According to a recent report by the National Bureau of Statistics , State of Osun now ranks highest in public primary school enrollment in the country. This report puts Osun’s children enrollment in primary school between 70 and 80 per cent, no other state in the country falls within Osun’s category while Ekiti, Delta, Cross River, Enugu states rank between 60 and 70 per cent. This is a feat made possible by Ogbeni Aregbesola’s patriotic struggle to effect a sustainable change in the educational structure of the state and with all these laudable efforts Osun will surely become the state with highest literacy level in Nigeria in the near future.
At the moment,  the public schools in the state can boast of a student population of over 750,000 with virtually all parental responsibilities taken over by the Government . A general public opinion on the ongoing re-classification exercise clearly indicates that the acceptability of the new school reforms by all major stakeholder is about 90% inspite of some low level of resistance from a very little segment of the Christian body and of course the state opposition party who never wished the state well .
People of the state who sincerely and genuinely irrespective of their status want a complete revamping of the educational sector are fully in support of the policy and have continued rooting for this change.
I think it necessary i take us down memory lane a bit , before the advent of the Aregbesola’s administration, it was practically impossible for students of public schools to have matriculable results for university admission . In 2010, only three percent of candidates from the State of Osun who sat for the West African Examination Council examination scored five credits, including English language and mathematics but following the vigorous intervention of the Government within the last 34 months, there has been marked improved performance of students in external examinations, especially WASCE where Osun students have consistently moved from 34th position in 2010, to 18th position in 2011 and 8th in 2012. Osun students have also recorded improved performances in National and International competitions as compiled recently by the Ministry of Education for the State Competitiveness awards.
I challenge our various online activists and Osun CAN to tell us a state that can match the great achievements of the State of Osun in the area of education in the last 34 months and for the benefit of doubt some of the notable achievements are listed below:
– The O School intervention for infrastructural upgrade and construction of 170 model schools complete with furniture and state of art facilities.
– The O Meal program for provision of one meal a day for pupils of Elementary schools and linkages with O’REAP and Commerce.
– The free Uniform and Omoluabi Garment Factory PPP initiatives; the UNESCO endorsement and promise of support.
– The computer Tablet, Opon Imo for students of High schools
– The Human capacity development through Recruitment of 6000 teachers,training, retraining and incentives to teachers; promotion, prompt payment of salaries and allowances.
– The payment of increased Running and Examination Grants to public schools. Primary School Basic Funding Grant increased from ₦7.4m per year to ₦424m per year . Primary school running grant before this administration was N1000 monthly per school for the 1378 schools in the state. The current administration increased running cost grant to N300 per child per term for the 357,533 school pupils in the state. Exam grant was also introduced at N100 per child per term.
– Improved supply of Instructional materials to schools
– Resuscitation of Co-curricular activities in schools; O Calisthenics, educational competitions and PE.
– Almost 50% Downward review of school fees in tertiary institutions, non-discriminatory fees regime and payment of subvention.
– Upward review of Bursary and Scholarships
– Promotion of Vocational and Technical Education
– Payment of External Examination fees of final year students in public schools.
– Sponsorship of over 100 stagnated UNIOSUN Medical students to Ukraine
and lot more !
Under the first phase of the new school reforms , the Government is committed to building 100 Elementary Model schools, 50 Middle Model schools and 20 High Model schools across the state. 27 out the 170 New Model schools with state of the art facilities promised will be commissioned in the following months in spite of the state’s merged resources. This is unprecedented in the 100 years of Nigeria.
“Any revolutionary programme often meets with violent opposition from those who does not want it to succeed” – Obafemi Awolowo. This was said when he first introduced free education in 1955, he went on to say “…we even had to quell riots engineered by political opponents who did not want us to succeed”
Aregbesola might be vilified for his principled position, but you cant fault the altruistic and patriotic motivation for his actions which will no doubt take Osun to its promise land.
