Mr Remi Omowaiye, the  Commissioner for Innovation, Science and Technology in Osun, has described Gov. Rauf Aregbesola as a symbol of good governance for upcoming generations.

Omowaiye told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Tuesday in Ibadan  that the governor had  promoted growth and development in the state.

He also described as laughable the threats by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to take over in Osun in  2018.

Highlighting Aregbesola’s achievements, he stated that the school feeding programme of  the  administration had  increased primary school enrollment by 60 percent.

Omowaiye said the Osun Youth Empowerment Scheme (OYES) as well as massive road and school infrastructure projects had   become models  for other states.

“Unfortunately, the governor has been circumstantial victim of misrepresentation and orchestrated media attack.

“It is on record that the SUKUK loan which was used as part of the re-engineering tool in the state has become a template for the Federal Government  now despite the widespread criticism against the noble idea.

“Even some European countries have become beneficiaries of the loan too after Osun,’’ he said.

He said that the bailout fund given to the state was transparently and judiciously spent on the payment of salaries and pension to state and local government workers as well as OYES cadets.

The commissioner stated that the state was given a  clean bill by the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission after  investigation of alleged diversion of bailout funds  and Paris Club refund.

The occasion of the 57th anniversary of national independence should give us a cause for deep reflection and critical thinking without necessarily taking anything away from the celebration.
 
 
 
 
I use this occasion to congratulate Nigerians, the good people of Osun in particular. It is a thing of great joy, irrespective of our collective or individual circumstances, to be alive to celebrate the anniversary of our nation’s independence.
For some of us who were born before independence, it was a momentous event for us. Though I was a child at independence in 1960, the ferments of the struggle against colonialism still remained with us in my growing up years while the substitution and replacement of white colonialists with our people that followed was dramatic enough to give us a deeper appreciation of independence.

With the benefit of hindsight, some of the hopes and aspirations of the pre and immediate post independence era have been betrayed and this is regrettable. We dreamt then of Nigeria becoming a superpower in one or two decades after independence. This dream was even shared by some of the great powers of the era who saw us as potential competitors, first for regional hegemony and also on a global scale in economic, social, political, sporting and diplomatic contests. Many of them have since relaxed, feeling their fears then were unfounded. However, the dream of greatness is an undying one. Nigeria can and will still be great.
Though this issue has been over flogged, it still needs reiterating – that our bane since military interregnum has been overt reliance on rent from crude oil. Let us be clear on this, oil is a blessing, not a curse. The problem is what you make of it. Oil has been a blessing in the Scandinavian countries, Libya, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Angola, United States, Britain, Norway, Venezuela, Canada, Russia and several other places where it has been well utilized as a catalyst for development and wealth creation.
Our own problem, like several oil rich nations, is that we live on its rent and do not build any productive activity around it. That is why, beyond exportation, oil is practically useless for us. We cannot even refine for local consumption until current efforts by the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari. Even then, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources told us recently that 92 per cent of local consumption is still being imported at the cost of $28 billion in 2016. We then import every other thing, including food, clothing and most of our building materials.
Now, the price of oil has fallen and the portents are still bad. This is in the wake of a tectonic shift in technology from internal combustion engines to electrical engines in automobiles.
Nevertheless, a lot of people still believe we are rich with crude oil, only if there is equitable distribution of the resources. Now, corruption has made the scarcity to be worse. Corruption is evil, it disrupts the development process and should be stamped out. However, without corruption, we are still a poor nation, even with oil.
Let us do this simple calculation. Nigeria’s daily production quota from OPEC is put at 2.1 million barrels per day. Let us note that we have never met this production and sales quota in the last 10 years. Nevertheless, if we multiply this imaginary production quota with 365 days, which make a year, we have 766.5 million barrels of crude oil as our total foreign exchange oil earning resource. This is assuming there is no production disruption from militants’ activities in the Niger Delta and unsold inventory which could be up to half a million barrels sometimes.
Since oil sells for an average of $50 now, this will give us $38.325 billion in total sales per annum. Remember we have not deducted production and associated expenditures; this is the gross income, joint venture partners are assumed volunteers.
If we divide this amount by 170 million, which is our conservative population estimate, it goes round to roughly $225.44 per head per annum. This is further reducible to $18.786 in a month. At an exchange rate of N370, it amounts to N7,000. This calculation simply means that every Nigerian is entitled to N7,000 monthly from oil wealth at best!
How about income from other sources? Since oil accounts for 70 per cent of total national revenue, this figure will only rise to  N10,000.
Let’s say someone wants to experiment with this calculation and give to every Nigerian N10,000 unearned income, it means there will be no government; bureaucracy and associated wages, paying salaries, no executive, legislature and the judiciary, no police, military, public education, roads, airport, international relations, etc. This without a doubt means anarchy.
I have gone to this length to demonstrate that we are not rich at all, even with the oil wealth. The per capita income from oil would probably have been better if we have just one tenth of our population.
This makes the issue of diversification of our economy and productivity imperative. Productivity is the ability to alter any state of matter or service, alone or in combinations into a more desirable form – product or service. The process of bringing about that alteration, or the effort we put into achieving this, is called work.
The initial condition or base material for these processes is often as freely set by nature, while the derived output or product is as contrived by man in his imagination. Thus, sound notes put together productively equals music, otherwise it is noise. Rubbles put together constructively is a house, otherwise it is just a dump of rubbles.
The challenge before us as a nation is therefore to earn income from productivity, not from rent. On this note, I will like to posit that we should get 50 million of our compatriots to be working i.e. engaged in productive activities that will bring them at least N25,000 a month. From this, N1.25 trillion will be generated in the economy every month from real productive engagement.

