₦airaland Forum

Commendable also is Amosun's commitment to quality roads.



http://www.ogunstate.gov.ng/index.php/news/518-ogun-signs-n903bn-road-contracts

Ogun signs N90.3bn road contracts

The Ogun State Government today signed contracts worth over N90.3bn for the construction of 8 roads across the three Senatorial Districts of the State.

Commissioner for Works and Infrastructure, Arch. Olalekan Adegbite who signed on behalf of the State Government at the event witnessed by a cross section of newsmen in the State, said the roads were part of the 14 that Government had earmarked for construction at the sum of N130b

The roads according to Adegbite are 25km Ilisan-Ago Iwoye, 9km Ejirin-Oluwalogbon Junction and Sagamu 7km Benin Express junction-Oba Erinwole junction in Ogun East Senatorial District,

Others are the 4.8km Ilo-Awela Road and 60 km Ilara-Ijoun-Egua-Oja Odan Road in Ogun West senatorial District. In the Ogun Central Senatorial District, Adegbite said the 6km MKO Abiola way, 9km Ojere-Adatan Roundabout and the 8.7km Brewery junction-OGTV are also to be constructed.

Recalling that Government had earlier placed advertisement in the media inviting interested contractors to bid, the Commissioner maintained that due process was strictly followed before the four to handle the projects were selected, revealing that the period of completion varied between 18 and 24 months.

Also speaking at the contract signing ceremony, the Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr. Wemimo Ogunde SAN, said signing the contract in the presence of newsmen was a demonstration of government’s seriousness and commitment to the execution of its 5-cardinal programmes, saying that carrying the people along to elicit feedback remained a crucial aspect of responsive governance.

”Letting the people know what we are doing is important¸ we want to be given feedback. We want our people to know what government is doing and we want their support .”Ogunde remarked.

Responding on behalf of other contractors, Mr. Paolo Prono from Borini Prono & Co. Ltd promised that they will do their best to comply with terms of the contracts signed, build quality roads and deliver within record time.

Other successful contractors that signed at the ceremony include the China Civil Engineering Construction Company, PW Nigeria Limited and Hitech Construction Company Ltd. The event was witnessed by the Commissioners for Finance, Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs and Information and Strategy, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, Basorun Muyiwa Oladipo and Barrister Yusuph Olaniyonu respectively.

bolajess: @Gbawe .. I am not a perfect guy neither are you and this is a discussion .. if there was only Aregbesola and Oyinlola on the ballot, I would vote Aregbesola but we all should be honest and not argue blindly .. I have learned my lessons from the last general elections when I voted GEJ because I couldn't trust that Buhari wasnt a religious or ethnic bigot. GEJ is just too bad beyond bad.

However for the allocation, Aregbesola took N25B loan and mind you he met N9B in the state covers ( being the unspent balance from the N18.6B loan Oyinlola took), and after that he took another bond of N65B. So use your head and add that up with you almost N2B a month and tell me what you get in almost 25 Months. Mind you, Aregbesola had a budget of over N120B in almost 2 years. So tell me something else.

I urge you to fight these idiots rather than praise them. Mind you Aregbe in 2 years hasn't commissioned any single road project successfully completed. Rather it is always noise. He said Mimiko was stupid for claiming to build mega schools and yet he is deceiving himself that he is building mega schools.

Oga, this is where you shot yourself in the foot. Only members of the PDP, Osun State chapter, are running around peddling this falsehood. Osun did not take any 65 billion bond and you sir, are lying. I won't even dignify the rest of your 'abracadabra' figures with a response.

olafolarin: If a Former Governor can be this personally affected with the road expansion going on in Ogun state, why are street traders complaining ?
Exhuming Corpse is almost a taboo in Yorubaland especially for a former state leader.

Amosun is a very determined dude. Cross him at your own peril.

@Topic.
The governor should keep up the good work. I can see Ogun State vastly transformed under Amosun in the next 2 years to the extent Lagosians will relocate to the State and those who left will return.

bolajess: Let it be know to all here that although the project is a fantastic step. Aregbesola is only building that one alone in Osogbo and on an express road for propaganda only. I believe it were to be an honest and sincere project, it should be at least 1 in every local government. Please dear Nigerians lets wake up and not be deceived by little propaganda's anymore .. Aregbe as collected over 300B and this is just what he has to show us. Let's kick ACN, PDP and all other liers away. We can't continue like this. Osun has over 400 schools and builing one in 2 years is madness. It will take us 800 years to re-build all 400 at this crazy pace. Stand up my people. I live in Osun and I know what I am saying.

My friend, stop the lies !! Where do you get 300 billion from? What is Osun's monthly allocation from the FG? You better find out before trying to sell a pack of lies here or discredit those genuinely making an effort. Because you live in Osun does not mean you are one of those who are fair-minded or interested in the stark realities of things.

Tell me, does Osun not have recurrent expenses? How much do you think is left for capital spending after salaries and other expenses are paid? What was the IGR before Aregbesola came on board and how many times has the State clearly expressed it's plan to raise money for Schools, roads and other infrastructural project because what it receives as allocation is simply insufficient? Minimally, you need to appreciate that Osun is a very poor State .

Figures and statistics are even available to back this up for crying out loud. Let us try to be fair. Only god knows where you got 300 billion from or the Notion that the N3.5 billion per month , the real figure from allocation accruing to Osun from the FG, will miraculously build all you want to see even if Osun chooses to spend every kobo on building schools and reject honouring it recurrent obligation . Is the notion of feasibility not real for you? We have done this to death many times here and you guys should stop dumbing down this forum with your wild claims.

https://www.nairaland.com/793016/pdp-asks-aregbesola-account-n100bn/1#9464059

Adetunji maintained that the state government could conveniently pay the ₦18,000 minimum wage across board considering the average income of the state put at ₦3.9 billion monthly out of which ₦1.8 billion is required for the payment of salaries and wages of workers in the state based on the new minimum wage.


While giving a breakdown of the monthly income of the state from January to June 2011, Mr Adetunji disclosed that the federal allocation and Value Added Tax alone stood at ₦3.5 billion each month

Paul John:
When the subject(ebelechukwu) to defend is undefendable, best thing is to adjust to prevent been stupi.d in the eye of the observers.