Omowaiye Oluremi via Facebook

 
Thousands of holiday makers traveling to Osun, Kwara, Kogi and some other parts of the country have besieged the Iddo Terminus of the Nigerian Railway Corporation as the free Eid-il-kabir festival free train ride provided by the government of Osun entered its second day in Lagos.
The free train ride initiative of the Government of the State of Osun has once more commenced to commute people coming home for the Eid-il Kabir festival with indigenes of neighbouring states also taking advantage to get to their various destinations as they get to Osun capital, Osogbo which reduces their traveling expenses.
A statement signed by the Commissioner of Commerce, Cooperatives and Empowerment, Mr. Ismail Adekunle Jayeoba-Alagbada, said the train ride is to facilitate stress-free travelling for the people, who are coming home for the festival.
The free train ride, which spans five days, commenced on Saturday 12, 2013. For the journey to Osogbo, the train would take off from Iddo Terminus, Lagos at 11 o’clock daily on Saturday, 12th, Sunday, 13th and Monday 14th.
The return trip to Lagos, according to the statement, is fixed for Thursday 17th and Saturday 19th as the train would depart Osogbo at 11 o’clock daily.
Jayeoba-Alagbada said, government embarked on this transport initiate in the past three years so as to reduce stress people go through during these all-important festivals, adding that this is why during Easter, Eid –il Fitri, Eid –il Kabir and Christmas festivals, government introduce the free train ride.
“As we all know, this initiative has been on for the past three years. The primary aim of introducing it is to ease travelling experience of the people as well as encourage them to visit their state during festivity.
“The option is train ride is well thought of by the Rauf Aregbesola Administration so as to take pressure of the ever-busy roads within the South-West during this period and reduce the traffic volumes which normally causes gridlock on our roads.
“We hope our people, wherever they are coming from, Oyo, Ogun or Lagos, would make maximum use of this gesture of the government and promptly too. This is a sign that government has the welfare interests of the people at heart and would not detract from providing same as and when required,” Jayeoba-Alagbada said.
A passenger, Mrs. Idiat Oladosu, who claimed to be on her way to Oro, in Kwara State, said it was a good opportunity for her to reduce her cost of travelling.
Alhaji Ganiyu Alimi, who claimed to be an indigene of Inisa in Odo Otin Local Government Area of the state, said he had been enjoying the free train ride since the Aregbesolas’ administration introduced.
Mr. Awololo Samson, who said though he is not a Muslim coming for any festival, said he joined the train in Lagos to arrive in Osogbo on his way to Lokoja as he believed that would reduce his cost of travelling.

The education policies of Governor of the State of Osun, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, has been described as being reminiscent of the education reforms of the late sage, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, during the First Republic.
This was the observation of the Ooni of ife, Oba Okunade Sijuwade on Thursday at the public assessment forum tagged Gbangba Dekun in Ile-Ife.
A question and answer session, Gbangba Dekun is a platform provided by government for people to meet their leaders and office holders to openly assess the performance of the government on its programmes and policies.
Ooni, who was represented at the gathering by Obalufe of Iremoland, Chief Folorunsho Omishakin, said one striking resemblance between Awolowo’s education reform and Aregbesola’s current education reform is that both were antagonised.
According to the monarch, in 1955 when Awolowo started his education reforms in the then Western Region, people antagonised him but the late sage remained undaunted in his commitment to turning around the region’s education fortune.
Ooni said Awolowo’s reform succeeded at last because of late politician’s tenacity of purpose and selfless conviction for the future of the region.
He added that but for the focus and determination Awolowo had, he would have chickened out of the programme and the entire South West region would have been the worst for it.
He regretted that a few people had failed to see beyond the immediate to see the overall benefit of the school reform process blaming those antagonizing the plans as mixing pure development issues in the education sector with politics and religion.
He commended the bold step of the governor in tackling the rot in this all-important sector, advising him not to be distracted by what some people are doing or saying about the reforms.
“You programme too will succeed like that of Obafemi Awolowo.  When Awolowo started the reform, people antagonised him. They said the programme would not succeed. But before our very eyes, Awo’s education programme succeeded. We still can see many of the products of that reform till today.
