The merging of public schools in Osun State has generated a considerable dissipation of sentiments bordering on needless controversy in the media lately. While a critical section of the public to which the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) has lent its face by giving the government an ultimatum to rescind its decision, has condemned the move as being tendentious, a handful of others including experienced educationists like Dr Modupe Fagbulu and Professor Olasupo Ladipo have pitched their tents on the side of rationality and endorsed the move.
On separate occasions, both eminent persons have given reasons why the present intervention of the government in public education in the state was not only necessary but urgent. Professor Ladipo said in an interview; “The educational system went bad because we had too many schools and were unable to equip them adequately. Education is expensive and requires equipment. Modern education requires expenses on all the modern amenities. If we do not merge, we will not be able to afford to give sound education to our children who are the future of this nation.”
Before the merging of these public schools that are exclusively financed with public funds, service delivery in the sector had ebbed terribly. Even the so called poor people avoided public primary schools like a plague despite the fact that the more experienced and better trained teachers are there. They would rather send their children to private nursery and primary schools where they imagine their children stand the chance of a head start. Many of these public primary schools lack pupils to justify their existence and they have been visited by such dilapidation that they have become death traps.
If the poor can struggle to avoid public primary schools, they may not be able to sponsor their children and wards to private secondary schools where the fees are steep. Besides, public education is the only avenue through which any society can hope to replenish itself with a better generation and develop its human capital because it offers education to the rich and poor alike. Private education can only take care of the rich who, as it has been proved throughout human history, do not have the exclusive preserve of genius. What will society do to its members that are geniuses but poor? Are they to be left to waste and become human debris? What will be the implication of that on social security? Avenues like public education are what the society use to bridge the gap between the rich and the poor and prevent the anarchy that may result when the number of the social malcontents increases in geometric progression.
This is the premise for public education through which the government can hope to deliver the greatest good for the greatest number to its citizens. But for a long time now, these public schools have failed dismally in this function. The public institutions have gone to seed and any pupil in any of these schools will have to be exceptionally brilliant to pass out with enough credits to earn a place in any institution of higher learning that is worth its salt. It is against this backdrop that the reclassification of schools in Osun should be seen as expedient in order to bring back the glory of these public schools.
Dr Modupe Fagbulu, a retired education planner observed while speaking with reporters recently that when it was obvious that some schools were not viable to operate alone they had to be merged for efficiency and optimal performance in order to restore the lost glory of these public primary and secondary schools which he described as a crucial foundation for any child. It is better to have few schools that are delivering in terms of imparting knowledge to the students and developing human capital than having many schools that cannot answer for the name they are called and churn out massive failures.
Many of these schools lack infrastructure like libraries and laboratories that are crucial to learning. Perhaps the government will seize the opportunity of reclassification to employ seasoned teachers and school administrators and guidance counsellors for these new mega schools at all the levels of elementary, middle and senior schools in order to ensure that the service delivery is both comprehensive and successful in terms of the quality of students passing out from these institutions.
The critics however have based their resentment of the reclassification of schools on sentiments. Although sentiments can have a powerful effect on public perception and politics is in the main perception, yet it is more important and positively functional to eschew sentiments now for the overall need to rescue these public schools from the dysfunction which they represent as they are currently.
The people in Osun really do not have a dilemma to my mind in making a choice between improving the schools through merging and reclassification and thus restoring the glory of public education or retaining the old schools based on sentiments like the alumni’s sense of nostalgia or the odd chance of former single sex schools becoming co-ed or not.
The government of Osun State should see the resistance only as a normal response of the people to change.  It should allay their anxiety and prove itself as a trustworthy outfit that would make the revolution replicable in other states as a result of its success.
TRIBUNE

The Commissioner for Local Government, Barrister Kolapo Alimi has commended the efforts of the Governor of the State of Osun, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola over the inauguration of the Local Government Service Commission which according to him was long overdue.

Barrister Kolapo Alimi disclosed this while playing host to the Chairman of the Local Government Service Commission and his team who paid him a courtesy visit in his Office.

Barrister Alimi stated that the inauguration of the Commission could not have come at a better time and tasked the commission under the chairmanship of Dr. Peter Babalola to live-up to expectations given its onerous task of correcting the wrongs embedded in the Local Government administration in the state as well as summoning up enough courage to proffer solutions to the numerous problems that have bedeviled the system.

