fulcrum of his administration

The governor noted that government has brought to bear all technology- based methods for the enhancement of modern agriculture, including the Geographical Information System (GIS) and enumeration of farmers across the state.

Aregbesola said his government will vigorously explore more ways of expanding and improving agricultural production and the development of agro-allied industrial base in his second term in office.

The debit card will make farming easier for all those interested in embracing farming and remove excruciating burden of loans.

“We came up with the aide Scheme in order to correct all the anomalies that are inherent in the extant system of agricultural input distribution, while the Credit Support Programme is meant to boost the capacity of stakeholders to play their roles properly towards the development and modernisation of agriculture.

“We therefore embarked on a rigorous process of due diligence by carefully and painstakingly conducting enumeration of all farmers in the state. This led to the registration of more than 50,000 farmers all over Osun,” Aregbesola said.

The governor expressed confidence on the capacity of the agricultural sector to deliver the goods on the state’s economy saying no wealth can be created sufficiently without the sector.

He said, “We are convinced that there is immense potential in agriculture for job creation, wealth generation, food security and poverty eradication.

“We will continue to vigorously explore more ways of expanding and improving our agricultural production and the development of our agro-allied industrial base.

“What we are doing today is continuation on the path we have consciously taken since our assumption of office. This is the empowerment of farmers and the development of agriculture for the purpose of making food available in abundance, first for feeding ourselves, then for feeding others and ultimately, the development of agro-industries for job creation and wealth generation for individuals and the government.”

In his earlier remarks, the Coordinator of Osun Rural Enterprise and Agricultural Programme (OREAP), Dr. Charles Akinola, noted that the farmers’ input and credit support programme is first of its kind in Nigeria.

He said the various assistance of Aregbesola’s administration to the farmers, which included proviso of farming input, land clearing and tractorisation, are aimed at assisting farmers without stress.

He said: “The delivering of farming inputs by the government to farmers will in no small measures help in massive food production in the state.”

