The Niger Ambassador to Nigeria, His Excellency Mansour Hajj Daddo, has commended the swift intervention by the Governor of Osun, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola in quelling the recent crisis which ensued at Sabo Ile-Ife.
 

 
Ambassador Daddo stated this through an envoy who paid a condolence visit to the Governor in Osogbo on Monday.
Speaking through the envoy which was led by Alhaji Saley Idrissa, the ambassador also commended the immediate assistance rendered to people who were affected by the fracas.
He said the actions of the governor will go a long way in assuring members of the Hausa community in Ile-Ife and other towns in Osun that the state is fully behind them and wants to continue to be the caring host which they have been over the years.
According to him “the Niger Ambassador to Nigeria has decided to send an envoy to Osun as a result of the ugly incident which occurred at Ife and to commend and appreciate the swift intervention of the Governor in the crisis.
“We really thank God that the state is blessed with a proactive governor like you at this time. We thank God that you are around at this time and your being around was actually felt.
“We have been briefed of your various forms of assistance by our people we saw. Your actions have reassured us of the fact that the people of this state are really accommodating and are still ready to continue to leave in peace and harmony with our people.”
The ambassador, who said that he was convinced that the fracas must have been aggravated by miscreants, stressed that the actions of the governor has gone a long way to reassure him that the perpetrators of the dastardly act won’t go unpunished.
He said his knowledge of the Yorubas over the years doesn’t portray them as hostile people.
“I am particularly touched by the testimonies of our people whom we have spoken to about the actions of Mr. Governor since this incident happened. The Governor has to  huge extent, displayed a fatherly role in the matter through the various relief inputs he has made.
“The people of Niger Republic through the Ambassador are using this opportunity to thank Mr. Governor for coming to the aid of our people in this time of anguish and need.” he said.
In his response, Governor of Osun, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola said the state as a whole is highly touched and disappointed by the incident.
He said the world should not view what happened in Ile-Ife as a communal clash between the Hausas and Yorubas but a situation which hoodlums and miscreants took the opportunity of a simple altercation to wreck havoc on innocent residents of Sabo area in Ile-Ife.
The Governor said the harmonious relationship of the Hausas and Yorubas dates back years while expressing disappointment that the event of last week occurred.
Governor Aregbesola, who expressed optimism that such occurence will never happen again said the experience will enable the state to develop a more robust capacity to nip similar cases in the bud.
He said, “I want to assure Nigerians that the State of Osun still remains the most peaceful and loving state in Nigeria. What happened last week at Ife was just the handiwork of some disoriented elements who took advantage of a minor argument to wreck havoc.
“We are pained because we know that this is not what the Yorubas are. Apart from the fact that the Yorubas are a peace loving set of people, they have been living peacefully with the Hausas at Sabo, Ile-Ife for ages without rancour.
“I want to assure you that the perpetrators of the devilish act will be apprehended, prosecuted and brought to justice as our government will not condone any form of lawlessness in our environment.
“I also want to use this medium to commend the efforts of our security operatives who were swift in responding to the distress call. Their actions really went a long way in curtailing the violence.”

 

 

 
With a vision “to make Osun the food basket of the South West”, Governor of the State, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola has so far achieved 8 major things in the vision he laid out six years ago when he took mantle of power on November 27, 2010.
A holistic agricultural policy taken by the government has placed the state on the green map of the South West in a space of 6 years; making it one of the major suppliers of agricultural produce to markets in Lagos and other South Western states. The governor, his deputy and other members of his team were recently seen in one of the major rice farms collaborating with the state government to produce Ofada Osun Rice.
Also, recall that Ogbeni Aregbesola recently led an official government delegation to Germany in search of new insights on modern agriculture in order to further realise the dream of making Osun the food basket of the South West. Germany has in the past four years trained over 40 young people from Osun in modern agriculture techniques such as ‘40days Goat Fattening’ etc.
We present to you, eight (8) facts on the agricultural sector in Osun:

1. Over 50,000 tonnes of cocoa exported annually.
2. Over 16,000 jobs created for the indigenes of the State of Osun.
3. Over 700km of rural roads built to reduce cost of transportation for farmers and increase access to markets.
4. 30 bridges constructed, with access given to areas cut-off from civilization.
5. Over 2.8 billion naira given to farmers as loans.
6. Over 11,000 farmers have been supported with direct cash transfers.
7. 5,000 farmers’ co-operatives registered.
8. Over 71,000 farmers have benefitted from the Governments interventions.

The Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi, has declared fasting and prayers for three days to restore peace and harmony to Ile-Ife.