Dr. Peter Babalola had earlier confirmed that his team was not out to witch-hunt any local government workers but to collaborate with the government in bringing and restoring good governance at the local level.

Dr. Peter Babalola stated further that his visit to the Ministry is to reinforce inter-sectoral collaboration as well as joining hands with the Ministry of Local Government to check the lapses that have become the bane of the Local Government administration and to restore discipline to the Local Government system in the state.

OSUNNEWSPORTAL

Wife of the State of Osun Governor, Mrs. Sherifat Aregbesola, has said that the poor attitude of women to screening was responsible for the high rate of cancer amongst them.
Speaking in Osogbo at a seminar to sensitise women on the need to carry out self- examination and the screening for breast cancer detection, Aregbesola said that cancer vaccines should be made available in hospitals and health centres to assist in the prevention of the disease.
She added that cancer could be cured when detected early, noting that most cancer patients die of the disease because their cases were detected very late.
She advocated for a free distribution of routine human papilloma virus vaccine for boys and girls at ages 11 and 12 to prevent cancer in later years.
“Though largely preventable, cervical cancer kills more women in developing countries than any other cancer in any other parts of the world.
“Cervical cancer is highly preventable, because screening tests for cervical cancer and vaccines to prevent the human papilloma virus, which is the main cause of cervical cancer, are available. HPV vaccines offer the greatest benefits to persons who receive all three doses before sexual exposure to HPV through sexual activity,” she said.
In her address, the state Commissioner for Health, Dr. Temitope Ilori, explained that women who were screened and detected early of breast cancer had 90 per cent survival rate, adding that breast cancer is the leading cause of cancer death among African women.
She said, “Five hundred thousand new cases of cancer of the cervix occur every year in the world, but over 250,000 of these result in deaths. We should also note that majority of the cases occur in developing countries.”
THE NATION

Prime Football Club of the State of Osun have concluded their 1-Week rigorous open screening exercise embarked upon at National Youth Development Centre, Ode-Omu.
The ‘Omoluabi Giants’ have been silent about their recruitments ahead of next season but the team is striving at achieving promotion dream to the elite division next season with discipline and hard work.
A statement credited to the team’s spokesman, Tunde Shamsudeen, noted that the team will this week concentrate on invited players to see how they can blend on time with the old players retained from last season’s squad. He said no fewer than 180 players came for the open screening but only the best of all the players were given consideration.
Shamsudeen insists Prime will compete for honours in the upcoming season with the bunch of exceptional players present in camp. He further stated that selection of players has been on merit and that the crop of players at the team’s disposal has been charged to prove that they deserve to be Prime players, as this week will be for elimination by substitution.
The club’s management also poured encomiums on the State of Osun Government for the support rendered to the team and looked forward at reciprocating such gesture with desired results.
Prime FC have played four pre-season friendly matches, won two and drawn two.
THE NATION

Governor of the State of Osun, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, recently added another feather to his cap by winning the Integrity Award in Accra, the Ghanaian capital.
The award was bestowed on him by the Integrity International Magazine based in Ghana for a special recognition of his leadership quality.
The Head, African operation of the magazine, Dr. Richard Ikpada, said Aregbesola clinched the award because of his outstanding quality and integrity in running the affairs of the State of Osun.
Ikpada said after critical assessment of governments and leaders, Aregbesola’s name was recurring among men of integrity in power, having made integrity a cornerstone of his administration.
According to him: “On the African continent today, there is leadership without integrity. However, Governor Aregbesola’s name keeps recurring like decimal on integrity index.
“We at the Integrity International look out for personalities who make integrity a hallmark of their government and so we picked Aregbesola for making integrity the watchword of his government. He is certainly in the league of men and women of integrity on the continent today.”
Ikpada said the Governor should view the award as a commendation for good performance and as such he such seeing it as an elixir for his government to go extra mile in rendering quality services to the people.
Governor Aregbesola, in his response, expressed his gratitude to Integrity international for the recognition of his government’s little effort at repositioning the state and re-defining governance.
He promised that his administration, which focus is the people of the state, would not relent in its effort to deliver quality services to the people, saying government exits only to provide welfare service to the people.
“I am highly pleased to have been recognised by your organisation. I also express my gratitude to the management for identifying with the things we are doing in our little corner on the continent.
“For taking the pain to come all way from Ghana for the presentation is equally deserving of commendation. And I promise that the award will serve as a tonic for the administration in its efforts to deliver democracy dividends to the people,” Aregbesola said.
OSUN DEFENDER