Just as Omisore is not a Fayose, so is Ogbeni not a Fayemi. And so it will be silly for anyone to interchange the Ekiti result with Osun. 
On the 9th of August the State of Osun governorship election would hold. It is an election I have more than a passing interest in, for that is my state. It is, therefore, of great concern to me who will be in charge of running the state for the next four years.
It is no secret that my sympathy rests with Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, the incumbent governor seeking re-election. And not without reason. Although I’ve known him well before he became governor and had inkling of the stern and (socialist) ideological stuff he is made of, what I’ve seen of him since becoming the governor has far surpassed my imagination. I can say, without exaggeration, there is no governor, nay, no public servant, here in Nigeria or anywhere else in the world, with greater commitment to service, more suffused with vision and passion, more flogging of self almost to the point of masochism, and more acutely alert of mind and intellect, than the Ogbeni.
Ascetic in his lifestyle, what comes to mind observing Rauf at close quarters over the past four years as governor is Chief Obafemi Awolowo’s assessment of himself. Here: “While many men in power and public office are busy carousing in the midst of women of easy virtue and men of low morals, I, as a few others like me, am busy at my desk thinking about the problems of Nigeria (Osun) and proffering solutions to them. Only the deep can call to the deep.” The only difference, a shocking but pleasant relief, is that whilst the late Awo perhaps would fumble on a dance floor, Ogbeni is a dance maestro, and a populist politician of the Adelabu Adegoke school of oratorical performance.
But Ogbeni is not without his own foible. He is in a hurry to push Osun to modernity in all spheres thereby finding himself and his government at loggerheads with many of his publics who feel being stampeded into a pace and sacrifice too staggering for their level of preparedness. Yet the development is there for all to see.
The citizens love what they see, they are astounded at the evidence that sticks all in the face – in urban renewal and massive road infrastructure; in education and the groundbreaking opon-imo (knowledge tablet) and the primary school pupils feeding programme; in social welfare through the monthly allowances to the aged; in employment; in agriculture; and so on and so forth – but the sacrifices and discipline necessitated have not been enjoyed.
Those adversely affected especially by demolitions of their property in the course of urban infrastructural development, or plugging of public funds loopholes, are complaining and lending themselves to preaching disaffection for the government. The people want to eat omelets without breaking eggs!
The State of Osun under Rauf has so far been adjudged by appropriate federal agencies and international bodies as the best governed state in Nigeria with the lowest unemployment rate, and 2nd in the poverty reduction index. As to be expected, malicious rumours fly fuelled by detractors and the opposition. The good thing about Ogbeni is that of all the dirty rumours peddled, none says he is corrupt or, in the euphemism of the time, that he has “mismanaged” public funds.
Moreover, the religious labelling of Ogbeni as a Muslim radical desirous of Islamising the state has waned largely out of the fear that such religious card might backfire in a state where Muslims are truly in the majority in all but two of the eight largest cities. Rauf himself dismisses the charge as lazy and un-intellectual. “The world has passed the stage where anybody can force his religion on anybody,” he says. “How many years does a governor have to stay? If the white men who were here for 70 years could not force Christianity on all the people, with all the powers they had, why would any one think a governor can ever conceive such thoughts?” He asks.
Ogbeni’s main, or most feared, opponent is Senator Iyiola Omisore of the rival PDP, a party in control of the Federal Government and purse! The result of the recent Ekiti governorship election where the PDP underdog created an upset beating the incumbent APC governor by an unprecedented margin has energised the opposition, making them believe a repeat is possible, even probable, in Osun too. Conversely, it has created unease in the camp of the incumbent who would otherwise have been sleeping with both eyes closed, resting assured that his meritorious performance would put him beyond view of any rival in the court of the electorate.
I know Iyiola Omisore, some. Though he is much younger than I am, I must say I am impressed by the respect or honour he accords me on the few public occasions we have met. Those occasions deflect the generally held view of him as a roughneck capable of the most heinous of crimes. The Osun public refuses to forget that he was accused and charged for the murder of their darling political leader, the cerebral ‘Uncle’ Bola Ige, shortly after both fell apart and had public altercations, even though Omisore has not been found guilty of the allegations.
What Omisore would chalk as his achievement in public sphere include serving as deputy governor for three or so years in Osun State under Chief Bisi Akande, and a term as senator of the Federal Republic during which he was chairman of the mouth-watering Appropriation Committee. It is probable that in the course of these he has benefitted some people, particularly in his Ife constituency, but he is far from being the Osun version of Ekiti’s Ayo Fayose who had spent a long period cultivating the masses and genuinely was with them. A picture of Omisore lately mounting an okada and posing with roasted corn-on-the-hub in both hands went viral on the Internet drawing guffaw from the public at such infantile mimicry of a “grass-roots man.” One Facebook comment tagged it “the Con Man.”
Just as Omisore is not a Fayose, so is Ogbeni not a Fayemi. And so it will be silly for anyone to interchange the Ekiti result with Osun. Ogbeni, as already mentioned earlier, embodies an Awo and Adelabu Adegoke in one. He is at once cerebrally committed and rambunctiously populist. But with question mark being drawn on the genuineness of the Ekiti result, and high-tech rigging suspected for the magnitude of the margin if not the victory itself, there is serious anxiety in the State of Osun that such despicable stratagem may be deployed to thwart the people’s will. Already, rumours are flying of massive infiltration of the state by “aliens” for INEC registration, and, worse, one party spending big to induce thousands of voters in places where the other party is strong to sell their voter-cards just for the sheer purpose of destroying them, disenfranchising the owners, and thus depressing the number of possible voters in such places.
Moreover, the fear is rife that the massive militarisation and overkill of security forces in Ekiti whereby leaders of one party were prevented from going into Ekiti to participate rightfully in their party rallies whilst leaders of other parties were not equally barred; allegations of manhandling and detention of officials of one party at vital moments; and the general intimidation of their members, the fear is rife that such blatant force and violation of constitutional rights of people may be visited upon Osun. It will be sad if that happens, for then not only would our fledging democracy be threatened, the seed of dismemberment of the country, already planted by Boko Haram and other insurgents, would be watered into full germination.
On August 9, let there be a free and fair election and let the people of Osun decide who governs them in the next four years. And that’s saying it the way it is!
YNAIJA