Jmaine, good move

I think Beaf got the memo about all the work commencing in Osun and that was why he ran with tail between legs How would he have lived all this down after trying to discredit Aregbesola 24/7 here and leading others in idiocy against the Osun governor on NL? Solely because of that cretin, many unthinking ignoramuses began to parrot the silly talk of Aregbesola living in Lagos while raising a New Boko Haram.

I used to warn the chap and others that it is a weakness to hate others to the extent sense, fairness and an appreciation for honesty is compromised. If Beaf wanted to pick anyone to hate and attack non-stop then he was extremely foolish picking Aregbesola. Some of us, in vain, showed the slowpoke that Aregbesola was commissioner of the year twice in Lagos for his good work - especially related to infrastructural development. Proven performers ,like Aregbesola, don't suddenly become incompetent while the mediocrity Beaf worshiped, i.e GEJ, cannot become a performer overnight regardless of the copious amount of spin him and others deploy on behalf of Mr.President. Histories of administrators matter. It should never be ignored or disregarded. Aregbesola's history showed he was like to deliver while GEJ's history showed exactly what sensible folks could expect from him. Like I always say, time will prove the positions of everyone right or wrong. Anyhoo, good to see Aregbesola proving detractors wrong.

NRI PRIEST: I don't think there is anything wrong with that school,afterall Osun isn't an oil producing state like Delta,AKS,Rivers and co. The structures are decent and I'm sure they will pave the compound and do the lawn to bring in the greenery that will give it that lush look.

Indeed. It is unfinished. I have seen the rendering of the finished model and it looks very nice. Let us remember Osun has to strike a balance commensurate with budget. The school is very good progress in light of what it replaced.

[quote author=Akanbi_edu]Jmaine wetin happen na? Why the change since Beaf left?[/quote] Jmaine dey Kampe. Beaf was something of an 'alagbara' to some. since he left, awon boyz ti ko igba wo le.

[quote author=I-B.]Something like that was there before been brought down and replaced with those.[/quote]OP, please share more pictures when you can to shame the ungodly, hateful and mainly bigoted characters always lying to the forum that "ACN governors are doing nothing" and "only Fashola is working". It goes to show how hateful the heart of some folks are. Aregbesola should simply stay focused. I told many here that Osun had clearly enunciated the plans it would follow after putting its finance in order from the mess Oyinlola caused.

Now, after the planning and financial restructuring stage, as some of us insisted, we are seeing project implementation stage. Some bad belle folks will certainly develop high blood pressure here with your pictures. If it is to shout that SW Governor are doing nothing or to attempt discrediting Fashola then this thread will be 20 pages long and dominated by voices froim outside the region. Mysteriously, those same set of irritants are missing here. The usual garrulous characters always asking "what have ACN governors done" will not show face here. Anyway, god help the haters. It must suck going through life with a heavy sack of 'bad belle' on one's back.

To put things in perspective as well, it is important for folks to know that the School featured by the OP replaces the sort seen below because Aregbesola insists that children must learn in an adequately modern environment that will stimulate learning. Meanwhile Oyinlola , for almost 8 years, thought it okay to let children in the SW gain education in glorified Chicken coops while him and his gang embezzled every kobo.

https://mw2.google.com/mw-panoramio/photos/medium/20598115.jpg

cogitoErgo: sad that somebody is doing a good job?
I-B, which pat of Osogbo?
Hope Ogbeni will equip and staff this accordnly and also wsh many of this in other part of Osun.
Ipinle Omoluabi ti dara!

It will be well-equipped. I think this is one of the model school they want to replaced the dilapidated and old schools with everywhere.


http://www.ngrguardiannews.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=96637:fanoro-osun-state-re-inventing-education-for-purposeful-development&catid=38:columnists&Itemid=615

Fanoro: Osun State: Re-inventing Education For Purposeful Development
SATURDAY, 25 AUGUST 2012 00:00 BY ABIODUN FANORO OPINION - COLUMNISTS



EDUCATION, many agree, is the best legacy any society can bequeath to its youths, as it is the driving force behind the development of such a society. It is also a fact that any society that denies its younger generation quality education closes the door on its advancement culturally, traditionally and technologically.

This was obvious during the reign of the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo as premier of the defunct Western Region, when he proclaimed free education for all its citizenry from elementary to tertiary level. Today, Nigeria still benefits from what Awolowo gave the younger generation of his time, in all facets of life.

Following the nation’s departure from regional government however, the nation’s education sector began to decline in the area of infrastructure, such as classrooms, writing materials, laboratories, teaching materials, teacher training and so on. Unfortunately, it does seem successive governments both at the state and federal levels have not shown adequate concern over the decline in the sector for decades.

Today, the quality of graduates produced in Nigerian universities is the evidence of the quality of education across the country. From primary schools to tertiary institutions, the education standard has fallen to an extent that it no longer seems to be contributing to either individual or national development.

During this period, the state of Osun was not an exception; the quality of infrastructure in public schools nosedived, including the state-owned tertiary institution. Most of the schools were turned into kangaroo certificate- awarding centres. Osun, which used to be a pride among its peers in education, became one of the least performing states, as only 3 percent of its candidates in the 2010 West African Examination Council (WAEC) secondary school certificate exams had five credits, including English Language and Mathematics.

However, immediately the government of Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola was inaugurated in November 2010, his first assignment was to convey an education summit, the first ever in the state, to look into ways of revolutionising the sector. It was chaired by the renowned Nobel Laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka with other stakeholders in the sector, with a view to making education a major contributor to the development of individuals and the society as a whole.

[b]Determined to implement the recommendation of the summit, the governor is committing N30 billion to building 170 new model schools across the state to replace the dilapidated buildings with modern facilities.

20 of these schools are for the Senior High students termed high school, that is, SSS 1 to SSS 3. When completed, it will conveniently accommodate 3,000 students on the basis of 40 students per class. Each of these structures would cost the state government a whopping N700 million. The school would also have an examination hall that can comfortably seat 1,500 students and two e-libraries; one for sciences and the other for arts and social sciences.

The junior schools, that is, Pry 4 to JSS 3, 50 in number, with its model in Osogbo, after completion, would accommodate 1,250 students. The elementary schools, that is, Pry 1 to 3, which would be 100 in number across the state, would conveniently accommodate 900 pupils.