These jobs can be created and paid for by ways and means in diverse areas of the economy like agriculture and food production, clothing and footwear, housing, environment, critical public infrastructure like roads, bridges, airports, railways, water resources development etc that will provide basic needs for the people and cut our imports by 90 per cent, reducing foreign goods to critical machineries and raw materials we do not have at home. This will catapult Nigeria into a superpower within two decades.
In Osun we are already working on this. We are striving to put at least one million of our over four million population to work. If they earn a minimum of N25,000 a month, a 10 per cent tax from this will give us revenue of N2.5billion every month. This amount will be sufficient to run the government, pay workers, develop our state and bring prosperity to all.
If this is replicated in all the states of the federation, Nigeria will be prosperous without oil money. This is my dream for our country and it is my sincere hope that at this occasion of our independence celebration, leaders in the public and private sectors will critically engage this idea.
Once again, I congratulate all Nigerians and wish us all a happy Independence celebration.
• Ogbeni Aregbesola is Osun State Governor

Reports coming in say Ogbeni Aregbesola’s achievement in the education sector has brought about  mass withdrawal of students from private schools.

 
 
 
Parents of students attending public schools in the State of Osun have lauded the approach of Ogbeni  Rauf Aregbesola to the State’s education sector which they say has improved the lot of education since 2010.
In separate interviews with newsmen in Osogbo, some of the parents noted that the policies being implemented, which includes huge infrastructural investment of government in the erection of new model schools, as well as rehabilitation of existing ones are huge steps in the right direction.
They also applauded the quality of education delivered to students in the new model schools vis-a-vis proper monitoring and mentoring of students. They added that the convoking of regular P.T.A meetings among other initiatives have in a great deal contributed positively to the development of primary and post primary education in the State.
One of the parents who spoke with our correspondent, Adeomi Adegboyega Ajani said, “I am extremely happy with the situation of things in the school. The school is a testimony of the huge investment of government in making our children, the leaders of tomorrow.”
Another parent, Adekola Oluwatoyin said, “my child was formerly going to a private school. When he chose to be in science class in High School, I personally came to assess this school since I knew it was Ataoja School of Science before; and since he started coming here, I have noticed a great improvement in him. Every time he returns from school, he is always keen on doing his assignments because of the next day. I am glad to have made the wise decision to put my child in this school.”
“I have observed that in this and other model schools built by government, our children enjoy the best of the best facilities that are of international standards.”
As it stands, 500 new classrooms have been constructed in 20 elementary schools to accommodate 18,000 pupils, 550 classrooms constructed in 22 middle schools to take in 22,000 students while 11 high schools were completed to take in 33,000 students per session.
Asides the newly built schools, the State of Osun Government in collaboration with the Nigerian Universal Basic Education Board rehabilitated 1,811 classrooms in 277 model schools.
To complement the buildings and population, government provided 45 scholars’ buses that were distributed across the State to provide transport services to all school pupils at affordable rates.
In ensuring that adequate manpower are sourced to get the factual work of education done, more than 9,000 teachers were employed by the Rauf Aregbesola administration including 3,230 regular and 6,000 O’YES Volunteers with about 26,591 of the teachers across the State trained in 26 different training programmes and workshops.
The promotion of 17,057 teaching and non-teaching staff has helped motivate teachers, whilst the employment and subsequent deployment of Edu-Marshals has instilled discipline in public schools and ensure that students do not loiter around the State during school hours.

Ahead of elections into all Local Government Councils in Osun, the Osun State Independent Electoral Commission (OSIEC) has called for registration of all political parties with registered offices in Osun.

 
 
 
A press release signed by the Chairman of OSIEC, Otunba Segun Oladitan, stated that the political parties’ registration with the commission kicks off tomorrow Wednesday, 4th October and ends on Monday 9th October, 2017.
 
 
While giving the location where the registration exercise will hold, he said, OSIEC secretariat, Old Ikirun Road, Testing Ground Area, Osogbo shall be where the registration exercise will hold.
 
 
Otunba Oladitan stated that the exercise becomes very important in view of the strategic position of political parties in electoral matters.
 
He further state that for the forthcoming LG election to be successful and acceptable to all, the OSIEC must be seen to be fair to all political parties and other stake holders, hence the reason for the registration of political parties to know them closely by way of constant interactions.
 
 
The OSIEC Chairman however urged all political parties to cooperate with the commission by taking the registration exercise seriously.