Whatever people might be saying about the outgoing government in Ondo state, you cannot deny the fact that the state was transformed, attractive and rebranded. I will like to highlight just 3 key achievement of Governor Olusegun Mimiko and my worries about the reputation of the new government.

EDUCATION

One of the key achievement of governor Mimiko is the infrastructural development in the areas of education and the undisputable almost free education in the state. Infact, Ondo state was rated as the only state in Nigeria with the cheapest state university and polytechnic. Ondo state currently have about 4 state owned institution (University of medical science, Rufus Giwa polytechnic, Adekunle Ajasin University and Ondo state school of science and technology). How the state manage to handled 4 institution is laudable. Akungba for example pay less than a piety #25,000 as tuition fee, same thing applies to others. Lagos an APC state with a viable economy is finding it hard to sustain 2 institution, infact Lagos state polytechnic now have only 40% support from the state government while LASU is less than 40%, that have inevitably contributed to the hike in tuition fee in the state with students made to pay as high as Two hundred thousand Naira (#200,000.00) for tuition fee while laspotech tuition fee is around #85,000.00. How Olusegun Mimiko government manage to reduce the tuition fee of 4 tertiary institution to the lowest bearest amount which are very affordable to the poor is highy commendable? Another APC state
with a rather and lackaidaisical attitude towards education is OSUN and OYO state. How the two state is finding it hard to manage just one institution is 'unthinkable'. LAUTECH have been in the picture of crisis, unpaid salaries, poor infrastructural development, endless strike due to the maladministration of the two state in question etc if two state cannot handle a university, can we trust other institutions under them? Osun state university seem rather like a private university where student pay school fees like their private counterpart, likewise the state owned polytechnic. Ogun state is another APC state where parents are made to gulp out a ridiculous and unjustifiable school fees (OOU in this case). Above all, ONDO state remained the only state in Nigeria with the lowest state tuition fees, inspite of the state managing 4 institutions. It will also shock you to note that the well equipped MEGA schools built by the Mimiko's led administration charge as low as #3000 for school fees.

MY WORRIES FOR APC ON EDUCATION

Remember in 2012 when Bola Ahmed Tinubu came to Ondo state to campaign for Rotimi Akeredolu, he said in quote ''Ondo state do not need mega schools. if voted in, we will merge those schools ''. The same candidate in 2012, is the governor elect in 2016. Can we conclude that same script will be followed? Since the inception of APC led government, Nigerians have been used to the custom of APC blaming past administration for their own under-performance. In the areas of education, i fear same thing will happen in ondo state soon. The new governor elect may not be able to sustain the legacies of Governor Mimiko, the state owned universities might be scrapped while some may be merged. The Mega schools might be privatized or the school fees reviewed. Based on the manucript of the APC led government in other southwest state, applicants and indigenes should brace up for an 100% increase in the tuition fees of institutions in the state.


HEALTH

It is not a gainsay that the state also possess the cheapest medical fees in the country. Infact, the mother-Child innovation have attracted millions of Nigerians across the state. You no longer have to worry about your maternity fee as chunks of that have been subsidized by the state government. Last year, the state government announced a certain ID card for indigenes in the state where it will give them access to free medical facilities in the state and lot more. I dont know if the new governor elect will continue with the scheme as Nigerian politician dont believe in continuity but to condemn past administration and run the state into calumny with new ideas that might take years to yield. Example is the recession Nigerians are experiencing under this government

AGRICULTURE

Am very sure this will surprise a whole lot of people. Mimiko administration was able to attract investors into the cocoa processing business. Today, Ondo state remain the only state in Nigeria with a functioning cocoa processing firm, inspite of the shortage of dollars in the market. Ondo state also remains the only state in Nigeria generating revenue for the federal government through cocoa exportation. Almost all the cocoa processing firm in Ibadan are dyfunctional. How the governor elect will be able to improve on this area is yet to be known bearing it in mind that many cocoa processing companies complaint to the FG were not responded to.