To further stimulate the interest of students in learning, government is reducing the burden of going to school with bags packed with books, by replacing books with computer tablets invented by the state government. The tablet, designed in form of an iPod, called Opon Imo, will contain the senior school syllabus, including Yoruba traditions. Past questions of WAEC, NECO and JAMB would also be included in the software designed for the system. All these, are geared towards making learning pleasurable in schools and at home.
[/b]
Students of the senior classes in public schools targeted for the pilot scheme would be given the computer tablet at no cost, though government is investing close to N2 billion on the project.

In a bid to encourage enrolment of children in public schools, government rejuvenated the school feeding programme and tagged it O’MEAL. The content of food served pupils was made more nutritious. This singular act has increased enrolment in public primary schools by 25 percent in the last session and government is anticipating increasing the figure in the coming session. Determined to ensure the sustainability of the programme, government is committing N2 billion annually to its implementation.

Realising the need for total reformation of the school system, the grading system is also to offer changes in line with the new schools; elementary schools would be graded along Junior secondary classes, hence, the new system would be grades 1 to 9, while those that excel from these grades move to the high school that would replace senior school classes, today known as SSS 1-3 and tagged grades 10-12. In addition, the school uniforms would also be changed to reflect reformation and uniformity in the schools. That is elementary, junior and high schools and would be distributed to them free.

Concerned with the plight of students in state-owned tertiary institutions due to suffocating fees charged by the previous administration, Aregbesola intervened. He reduced the fees payable at the Polytechnic and College of Technology from N42, 000 to N25, 000, while those of the state university was slashed from N205, 000 for Law and Medical students to N100, 000. Sciences was reduced from N155, 000 to N75, 000 while Social Sciences and Art now pay N75, 000 instead of N130, 000.

Yet, the reduction in internally generated revenue of the schools due to the tuition slash by government is returned to the schools authority as subvention as follows: Osun state Polytechnic, Iree gets N80, 600, 000 annually; College of Technology, Esa-Oke gets N47, 889, 000 while the two Colleges of Education at Ila-Orangun and Ilesa get N49, 454, 000 and N31, 336, 000 yearly respectively.

Knowing that investing in infrastructure alone without boosting the morale of the teachers cannot help the reformation agenda, government embarked on training of teachers to meet the challenges of modern teaching techniques, while the salary of those in tertiary education, whose salaries were monthly augmented by their various institutions to the tune of 20 per cent from their IGR before the advent of the administration was stopped and their full salary package was borne by the government, thereby removing the burden from the school authorities and enabling them the N108million saved by each of them annually to be committed to developing the schools.

This investment is aimed at achieving one of the governor’s six-point integral action plan - to promote functional education, an educational system that would not only drive the development of the state, but also the bedrock of national development.

[quote author=I-B.]Ran across this uncompleted government school in Oshogbo.
Learnt it can contain 900 school kids.


Pictures Customized by me [/quote] I noticed. Thanks and keep it up ojare.

ehie: every frigging time there is a buhari thread gej's apologists crowd in with their lies and half truths,u cannot bullshyte me because i have a brain n use it..fact one...nigeria is broke becos of ur president's squandermania,fact twi gej eats one billion naira worth of food and its not enuf,fact three,security is nigeria is officially non exsistent,boko haram in the north,robbers in the south,ritual killings are one hundred percent off..fact four,gej' s cabinent comprises of people with corruption attached to their names,fact five under gej we have no refinery working,no electricty,level of living standard has fallen

Totally correct. Predictable and very sad. These guys are insecure about anyone they perceive is a treat to GEJ. Whether it is Buhari, EL_Rufai, Bakare, RIbadu, Fashola or Tinubu, the pattern is the same and it involves a cheap attempt to discredit others just to validate how abysmally poor GEJ is as a leader.

Eko Ile: You just can't take these clowns seriously. They are maybe dumb, but they are not blind, they see everything we've posted, all they are doing is trolling and jerking you around.

Don't give them that pleasure and satisfaction. It's not our job or anybody's job to prove to these worthless clowns anything about Fashola or any projects he's commissioned, google is there for them to use if they are so desperate and really need to find out.

Let these hopeless and miserable losers run their own errands..

My guy, when you have evidence, why not use it to convict the brazen criminal swaggering around foolishly with his gang of unthinking thugs? There is nothing I detest more in life than a man who cannot be honest with himself. I even tell friends that self-delusional folks should never have kids because they will only give Nations dishonest and worthless citizens like the ones on Nairaland who peddle lies daily.

Even if you don't like a person, be decent enough to admit what the world knows to be true about that person. Doing otherwise, for whatever reason, just reveals a fraudulent and hateful nature. When the entire world acknowledges Muhammed Alli to be the greatest boxer in history, one must question the sanity of a person who claims Alli was a crap boxer and that Audley Harrison was the best ever !!!!

The funny thing these losers don't understand is that Karma is a b1tch. Running around trying to deny the undoubted ability, talent and success of others just means success will remain elusive to those type of hateful souls. These insecure losers are only trying to discredit Fashola because they and their mediocre messiah, GEJ, feel threatened by a man hailed high and low, home and abroad, as an achiever and a genuinely transformational leader. Pathetic.

Sincere 9gerian: You wrote " I see Fashola work everywhere". Pls which part of everywhere are you talking about because guys are everywhere searching for these same projects? Are these projects photoluscent and invisible? Even after placing N5million bounty on these projects, we are yet to find them.
Anyway, having come this far, we cant afford to give in now. The search continues...

Shameless person. You must think others are nauseating sycophants like you. Go to the thread below and see pictures from my own camera of LASG extensive drainage/road work around the Bode Thomas, Iponri, Adeniran Ogunsanya, Eric moore axis. I don't know what your kind gain from lying and hating others to the extent you can never admit the simple truth and even actually enjoy lying deliberately to deceive the gullible and those predisposed to bigotry. You will lie all day, claim achievements for GEJ he does not have plus defend every single action from that woeful leader yet, next minute, you are attempting to discredit a proven leader you and your mediocre messiah feel threatened by.

You and other of your ilk just look ridiculous with your effort to discredit Fashola. Whatever next for you losers ? My pictures are fake or taken in Botswana? You should run along and peddle your crap to the ignorant folks here who don't like to read or those predisposed to believing and following you mainly because ethnic jingoism prevents them admitting the truth about others.