A strong economy dictates the phase of political development. Prominent Nigerians have lately advocated the need to diversify the economy of the country. There were strong comments that the country should diversify from oil based to agro-allied based economy. Thus, since the advent of the current political dispensation about 14 years ago, many states have embarked on various shades of commercial agriculture. However, some of the states have turned the lofty policy and programmes into a political propaganda rather than the intended objective. In the light of the above, a critical appraisal of some of Governor Rauf Aregbesola’s agricultural policies and programmes of activities is necessary. 
Governor Rauf Aregbesola, while justifying the huge amount committed by his administration to agricultural sector in the state opined that; “The neglect of agricultural sector by successive administrations in the country has the tendency of exposing the nation to famine as it is being experienced in some developing nations like Somalia, Niger Republic and Sudan.”
Warning the country, he said: “The phenomenon could also affect Nigeria’s foreign earnings if the current development in all nations of the world as regards the discoveries of oil is anything to go by. The United States of America, China and other developed countries which Nigeria rely upon for consumption of its oil produce could now guarantee large deposit of oil in its land, by implication, Nigeria is heading to a doom.”
He added, “To this end, Nigeria would find it difficult to meet its obligation through proceeds from oil, hence there is urgent need for the nation to diversify its economy to agricultural sector.”
“It is in realisation of its green book called: Six Point Integral Action Plan of banishment of hunger, poverty, unemployment, provision of functional education and restoration of healthy living and enhancement of communal peace and progress that make government to reposition the sector for economic gains.
The state Commissioner for Agriculture and Food sufficiency, Hon. Richard Adewale  Adedoyin in giving the score sheet of the administration in the sector said that :”In recognition of the agrarian nature of Osun State and its enormous potential for employment generation, a deliberate policy for mass food production, the Osun Rural Enterprise and Agricultural Programme (O-REAP) has been designed to enable the Ministry gives priority attention to agriculture commodity value chain spanning production, processing, storage, preservation and marketing.
“The mission of O-REAP is to achieve food security, wealth and job creation, youth empowerment, economic transformation and making the state the hub of agriculture and an emporium of commerce in the South-West. The mission is a strategy to capture Lagos market through supply of at least 10% of the daily three billion worth of food in the state. As part of
efforts to fulfil its social contract with the people of the state, Aregbesola placed considerable emphasis on hunger and poverty alleviation which is the core value of National Economic Empowerment and Development Strategy, (NEEDS) and attainment of Millennium Development Goals.
“The present administration is working round the clock towards the attainment of the objectives of the O-REAP programme through sustainable implementation strategies to aid the operation of farmers through land acquisition, land clearing, tractorisation and private public partnership as well as provision of enabling environment for farmers to maximise their potential. O-REAP programme focus on different agricultural initiatives which include Osun Broilers Out growers’ production scheme. The Beef Chain Development Programme, O-REAP Fish Farm Estates, Osun Fisheries Out-growers production scheme, O-REAP Youth Academy, Agricultural credit, Farm Service Centres, Provision of storage facilities and seedling production as well as farm settlement scheme.
“These schemes have drastically redefined agricultural system in the state as farmers have access to over 1,000 day chicks under the Osun Broilers Out-growers Production Scheme (O-BOPS). Most of the farmers who participated in O-Broiler scheme made sustainable profit. The O-Broiler initiative is yielding positive results due to its linkage to O-Meals, a school feeding programme which provides a sustainable market for poultry farmers in the state.
“O-Fish scheme of the present administration has opened window of opportunitiess for fish farmers through public private partnership arrangement. Over 800,000 kilogram of cat fish are expected to be produced and processed by over four thousand fish farmers yearly in the state.
“Having realised the need for Youths Empowerment through agricultural programme, the present administration in Osun State under the leadership of Aregbesola established O-REAP Youth Academy. The Academy is expected to serve as tool for youth empowerment and job creation. Over nine hundred youths selected from Osun State Youths Empowerment Scheme,
OYES Cadets are undergoing eight months training in modern skills and techniques in agricultural practices. Upon their graduation, the government would equip the youths with farm land, farm inputs and credit facilities.
The training centres are located at Osogbo, Ila, Ede, Ile-Ogbo, Wasinmi,
Ilesa, Oyan and Esa-Odo, as well as Ile-Ife.