“If other regions had followed what he did in education sector in the then Western region, may be today there won’t be Boko Haram up North or militants in the Niger Delta. Or at worst, what we would have today are educated militants and Boko Haram members.
“So, like Awo, don’t be discouraged by antagonisms and criticisms of few people. Remain focused on your reform programme and you will succeed,” Ooni said.
He advised government on accountability through effective monitoring by school inspectors, attributing the collapse of previous education system to the sudden disappearance of old school inspectorate system.
Commending the governor’s sterling performance in the last three years, the first class monarch said an upright man would come to the fore for public assessment without fear, which is why Aregbesola organises such public, meet-your-leader forum for an assessment of his government’s performance in the open.
In his response, Aregbesola commended the people of the state for their unflinching supports for all his administration’s programmes.
He disclosed that there are school inspectors monitoring the schools’ activities on regular basis, but promised that more would be deployed for effective monitoring across the state.
The governor said his administration, since its inception, has prioritised education and agriculture so as for the nation to be advanced in knowledge and self-sustained in food production.
He called on the youths in the state to key-in into the agriculture programmes of government so as to tap from vast business opportunities available.

Government of the State of Osun today completed processes of accessing a N11.4 billion SUKUK bond, thereby becoming the first state to benefit from the non-interest bond in the entire sub-Saharan Africa.
The processes were completed with the handing over of statutory documents to directors of Osun Sukuk Company, after which the Board Meeting of the company was held.
Speaking at the epoch making event the state governor, Rauf Aregbesola disclosed that, rather than being a ploy to Islamise the state as being alleged in some quarters, SUKUK, according to him, provided other avenues of raising funds with favourable repayment terms, to finance government’s projects.
He added that SUKUK remains an instrument of development, adding that majority of investors in the bond are non-Muslims.
The  state Commissioner for Finance, Budget and Economic Planning, Dr. Wale Bolorunduro also explained that the processes of accessing the bond was open and transparent, making the state  to get over subscription of the bond from the expected N10 billion to N11.4 billion.
Bolorunduro further stressed that, the bond is presenting to the state the opportunity to attract foreign investment adding that the way the transaction was structured made it a success, despite the changes that took place in the money market and interbank exchange before the SUKUK.
CHANNELS NEWS

RESIDENTS and indigenes of Osun have commended Omoluabi Support Group (OSG), organisers of the just-concluded maiden edition of Governor’s Golden Cup tournament held in  Osogbo, the state capital.
Majority of soccer fans who watched the event lauded the organisers for the smooth organisation, saying that such a tournament would help raise the standard of football in the state.
Also speaking with Tribunesport, chairman of OSG, Pastor Israel Alagbe described the tournament as an enviable one just as he commended Governor Rauf Aregbesola for his efforts at promoting sport in the state.
Alagbe pointed out that an initiative of the OSG, in collaboration with the Oranmiyan Campaign Group (OCG), arranged for the 32 football teams competition across the local council areas in the state, adding that it also attracted financial rewards for the participants.
On the motive behind the competition, Alagbe said the group believes in keeping youths off the streets through positive engagement in sport, adding that “the competition, apart from serving the means of youth empowerment, was also conceived to garner support of the vast youthful populace in the state for the re-election bid of Mr Aregbesola in 2014.”
Also speaking on the tourney, vice-chairman of OSG, Honourable Bisi Yusuf, organisers said the competition provided the budding players the opportunity to pursue their dreams of becoming professional footballers in the near future.
Yusuf who is also a member of the Lagos State House of Assembly stated that a lot of talents could be discovered and groomed to become established players in future especially in a tournament witnessed by football scouts who have links with top African and European clubs.
NIGERIAN TRIBUNE

Photos of Indigenes of the State of Osun traveling for the celebration of Ileya Festival through the free Train Transportation provided by the Government of Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola at the Railway Terminus in Iddo, Lagos State on Saturday 12 – 10-2013

Workers in the State of Osun have once again restated their endorsement of Governor Rauf Aregbesola for a second term bid to occupy the Bola Ige House, sit of government in the state.