People like you are a disgrace to yourself and your Nation. I may not like the PDP but what manner of dishonesty and total lack of integrity would lead me to start a thread, as you have, mischievously asking for the achievements of Akpabio, Chime and other PDP Governors genuinely doing well and delivering for their citizens? People like you have serious issues because you take your worship/hatred of personalities too far and to the extent of dishonesty and deception.


https://www.nairaland.com/826649/what-big-deal-fashola-nonsense/1

https://www.keepandshare.com/userpics/c/h/a/r/lesogun/2011-12/ss/599-27280799.jpg?ts=1324060280


https://www.keepandshare.com/userpics/c/h/a/r/lesogun/2011-12/ss/602-46408893.jpg?ts=1324061914

gratiaeo: Guy to cut the long story short since you know all his achievements in the last 6yrs help us with some pictures pls.... Obasanjo build all his power plants on paper since then we have not started enjoying it, so we're tired for propaganda and paper politics

You must be mistaking me for one one of this who has time to waste with those whose minds are made up and have decided never to be objective where others are concerned. I have no interest to show you anything. Please feel free to believe and say what you want. As a genuine Lagosian, with no chip on his shoulder, I see Fashola's work everywhere. That is all that matters - not wasting my time countering the mischief-laden and inane denial of those motivated by all manner of negative things.

kaorama: Y is this man embarrassing Yoruba people?

Will you stop your repellent bigotry for a second and acknowledge the pragmatic truth? Tinubu is simply a character operating in his time. If I had a dollar for every time Nigerians plead for the Jerry Rawlings solution then I would be a very rich man. If we agree that Jerry Rawlings was a flawed man and 'monster' of his time who dealt with his own kind to enable the new cadre of leaders now transforming Ghana to emerge (like Kuffour, Atta-Mills and now Mahama) what exactly is Tinubu doing opposite to that?

Would Oshiomole have a chance , against Anenih and the PDP, if Tinubu did not put his platform and finance behind him? Where would Fashola, Fayemi, Ajimobi, Amosun and Aregbesola be if Tinubu was not behind them and OBJ was the uber power broker in the SW? How about the Ondo election that saw the ACN present a former NBA chairmans as its candidate? Presidential elections nko? Ribadu and Fola Adeolu? Do some even appreciate what is going on and how the likes of Ghana and Botswana they praise got to where they are today?

Tinubu, almost like for like, is replicating what happened in those places that has led to the current climate today that is amenable to good leaders and proven achievers transforming those Nations for the better. This is where Nigerians keep getting it wrong. Many are too sentimental, bigoted and biased to see what matters. There are men like Tinubu throughout Nigeria because our politics, very corrupt and 'rough' currently, can only ensure it is those strong guys who get to the top, and stay at the top, as godfathers and kingmakers.

Yet like Rawlings, Tinubu is the only one acting in ways that will ensure a better cadre of leaders replace him and others for the benefit of his region and Nigeria. People, ignorant of world history, and totally into self-deceit, can keep hating Tinubu but intelligent folks appreciate him and know he will be even more revered in future because of how, even with innate flaws, he is promoting the Fashola,s, Oshiomhole et al while GEJ , for example, is seeking out old relics like Anenih, Tukur and taking his own region backwards via empowering semi-illiterate militants everywhere.

As someone from the SW and a student of contemporary political history, especially vis a vis the path other Nations have followed to get where they are today, I am very happy the SW has a Tinubu delivering a system that bodes very well for the future with how it accommodates and empowers human talent and merits. Contrast this with GEJ making militants the richest and most politically influential in his region of origin. [size=14pt]Leaders and winners in life don't do childish idealism. They deal with reality and the best that can be obtained from a bad situation till things improve and evolve.[/size]

Many Nigerians , till lowered into their graves, will remain too sentimental and blind to see what is terribly obvious. For the times he is operating in, with everyone corrupt and self-serving, Tinubu is perhaps the best political godfathers in Nigeria. It is the same as how Nigerians know little of how Rawlings, in reality, was corrupt and brutal yet praise his 'culling' exercise vacuously while not realising Tinubu is carrying out same bloodlessly in Nigeria. It is mainly silly idealist , not conversant with the reality of Nigeria, and bigots, with perpetual axe to grind against a perceived 'strong man' of an ethnic group they detest, who continue to obsess over attacking Tinubu.

I personally do not view him as a saint but his importance will be obvious to the SW in 10 years time the same way Nigerians fatuously praise Rawlings as being responsible for what Ghana is today. What did Rawlings (not at all a saint) do to eternal praises from even Nigerians if not pave the way for a better calibre of leaders to replace himself and others? What is Tinubu , also not a saint, doing? Abeg, Tinubu is in a different league to GEJ, IBB, OBJ, Anenih et al considering what Nigeria is. People can curse and rant against him. Those who note history and understand evolution can be delayed but not denied know the benefit of Tinubu.

Clerverly: insincere_Nigerian is yet to grace this page, leaving only his foot soldiers like pointB, Sealeddeal, solomon111, etc to struggle here....Is he on Christmas leave

He is probably eating Gucci rice and Armani steak at Aso Rock, all washed down with Versace champagne.

[quote author=Rhino.5dm]Boko haram is stopping him from fixing east-west road? Boko harams are the ones stopping him from dredging and building second Niger bridge? seriously, do you believe what you just wrote? [/quote]Just like Boko Haram prevents him from directing we stop selling our oil through traders thereby perpetuating avenues of corruption and theft against Nigeria.

Boko Haram also forced GEJ to keep with the current and very corrupt status quo of using marketers to source PMS when Otedola has even stated that Nigeria can instantly kill subsidy corruption by negotiating directly with foreign refineries.

It is also Boko Haram that forced him to ignore many, many reports suggesting actions that can improve upon what obtains to the benefit of Nigeria


While unambitiously passing the buck on behalf of a very mediocre President, why don't we blame Boko Haram as well for how GEJ, everywhere, is abetting the most corrupt folks in Nigeria and promoting them into the most influential positions? Otedola, Tukur, Anenih, Haliru Mohammed et al were all forced on GEJ by Boko Haram.

What a Nation. Warped leaders and even ultra-warped and ridiculously sentimental followers.