“In its bid to make the state the food basket of the nation through adaptation of modern farming techniques, 20 youths of the state are currently in Germany for training in modern agricultural practices. The beauty of various training programmes often organised for the youths by the government under its Agricultural Intervention Programme lies in the provision of enabling environment for the application of their acquired skills with the conceptualisation of the state rural enterprise and agriculture programme, the programme has created opportunity for investors to come and establish agro allied industries in the state.
“Also, the present administration also designed quick impact intervention programme, which focuses on small holding farmers and micro-credit management for cooperative farmers. The programme has made significant impact as cooperative groups were strengthened and agricultural activities increased substantially in the state.  Within two years, 77 farmers were registered for farmers’ cooperative groups and over 1,000 hectares of land were cultivated while over 1,000 jobs were created through the intervention.
“There is no doubt that the success recorded by government under the intervention programme informed the design of Central Bank, commercial banks and agricultural enterprises to support government to enhance production of maize, cassava, rice and vegetables in the state.
“Aside from making agriculture a key component of its economy, the present administration also belief in the ideal of making the sector more attractive to youth, government has designed an agriculture programme for the training of primary and secondary school students in the art of farming. To ensure actualisation of the dream, Osun State Government has provided schools in the state with necessary inputs for practical training for the production of cassava, maize and cocoa-yam, while about 10 schools were assisted on piggery and poultry production.
“In its stride to revitalise farm settlement in the state and make the state the food basket of the nation, the incumbent administration has focused on farm settlement with a view to repositioning the settlement to be in tandem with global practice. In the year 2011, about 50 hectares of virgin forest land were cleared, prepared and allocated to 10 farmers free of charge at Mokore Farm Settlement as part of efforts to enhance productivity of farmers and provide food in abundance for people of the state.
“In 2012, government extends the gesture to Iwo Farm Settlement with clearing of one hundred hectares of land to 20 farmers. Government also provided accessible road for the farm settlement so as to link farmers with the market. Other farm settlements that are also enjoying the presence of government include – Ago-Owu and Oyere Aborisade farm settlements, among others.
“Also in its bid to make life more bearable for farmers and enhance  production, the state government has distributed farm inputs ranging from CP 15 Sprayer, Grammozone and Atrazine to one 1,830 (One thousand, eight hundred and thirty) farmers in the state. The beauty of the present administration’s agricultural policies and programmes lies in the application of technology into farming through provision of agro chemicals to farmers to encourage massive food production across the state. To say the present administration is working towards reclaiming the old glory of people of South-West is stating the obvious, This is as a result of the efforts of government in providing free cocoa seedlings to cocoa farmers in the state.
To crown it up, over N10m was released to cocoa farmers recently to boost cocoa production and boost Internally Generated Revenue of the state. The state has enormous Agricultural resources that can be optimally exploited to achieve laudable objectives of poverty alleviation and overall economic prosperity for the entire state.
The climate of the state is very clement and conducive for the commercial production of eight major categories of agricultural produce with extensive potential for industrial utilisation. The agricultural produce include cereals like maize, roots and tubers, e.g cassava yam, coco-yam, fruits and vegetable, orange, cashew, mango, tomatoes, etc.
“With the current stride in the sector, the present administration has opened windows of opportunity for both local and foreign investors to tap into production of produce for commercial purpose and industrial use, thus, attesting to government’s determination to diversify the state economy to agricultural sector.”
The commissioner maintained that various interventions of the ministry is yielding positive results towards attainment of the six point integral action plan of the present administration in the state. Adedoyin noted that the training of some youths in Germany on modern agricultural practice and training of over 900 youths in modern farming techniques under O-REAP programme would not only serve as source of wealth generation, but a viable tool for employment generation in the state.
The commissioner said further that, “O-Concept’ as strategy for the revitalisation of the agricultural sector in the state was aimed at transforming the state economy through the sector. Food is life, it is in realisation of this fact that the present administration under the leadership of Aregbesola increased budgetary allocation of the sector to over eight billion Naira in 2013 fiscal year to cater for various programmes of the Ministry to make agriculture more profitable and attractive, as well as a good venture for making food available in the state, with spill over effects on other states of the federation”.
DAILY NEWSWATCH