The second term backing was reaffirmed by the Chairman of Trade Union Congress (TUC), Comrade Francis Adetunji at the third edition of the public forum tagged Gbangba Deku, at Ile-Ife, Osun East senatorial district of the state.
Adetunji, who spoke on behalf of the workers, said all labour unions in the state have formed a united front to actualise the ‘come back’ dream of Aregbesola because workers have never had it so rosy under any government as they are having it with the current regime.
Adetunji said in the history of the state’s government-labour relationship, Aregbesola’s administration is the first that perfectly understood workers’ needs and cater to them as and when due.
“For the first time in this state, workers are happy and feel safe that their welfare would not be neglected or jeopardised by a government. Aregbesola’s government understands workers’ needs and takes care of their welfare.
“He quickly responded to our requests and wishes when workers in other states still had problems with their state governments across the country,” Adetunji said.
The labour leader stated that it was the Trade Union Congress that first endorsed the second term ambition of Aregbesola on May 1st 2013 before other associations, interest groups and other associations followed and are till following labour unions’ footsteps.
He said that the public forum is the first function workers would follow government to its programme, saying this solidarity is a testimony of the love, trust and support workers have for the government.
Aregbesola, according to Adetunji, runs a transparent, responsible and responsive government, saying whatever his (Aregbesola’s) administration promises he go to any length to make sure such promise is fulfilled.
He continued: “Workers’ unions are now one united front and we are behind the government of Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola.
We will not waver until the second term is achieved. Our watchword is: ‘Second term; No shaking,’” Adetunji said.
He promised on behalf of the workers that wherever government is going from now on, labour is ready to follow.

 
The approval recently granted by the Nigerian Security and Exchange Commission (NSEC) to Osun State Government to access N10billion Islamic Investment Bond called “Sukuk” has generated another heated controversy, especially among the Christian Organisations and opposition political party in the state. This bond is the first of its kind to be granted to any individual or organization and government in the entire West Africa region. Osun State Commissioner for Finance, Budget and Economic Planning, Dr. Wale Bolorunduro, in this Interview he cleared the air on status of the loan, the state debt profile and other issues. Excerpts:   
Why has the state continued on a policy of uncontrolled borrowing to finance developmental projects?
All governments borrow, and they must. This is because the type of responsibilities a government shoulders are things that cannot wait and things which need far more money than the government realizes within the given space of time. Borrowing however must be controlled, for anything without control is a means of mindless destruction. But as far as a state within Nigeria is concerned, borrowing is strictly regulated by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) as well as the Federal Ministry of Finance.The level of borrowing permitted to a state is relative to its monthly federal allocation, its Internally Generated Revenue (IGR), the size of its existing debt portfolio among other indicators of financial health.
Government borrowing is premised on the time-tested model that if credit is sourced to finance the right things like infrastructures and development of human capital, the environment is being fertilized for productivity. Once such productivity is well nurtured, it matures into a stable economy with negligible unemployment and a robust base for revenue generation through taxes. This will in turn lead to a painless liquidation of existing indebtedness. Borrowing therefore is not the problem but the purposes of the loan. There are other details of the structure of the loan, its rate, term and moratorium etc.
What is the guarantee that the borrowing will not serve as unending burden to the generation unborn?
I can assure you that the approach of the state government of Osun under Governor Rauf Aregbesola to borrowing has followed a very carefully calibrated professional order. We have remained mindful of all of our moral obligations to society as well as the public perception of our actions. We have taken the pains not to borrow on conditions that will hurt the state both now and in the future. In fact, all our borrowings are framed to make things easier for the future generations as I will shortly demonstrate. You will recall that at the inception of this administration it met an N18billion term loan that threatened to asphyxiate the state. The structure of the loan meant an across-the-counter interest rate in the range of N650million a month. At that time, the state’s IGR was about N300million and monthly allocation from the Centre stood at about N2.5billion: all this for a state with a salary bill of N2billion.