Demdem: So these mad men have openend another thread na wa oooo

My brother, happy xmas and a prosperous new year wish for you and all Nairalanders.

As per the losers who start these sort of threads, I can only conclude they have serious issues that makes them always happy to be the 'enemy within'. We will all have our differences but how many visionary leaders and performers does Nigeria have for some Nigerians, in a show of treacherously malevolent hatred and dishonesty, to be turning against one of the brightest shining light in Nigeria?

This is why progress will come very slowly for us. No Nation, in my physical experience, comes close to Nigeria in relation to how a group of people are determined to be each other's greatest enemies and the biggest impediment to development everyone can enjoy merely because ethnicity is more important ,above calling a spade a spade, for some folks. There are those simply indoctrinated to hate Fashola , an undisputed and cherished achiever, because he is Yoruba while they celebrate and concoct sycophantic lies for a total zero and abject mediocrity, GEJ, because he is their 'brother'.


Fashola is not god or above reproach but it is simply unbelievable any Nigerian can start a thread like this. Therein lies the hopelessness of our situation and a vivid illustration of how many Nigerians are highly bigoted and prejudiced to the point they are 100% ready to cut their nose to spite their face via fighting and vacuously opposing others they are indoctrination to hate. Is it not ironic that a blindly sycophantic fan of GEJ, always seeking to defend all his actions and proclaim him a 'performer', is also the person seeking to discredit Fashola here?. Nigeria may indeed be cursed as Calloti insists.

MAYOWAAK: I am waiting for Reuben Abati's response,I know he would in reply give it to Tinubu ,The O'sanle of Iragbiji more that what he bargained for.

Abati is a discredited charlatan sensible folks have absolutely no regard for. What does Tinubu say here that many pragmatic social/political observers and critics don't agree with?

[quote author=Osun•Ife]Wishing the people of Osun merry Christmas and happy new year in advance.



Signed, Osun•ife of Nairaland[/quote]Seconded. 2013 should be a great and pivotal year for the State.

emmatok: I see you are the empty head here what @netup2 wrote is what every Protocol Official should know.
But GEJ fans ignore the facts to do otherwise.
The Irony is that most of these GUY served under other presidents .

Blind sycophancy and the vacuous hatred of others is what you can always trust GEJ fans to be about. This is not even about listing the security protocol of Mr.President. We should be a modern and adaptable nation for god sake. This is about an unintelligent throwback President crudely hurling money around in futility and deliberately doing things the wrong ways sensible leaders will reject. Did this same GEJ not devote the largest amount of money to security ever in the history of Nigeria? Fans of GEJ should tell us if Nigeria was more secure and if Nigerians were safer this year we are about to see out. Terrorism and armed robbery the same, kidnapping now at a new level, oil bunkering worse, etc, etc. All this despite the vast sum devoted to security. Would this not be regarded an epic failure in many sane and ambitious Nations considering the record-breaking amount devoted to security in our last budget?

A sincere President, perhaps intelligent and a solutions provider, would understand that our security challenges cannot be resolved throwing money around. Real effort, genuine will and sincerity is what is needed. When we can all see GEJ dancing around terrorists he says he knows, then those who don't lie to themselves know Mr. President is only being deceptively indolent by devoting vast sums to security just to fool Nigerians. When GEJ is making payments to former militants and using executive influence to give them maritime contracts that 'privatises' what should be the duty of the Nigerian Navy or a specially trained State force, as is likely to be done everywhere else, why will oil theft and bunkering not be worsening? Is it not obvious that GEJ, most times, causes the problem he pretends he is seeking solutions for?

With his personal security, issues are over the top simply because GEJ , contrary to what some think, is not a humble, temperate or pro-people President. This is a man who insensitively believes in a fleet of airplanes, expensive food, expensive protocol, big governance, unneeded banquet halls, fleets of cars et al while heading the affairs of some of the poorest folks in the world.

Where a Thomas Sankara, or others fully intelligent about what statecraft entails, would attempt to do things in minimally disruptive ways, GEJ would choose the expensive option involving the biggest expenses and also likely to cause the most disruption to Nigerians. The point being that all his actions show he is a very selfish President who "does not give a damn". The convenience of Nigerians is not something he considers thus the man will never embrace any sacrifice to make things easier for Nigerians. This is why everywhere is closed down to accommodate him. Many are yet to understand that GEJ is a 'Dinosaur' in relation to what Nigeria needs in this day and age. Much like a worker on average income using an 8 litre Mustang as an everyday car in the UK. All his wages would be spent on petrol but he will not care because he is not a reasonable or thoughtful person in the first place.

afam4eva: This just shows that you believe that ACN is a one man party or a family business. If ACN is truly a progressive and democratic party like ya'll posit then what is wrong is someone else emerging the Chairman of the party as long as majority of the party members agree with him. If ACN were to follow your line of thought then they would remain a regional party and even relinquish some of the seats they currently wield in the SW.

And how has Pat Utomi joining ACN got to do with appreciating what Tinubu has done? Are you implying that ACN is Tinubu and Tinubu is ACN. It's unfortunate that someone like you would talk like this. So much for progressive party.

You are simply an unrepentant mischief-maker. Nothing I wrote indicate indicate what you suggest. If you are someone who is talented and a winner in life you will know where I am coming from. Like him or not, Tinubu is a very talented politician who built the ACN into what it is. Ngige, Atiku et al could have made the ACN strong in their regions but they showed myopia with wanting to use the Party solely to gain office and for nothing else. Like it or not, the ACN is a Private Political Party which means it is members who get to decide what goes.

Tinubu is not physically or mentally handicapped currently nor have ACN members, the stakeholders who matter , told you they want him out. Under him, the finest category of proven leaders are being given a chance to gain influential leadership positions. Why should he then be removed as a leader of the Party to make way for Utomi? Who told undemocratic people like you that you can comment on what others do when you are not a legitimate or legally recognised part of the process? How many times will it be repeated to intolerant Nigerians that the ACN members themselves all have absolute confidence in Tinubu's leadership?