From left, President,UN World Summit Awards , Professor Peter Bruck ,
Governor State of Osun , Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola , Mr. Foluso Phillps ,
Chairman/CEO, Phillips Consulting , Management Consultant Company for Opon
Imo *at the presentation of the World Summit Awards for Opon Imo at WSA
Global Congress in Sri Lanka Saturday night

Africa’s leading representative, Nigeria, won two awards in eight categories, at the Grand Finale of the ceremony. The award ceremony was the climax of the week-long annual assembly of the world’s most innovative e-content initiatives in the following categories: e-Government & Open Data, e-Health & Environment, e-Learning & Science, e-Entertainment & Games, e-Business & Commerce, e-Culture & Tourism, e-Media & Journalism and e-Inclusion & Participation.

The august event was inaugurated by His Excellency, Mahinda Rajapaksa, the President of Sri Lanka.

The winning projects, TRANSPARENT NIGERIA (e-Government & Open Data category), pioneered by Harvard based Mr. Uchechi Iweala (son of Nigeria’s Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala), and OPON IMO – Tablet of Knowledge (e-Learning & Science category) from the State of Osun, triumphed over 421 other innovations for the 2013 Awards vetted by the grand jury of global eminent experts.
The World Summit Awards (WSA) is a project of the International Centre for New Media, which is organised among 190 UN-member States and runs within the United Nations (UN) framework of the World Summit on the Information Society. The World Summit Awards has been an on-going activity since 2003 in cooperation with UNIDO, UNESCO, ITU, ISOC, UN GAID and UNDP.
Osun’s Tablet of Knowledge, OPON IMO received its award following a Grand Jury evaluation
“The State Government of Osun in Nigeria, as part of its strategic mandate to meet the educational needs of students in Osun, commissioned delivery of 150,000 units custom-based Android tablets (a library of easily navigable text books). The tablets are packed in bear rugged leather to protect from harsh conditions of various remote areas of Nigeria and its schools.
What makes the project attractive is the archival availability of content in terms of questions for the last ten years for the Senior Secondary students of all 3 levels. Hoping that the students may not be required to look for physical text books, the tablet is enriched with multimedia contents including video, images, text and referential materials and test questions for practice.”
The grandeur of the closing ceremony obviously sets the tone for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) coming up at the same venue, same city, in the next two weeks in Sri Lanka. Professor Peter Bruck, Chairman of WSA and, the Secretary to the Government of Sri Lanka, Mr. Lalith Weeratunga drew the curtains on this Year’s event. The next event comes up in 2015.

Photos from the graduation and presentation on Investment for Osun Youth Empowerment Scheme (O-Yes) Cadets from Ilesha, held at the Governor’s office, Abere, Osogbo, State of Osun, at the weekend

Participant of investment training, Ogedengbe Beatrice (lef); Abiola
Oluwaseun (front); Oyewale Micheal (3rd right) and other O-Yes Cadets
who participated in Goodness Insecticide and airfreshner making
project, during the graduation and presentation on Investment for
Osun Youth Empowerment Scheme (O-Yes) Cadets from Ilesha, held at
Governors office, Abere, Osogbo, State of Osun , at the weekend

From right, Director General, Bureau of Economic Development and
Partnership, State of Osun, Dr. Charles Akinola; Managing Director,
Generation Enterprise, Mr Bunmi Otegbade and One of the Coordinators
of O-Yes, Mr Femi Faturoti, during the graduation and presentation on
Investment for Osun Youth Empowerment Scheme (O-Yes) Cadets from
Ilesha, held at Governors office, Abere, Osogbo, State of Osun, at the
weekend

From left, Director General, Bureau of Economic Development and
Partnership, State of Osun, Dr. Charles Akinola; Co coordinator,
Goodness Insecticide Project, Mr. Kunle Odenola and Managing Director,
Generation Enterprise, Mr Bunmi Otegbade, during the graduation and
presentation on Investment for Osun Youth Empowerment Scheme (O-Yes)
Cadets from Ilesha, held at Governors office, Abere, Osogbo, State of
Osun, at the weekend