When you do the arithmetic, it becomes clear that a loan of this nature will kill the state slowly. To add, the loan was to develop six stadiums across the state. Stadiums will not add economic value except you are hosting the Olympics and the like. This was a strong and enough trouble for us that we had to source a fresh credit line with favorable terms to liquidate that N18billion debt as quickly as we can. The difference in the interest rates and other terms of the credit line meant a lot of savings for the state. The N30billion we raised from the capital market with terms far more public-friendly than the commercial bank short-term loan that was originally taken by the previous administration. All details of the bond are transparent information in public domain as records kept by the Securities and Exchange Commission, SEC.
Another reason why government borrows is to hedge against inflation. A road project costing N15 billion today will cost N20 in the next two years. It only makes sense to hedge against such trends so long as the interest rate on the loan is below the calculated inflation rate.
Why must Osun be the first state in Nigeria to draw an Islamic bond which will only enslave us to some Islamic investors, whether individuals or corporate?
We are not signing any agreement with any Islamic personality or Islamic organization, be it local or foreign. We are not enslaving the state in any way through the issuance of this bond. Sukuk is like any other conventional bond with the only difference being its attraction of additional investors who will not support interest borrowing and vanity projects. Investors are welcome as a matter of open business without reference to their religious background. The Sukuk is a fund not supervised or administered with Islamic system of laws or liturgy. Moreover, it is regulated in the strictest terms by the Nigerian Security and Exchange Commission, SEC, on the same general principles by which other regular bonds are administered. Let us note that the Security and Exchange Commission is at present being headed by Arumeh Otteh, a known Christian woman.
It is very important to point out that by the nature of the regulations establishing the Sukuk under the laws of Nigeria as a secular state, when a person invests in the Sukuk, he becomes a bondholder, not a lender of cash. What he has in the fund is not cash but investment. The Security and Exchange Commission, SEC is directly responsible for managing the relationship between the bondholders and the state government. In other words, investors have no means of relating directly with the state government to initiate a conventional lender-borrower relationship. They must go through the SEC, following established guidelines that have weeded off sentiments that could in any form coerce or put pressures on the borrower or impose obligations that can upset the social order.
All these measures have been taken by the SEC in formulating the guiding laws issuance of bonds so that the danger of a sour and oppressive borrower-lender relationship developing is not given a chance, to begin with. As for our being the first state, I think it is simply that someone has to be the first. It has its downside being the first in some instances, but perhaps, it is the reluctance to have to face the fire of this type of scrutiny that have made other states draw back hitherto. Professionally speaking, however, obtaining clearance from Nigerian regulatory authorities to raise a bond is not a walk in the park. It is an undertaking that passes the camel through the eye of the needle. The balance sheet of the applicant state is carefully combed in a process that takes about a year. Not many states can pass that stringent test of transparency and proven financial health.
Why haven’t states like Zamfara and others in Northern Nigeria taken this step of Islamic financing options?
For reasons stated above, perhaps, and it will also apply to any other state in any region of the country.
Is this not a step toward the establishment of Sharia system of jurisprudence in Osun State?
From your perspective I can understand this concern. Any Christian who is aware on the professional character of this funding system is bound to have justifiable fears and we recognized this all along as a government. We recognize the other side of the coin furthermore, namely, the inordinate triumphalist feelings that some Muslims may harbor that the Islamic religion is being institutionalized or enhanced by actions of government. I wish to restate that the only way the sukuk has to do with the Islamic religion – the only way it partakes from faith – is its non-interest nature and the fact that it cannot be used to fund enterprises that are related to prostitution and alcohol, marijuana or other vanities. Personally I appreciate the fact that non-interest lending actually started with the Israelites of the Biblical times who were divinely instructed not to give loans to their countrymen on interest. This was categorically declared an unfair practice. With this in mind, non-interest banking really has not affronted the conscience of a Christian. It has not imposed a value on him that is contrary to his faith.
NEWS HERALD