The ACN is a Political Party. Fundamentally, it is its members who will decide the fate of Tinubu not you and others who just speak verbosely because you do not like the man. If Party members are happy with Tinubu what manner of arrogance leads someone to suggest Tinubu should be removed to pave way for Utomi? Can you come into my house to be telling me how to raise my children? Join the ACN and then move against Tinubu otherwise you and others just sound foolish with your constant and intolerant suggestion about what a private Political Party , that you are not a registered member of , should do regarding things that are totally subject to the discretion of registered members. People like you should learn to respect what others have built even if you don't like them. You should also learn to tolerantly respect the opinion of stakeholders.

Symphony007: david cameron moves in a bulletproof custom made car and a motorcade of rang rovers that makes the entire motorcade of jonathan seem like tokumbo cars, westminister is only a few blocks from downing street but his motorcade led by police outriders block london traffic. Get your facts right before jumping on the bash jonathan wagon.

No. You should get your facts right before sycophantically defending one of the most callously wasteful President in the World who heads a Nation home to some of the most poverty-stricken worldwide. All of you holding brief for this wasteful President, a throwback to the dark days of wanton profligacy, simply have no shame. Jonathan's profligate mien is not at all consonant with his status as President of a Nation were it is claimed that many live on less than a dollar a day. Some of you should speak the truth and shame the devil sometimes.

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/3060952/David-Camerons-flight-saves-200k.html

Cam’s flight saves £200k

Money saving ... Cam took regular flight


CASH-CONSCIOUS David Cameron flew out to meet President Barack Obama last night on a regular BA flight — astonishing other passengers.


For the first time on a major official visit, the Premier turned down chartering his own plane to make the two-day trip to Washington DC.
And he even spurned First Class tickets to travel in the far cheaper Business Class. The move saved £200,000 in costs, Downing Street officials said.
Passengers were aghast when Mr Cameron and his team of officials boarded the plane to Dulles airport and took seats beside them.
In the past, PMs travelling on long overseas trips have always chartered a Boeing 747 or 767 — at a cost of £300,000 — or used RAF jets.
It is Mr Cameron’s latest attempt to lead from the front on sweeping spending cuts across government to pay off Britain’s crippling £155billion deficit.
But flying commercial meant meetings in the US capital had to be arranged around the British Airways flight timetable.
And his money-saving drives are a security headache for his police bodyguards. Appearing in public more often may encourage terrorists to launch a chance attack on him, they have argued.
The move was also met with surprise by American officials, where President Obama travels everywhere on Air Force One — his own 2,000 sq ft Boeing 747.
A No10 source said: “When we are asking the country to tighten their belts as much as we are it’s very hard to justify hiring big jets to swan around the world.
[size=14pt]“It may make his travel a little harder, but the PM believes it’s up to him to set an example.”[/size]


Read more: http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/3060952/David-Camerons-flight-saves-200k.html#ixzz2FyFlvimi

Afolabs101: Really? But do Obama, Cameron, Merkel etc have Godfathers? I can't imagine Clinton telling Obama who to put in his cabinet. However I do concede that George Bush Snr was George Bush Jr's Godfather.

Until they remove Tinubu from ACN, the party has no chance. Why not make Utomi party Chairman and give the party a more national and less regional character

Why do people like you talk like this? I.e in a totally disgusting fashion that shows you are not fair-minded or even cognisant of how, fundamentally, usurpation of the efforts of others is one of the most disgusting thing in life? When Atiku, Ngige, Bafawara et al only ever viewed the ACN as a means to an end, who steadfastly and painfully stuck with the idea of developing the Party into a veritable opposition political platform?

I don't know how some of us view life in relation to human endeavour and the need for hard work, talent and innovation to always be rewarded. Is it fair you worked hard, while others you started off with never pulled their weight, only for you to then lose what you single-handedly developed into a successful entity because some folks never think pragmatically or fairly? This lack of fairness towards Tinubu , and what he has achieved, is nauseating.

The man made the ACN what it is today. For you to make the ridiculous suggestion he should be bounced for Utomi is simply an indication you are someone comfortable with gross unfairness. Have you ever worked hard to build anything? How about you lose that in minutes because a lazy thinker suggests you should be turfed out to make way for a stranger simply because they have issues with how you run something you single-handedly worked hard to develop? Tinubu should always be relevant in the ACN as long as he wants to be considering he persevered with and developed the Party while others, typical of Nigerian politicians, behaved like cheap prostitutes running from pillar to post in search of political office.

That Utomi is now joining ACN, when he did not have the sagacity to develop similar, is testimony to what Tinubu really is that many Nigerians, blinded by sentiments, can simply not appreciate. What is Tinubu doing so wrong that is galling some of you? Is he forcing illiterate and mediocre thieves on Nigerians everywhere as OBJ, Anenih et al are perpetually devoted to? The fact Utomi has even joined ACN speaks volume about how some of Nigeria's best brains pragmatically appreciate Tinubu for what he is.

k2039: Always living in the future.

Abi OOO. The man has been President for almost three years yet empty promises are all Nigerians continue to get from him. Tragic.

[quote author=I-B.]I also took some pictures of market underconstruction in osun, I will upload them online here soon. That governor is doing well o.[/quote]I highlighted that here previously but we all know what Nairaland is. The "only Fashola is working" crew simply used their repetitive mischief to derail the thread. Well, I personally appreciate your effort here. Some folks should just learn to be Nigerians who appreciate and encourage progress wherever it is being made. We can inspire and motivate each other rather than self-destructively remaining predisposed to viewing everything as a competition or acting as if progress made somewhere must always be used to bait and spite others. ACN Governors are miles ahead of the PDP Governors they replaced. There is absolutely no need for Nigerians to ethnicise that concept or play politics with it if we understand that development for every State and region is ultimately the most important consideration.


http://dailyindependentnig.com/2012/10/osun-expanding-economic-base-through-markets/

Osun: Expanding economic base through markets

https://dailyindependentnig.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/Features-2.jpg
Photo : Aje Market foundation laying

By Gbenga Faturoti, Correspondent, Osogbo

In another one to two years, Osogbo, the capital city of Osun State may regain its commercial centre status. This might not be unconnected with the establishment and development of three different ultra modern markets being cited in the ancient town and its environs by the current administration of Rauf Aregbesola.

Both Ayegbaju and Aje International Markets are located in the heart of Osogbo, while the mid regional market for the entire South West is located at Dagbolu, less than five kilometres outside Osogbo. The markets are being financed under the Public Private Partnership (PPP) arrangements.