 

Oba Ogunwusi made the declaration through his Deputy, Oba Idowu Adediwura, the Obalufe of Ife kingdom, on Sunday in Ile-Ife, Oyo State.
Adediwura said that the monarch, who travelled to London on Saturday, sent him to deliver the message.
According to him, the fasting and prayers will hold from Monday, March 13 to Wednesday, March 15.
The Ooni, who said he believed that “with God, all things are possible”, noted that “one tree cannot make a forest” and urged his subjects to eschew violence.
He also appealed to all indigenes and non-indigenes in Ile-Ife to cooperate with him to restore peace to the land.
“Ife is the cradle of Yoruba, Niger Deltans, Urobos and other tribes that live in Ile-Ife and in the diaspora; we are all Nigerians and should not forget our origin,” Adediwura quoted the Ooni as saying.

Peace has returned to Ife in Osun State after last week’s fracas between Yoruba and Hausa communities.Meanwhile, the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi, has inaugurated a truth and reconciliation committee to ensure peace between the warring communities in the ancient city.
 

Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola and the Ooni of Ife, Oba Enitan Adeyeye exchanging pleasantries.

The royal father condemned the actions of those behind the fracas on Wednesday and expressed optimism that they will soon be apprehended and made to face the full wrath of the law.
He assured the residents that the situation had been brought under control by the government and promised that such mayhem would not be allowed to occur again.
The monarch admonished the Hausa community not to retaliate, saying that the Abuja motor park would be relocated from Sabo, while the police station would be relocated too. He urged all the Yoruba citizens to always embrace the Hausa settlers and other ethnic groups as their brothers and sisters for a peaceful co-existence.
The committee is chaired by Obalufe of Ireland, Oba Idowu Adediwura. Other members are the Jaran of Ife, High Chief Ademola Adeyeye; Wasin of Ilare, High Chief Zacheus Olasode, Seriki Hausa of Ife, Alhaji Mamuda Mandagali; Ezendigbo of Ife, Ezekiel Onyejekde; Okobairo of Urhobo, David Akpomedaye; Chairman, Modakeke Progressive Union, Alhaji Tajudeen Oke and security agencies, while Senator Babajide Omoware is the adviser for the committee.
Meanwhile, the probe panel setup by the Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, to investigate the communal clash arrived Osun State on Saturday.
The Osun State Police Command’s Public Relations Officer, Folasade Odoro, confirmed the arrival of the Hammed Bello-led panel in the state to newsmen in Osogbo.
Idris had appointed Bello, the Commissioner in charge of Military Police at the Force Headquarters, to head the panel.The panel is to look into the immediate and remote causes of the clash and submit its findings to the police authorities for appropriate action to prevent future occurrence of the incident.
The team is expected to visit leaders of the ethnic groups involved in the conflict as well as pay courtesy visit on the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi, in his palace, and other stakeholders in the city.
Odoro told newsmen that detectives were still on the trail of some suspected culprits, adding that 10 persons have been arrested and were assisting the police in their investigation.

The Governor of Osun State, Mr Rauf Aregbesola on Thursday visited the ancient town of Ile-ife amid tension, for on the spot assessment of the crisis that rocked the town on Wednesday.
 
 
Aregbesola in the company of the Deputy Governor, Titi-laoye Tomori and all the security chiefs, arrived the scene of the incident at exactly 3:46pm, and immediately embarked on thorough inspection to ascertain the level of destruction.

While addressing people at the palace of Ooni of Ife, Aregbesola expressed sadness over the incident, saying it was disheartening to experience such wanton destruction in Ile-ife again, after the end of tragic event of Ife/ Modakeke war 15 years ago.
He maintained that the Northerners in Ile-ife were not strangers but part and parcel of Ile-Ife community, as many of them were born in the town.
Aregbesola warned that such event should not occur again, and promised that perpetrators of the arson would be apprehended and prosecuted.
“This is the cradle of mankind by the belief of the Yorubas; a revered town of this pedigree should not be in the news for bad thing.

“This is the land of peace and love; we have not experiencedd this in the last six years, and I believe such thing would never happen again,” Aregbesola said.
The Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan in his remarks regretted the unfortunate event, saying such occurrence was strange in the land, which is known for its hospitality and love.
He expressed regret over the issue, saying some of the northern settlers at Sabo Ile-ife were so familiar with the town as many of them were born and they grew up in the town.
“I have personal relationship with the Hausa settlers at Sabo; I know many of them in person; they consider this palace as their second home, but it is obvious that the crisis was aggravated by external influences that could not be controlled.

“I believe security operatives will do their job and bring those that were responsible for it to book in accordance with the law of the land.
“At the peak of the crisis, I have to quickly swing to action, along with other chiefs in Ile-ife to rescue over 1000 northerners from assailants.
“I have been calling some traditional rulers in the North to intimate them about the true situation of things, including top security chiefs, who are very proactive,” Enitan said