Ajegbaju International Market, located at the old governor’s office along Gbongan-Osogbo Road, would gulp the sum of N1.2billion while Aje International Market, cited at the State Trade Fair Complex along Iwo-Osogbo Road would gulp a sum of N2.8billion.

No less than N100billion is earmarked for Dagbolu. At completion, it is expected to be a logistic village, where various warehouses would be specifically built for relevant investors and manufacturers so that their goods would be sold to the people of the state at the exact prices they are being sold at Oke-Arin and other major markets in Lagos so that there would not be the need for traders from the state travelling to Lagos for their products.

Works have commenced at both Ayegbaju and Dagbolu markets, while turning of the sod for that of Aje was recently performed by Aregbesola. The ceremony was attended by various personalities including traditional rulers, market men and women, investors, bankers, politicians, academicians, students among others.

Initiators say in the past, Osogbo was the commercial nerve of the entire Yoruba race aside from Lagos and Ibadan, because of mainly its centrality to other densely major cities in the state and could be reached from any part of the state.

They say the state was the only one in the region that had boundaries with five other states with direct rail link. The neighbouring states are Kwara, Oyo, Ondo, Ogun and Ekiti.

Some facilities on ground such as railway, regular electricity supply, good and potable water, good road network, some tourist centres such as Osun Ososgbo grooves among others, they added made the city conducive and attractive, not only for commercial but for residential purposes.

Besides, it is being argued that the people of the state run an agrarian economy with a vast majority of the populace, taking to farming. “They are highly enterprising and could be found engaged in trading all over the country. They are mainly traders, artisans and farmers. Their other occupations include making of hand-woven textiles, tie and dye clothes, leather works, calabash carving and mat making.

“The state is blessed with maize, yams, cassava, millet, plantain and rice and the present administration is also working on mass production of cocoa-yam. Lumbering and making of cocoa as well as kolanuts are done with ease. There is also vast deposit of mineral resources such as gold, clay, limestone, kaolin and granite,” the idea promoters, consistently say.

The first aerodrome in the entire West Africa is located at Ido-Osun in Egbedore Local Government Council of the state over 90 years ago and plans are on to resuscitated it to bring back the old glory, the government said, adding that the National Control Centre of Power Holding of Nigeria (PHCN) where electricity was stepped down right from Kanji Dam for distribution is also located in Osogbo, had accounted for the fairly regular supply of electricity in the town.

The government said the collaboration and partnership between the it and Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) had assisted in the transportation of both human and goods to and from the state, while it facilitating partnership to develop the solid minerals sector, established agro-industrial estates, facilitate partnership to develop the tourist potentials of natural land marks, establish logistics centre for the state in Lagos among others to boost commercial activities.

The markets, especially Aje and Ayegbaju when completed would replace the street market/major road marketing system in operation in Igbonna, Alekunwodo, Olu-Ode, Oja-Oba, Otan-Efun, Sabo and the likes, the government said.

Osun State Government, O’dua Investment Company and the Concave Developers Limited are said to be financiers of the Aje market.

State Commissioner for Commerce, Cooperatives and Empowerment, Mr. Ismaila Jayeoba Adekunle Alagbada, said at the turning of the sod that history had repeated itself because the market was just one of the series of projects designed by the current administration to boost commercial activities in the state and place it on a path of sustainable economic development.

Noted that many programmes had been rolled out by the administration to achieve its Six Point Integral Action Plan, he added that the development of markets was a critical success factor in realising the desired objectives.

His words: “Market is a fundamental phenomenon on issues of banishment of hunger, unemployment and poverty. It also takes the centre stage on the issues of promotion of functional education, restoration of healthy living and enhancement of communal peace and progress.

“It is in realisation of the importance of markets and marketing activities that Governor Rauf Aregbesola has set machinery in motion to fashion out modalities for the establishment and operation of mega markets across the state.

The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of O’dua Investment, Mr. Adebayo Jimoh, said the market, when completed, would consist of 2,970 locked-up shops of different sizes and dimensions, 5,250 various warehouses, multipurpose hals, food courts, hypermarkets, banks, clinics, a bus park, travelers lodges, a police post, a fire station, a gas station, cold rooms, a water treatment plant, an exhibition centre for the State Chamber of Commerce and Industries, crèches, a Close Circuit Television (CCTV) monitoring circuit as well as well conveniences among others.

He explained that Aregbesola challenged the management of the O’dua Investment on making the objective a reality, adding that the outcome of the charge was the establishment of the market at Aje Village in Osogbo.

He noted that the location of Osogbo for the market was good choice because the state was the only one with common boundaries with five others as well as direct railway links to Lagos and North.

Jimoh, who noted that with the market, there would be lot of business activities in the state and urged the investors not to entertain any fear doing business with the state, emphasized that Osun was a stakeholder of the company, hence the need to partner with the government in its developmental efforts.

He then emphasised that the first phase of the market would be ready for use in six months time, adding that the developers would make use of the people of the state in order to create employment and create wealth for them.

One of the local investors and Chairman, Lopin Investment Limited, Chief Amuda Obelawo, lauded the administration for the establishment and development of standard markets in the state, pledging the support of local investors its programmes.

Warning however that commerce should be separated from politics, he maintained that had the successive administration taken similar steps, the state would not be in the mess situation it was now.

President of Market women in the state, Alhaja Asimawu Asindemade, praised the governor for being honest with all his promises and programmes, noting that the gesture was strange to the market women in the state and that “the government has made us proud”.

The Olojudo of Ido-Osun, in whose domain the market was established, Oba Adeen Adedapo Sapoyoro, said that the land upon which the market was to be built was acquired in 1992 by the Alhaji Isiaka Adeleke government for the purpose of State Trade Fair Complex, but regretted that the cite had remained bushy since after the trade fair.

The monarch, who praised Aregbesola for the gesture, commended him for the honour done him in bringing the facility to his domain.

Speaker, Osun State House of Assembly, Nojeem Sallam, who described the project as marvel, which on completion would surprise the opposition party that was consistently mounting negative criticism against the administration, explained that the state was not buoyant enough to embark on all the various development it was executing but because of the ingenuity of the governor, was witnessing all the infrastructural changes and development on ground.

Aregbesola, on his own, said that the project was part of his administration’s plan to transform the state and restore it to its old glory of commercial nerve centre in the South West.

He said that his administration was not comfortable with the nature of street market system being in operation in the state, saying that it was aimed at eradicating the syndrome, a move, which had already resulted in the evacuation of some people from their places to allow for dualisation of Old-Garage-Ikirun-Kwara State Boundary.

His words: “I want to make it very clear that the Aje Market is not intended to displace the state Trade Fair Complex, which occupies part of the site for this market. Instead, the new market is a multi-purpose commercial centre that will incorporate a more standardised and modernised Trade Fair Complex, as well as other related facilities. It is also part of our policy to relocate our traders, from their presently scattered and un-conducive trading posts all over the state capital, to the new market.

Aregbesola, who assured that the state would soon becomes the economic hub of the South West geo-political zone, said trading remained a strong bond between the different peoples of the country adding that the major fault lines of politics and culture were being bridged by such a tie.

The Governor also assured that his administration would set the pace for other states in the areas of trade and commerce, saying that his government had set the standard for other states in the country with the collaboration the state ha with the NRC for the importation of goods.

He said: “In Nigeria, trade remains a tie that binds us together. In fact, the real basis for modern day Nigeria could be traced in some significant sense to trading, which, along with other factors, had already established the crude and broad outlines of what today is known as Nigeria, thanks to the colonial enterprise.”

While acknowledging that trading was a good spur for economic growth, the governor argued that the prospect of more profit usually lead to increased trade and expanded prosperity, which in turn drove more production.

Stressing that, the real basis for modern day Nigeria could be traced in some significant sense to trading, which, along with other factors, had already established the crude and broad outlines of what it was known today, he said: “Imagine on a daily basis the volume of trade involving grains and beef products from the North to the South and the goods from the South, such as palm oil and timber, to the North. These do not include manufactured and imported products from the South-to-North route.”

He therefore, called on men and women of goodwill to join hands with his administration in its effort to ensure urban renewal through developmental projects across the state.

Utomi is most welcomed. An absolute gentlemen and a man of ideas. ACN is not perfect but it is the best Political Party in Nigeria currently and the only platform capable of deposing the PDP and giving Nigerians a fairer deal in our evolutionary march towards progress. With the likes of Utomi joining up, and hopefully becoming prominent, then the indolence of the ruling Party can be challenged robustly.

[quote author=GARRI (x7)]@Gbawe: The masses are the boss before and during election, but after the election, its the other way round..[/quote]My brother, I fully appreciate what you are saying. Very tragic though. I think the greatest pain I feel for Nigerians is the realisation that extreme poverty, ethnic disunity and a tortuous history ensures most of them are stuck in a twilight zone. They will ,because of an all-consuming negative focus on each other, never come up for air long enough to appreciate what obtains elsewhere and are thus condemned to thinking worthless, corrupt and avaricious leaders like GEJ can perform miracles.

If there is anything I wish for fervently, it is that more Nigerians see what amounts to the norm elsewhere throughout the world to note we are messing around , persevering with abject mediocrity, as the so called biggest black nation on earth and "giant of Africa".

samguru: on my way to office i was stranded at Obalende today,even the garage was deserted,everyone was scrambling for the few available buses,i was asking myself could it that the commercial transporter operators have gone on strike or traveled for Christmas celebration?it didn't take second before my trekking mate told me that President Jonathan is coming to Lagos.
For how long is president going to subject we his boss to these inhumane hardship simply because he wants to ply some roads ?,perhaps he usually travel by air (Helicopter).
I think National Assembly should pass a bill forbidden President and His wife from inconveniencing his fellow Nigerians for reasons which are not even related to National assignment.

Guy I doff my hat for the part in bold above. This is what Nigerians, a people oppressed to the point of insanity and apathy, do not realise. The leaders of rich Nations flying with BA and Virgin. Our President , heading a Nation with the majority in poverty, maintains an expensive fleet of planes yet still demanding more while foolish and oppressed folks support him blindly because they have no appreciation of what obtains in saner climes.

David Cameron is unobtrusive in his travels, yet States shut down when GEJ visits for worthless reasons. No one is saying that GEJ began this tradition of largess and waste but we must demand Nigeria gains a President who can begin to move our nation away from these unsustainable acts of profligacy, insensitivity and 'big man' indolence not at all congruous with what the world is today. A bit like shunning an electric or solar powered car, in an energy challenged world, to insist on driving an 8 litre gas guzzler.

0lumide: When will Jonathan do the right thing and put an end to this mess.

It took Yaradua less than 18 months to end the militant issue.

When will Jonathan do the right thing?

Don't be demonizing the Fulanis. I grew up being takeb care of by a Fulani maid. I know all about their culture and people.

You will be surprised how many Fulanis are idol worshipers and not Muslims or Christians. Don't demonize people.

Ask GEJ when he is going to be serious about fighting corruption and ending the religious crisis in the North.

Ask him when he will stop the kidnapping of people for money in the east!!! Ask your pay master!

This is a case of national security no longer politics!

Some people will never appreciate this in their devotion to individuals above Nation. Look, half of the Nigeria population could die because of the ineptitude of GEJ. Yet you will still see many saying Jonathan is doing a "fantastic job". That is how mentally sick, bigoted and biased many Nigerians are currently.

Olumide, I don't think any sort of entitlement 'attitude' from the North can make GEJ retain the Presidency in 2015. He has simply been a very woeful, callous, highly ineffective and hideously corrupt President to the extent Nigerians, if still a sane people, have no choice but to seek alternatives. He is an embarrassment who falls far below what Sao Tome should even seek to be a district commissioner let alone President.

I would even expect the PDP ,callous as the Party is, to read the mood of the Nation and Africa by showing more ambition to deny a total empty barrel , i.e GEJ, the chance to embarrass Nigeria further. Anything else, even with some displaying 'born to rule' arrogance, just means Nigerians deserve their suffering as a politically unsophisticated people always happy to cut their nose to spite their face.

Look around you. Positive minimal standards are coming to stay throughout Africa that means mediocrities like GEJ don't get the chance to wreak havoc via gaining positions they simply do not deserve. If GEJ remains beyond 2015, don't blame the North. Blame Nigerians because a 2015 win for GEJ would confirm we are a mentally sick and aberrant people who cannot learn from personal hardship and all that is going on around us in the wider world.