₦airaland Forum

With barely five days to the Osun State governorship election, Muslim scholars and imams across the state have endorsed the All Progressives Congress, APC, candidate, Mr Bola Oyebamiji, for the August 15 poll.

The Muslim groups, who gathered at the country home of the Asiwaju Musulumi of the South-West, Edo and Delta States, in Osogbo, said their endorsement was based not only on religious considerations but also on Oyebamiji’s competence and capacity to deliver good governance.

The groups included the United Imams and Alfas, Qodriyah Islamic Society, Progressive Muslim Teachers, Zumuratu-l-Mumineen, Imam Ratibi, Isale-Osun Zone and Alasaro Osogbo, among others.

Speaking with journalists on the sidelines of the event, Chief Tunde Badmus said the groups were working in support of President Bola Tinubu and had resolved to unite behind the APC candidate in the state.

“As you can see, there are different Muslim groups here. As their leader, I had to communicate President Bola Tinubu’s position to them on the Osun election, and they are all here to endorse Tinubu’s candidate for the August 15 governorship election before we head to the 2027 general election next year,” he said.

Badmus also disclosed that more than 500 persons with hearing impairment attended the event and displayed their Permanent Voter Cards, PVCs, as evidence of their decision to vote for Oyebamiji.

“They came with their voter cards to show that they have decided to go for Oyebamiji in this governorship election and that they are not ready to sell their voter cards,” he said.

Representatives of the groups, AbdulGaniy Olaoye of Zumuratul Muhmineenah and Alfa Kamaldeen of Qodriyah, also endorsed Oyebamiji, saying their support was in solidarity with President Tinubu.

They pledged to mobilise voters across their communities in support of the APC candidate in the election.

Olaoye said the groups were supporting Oyebamiji because of his commitment to Islam and his previous contributions to the Muslim community.

"We follow someone who is dedicated to Islam, and he has been doing many things to support Islam in the past. That is why we are here, and we are rest assured that Munirudeen Oyebamiji will be victorious in the coming election,” he said.

Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke and the governorship candidate on the All Progressives Congress, APC, in the State Mr Bola Oyebamiji on Saturday disagreed over the state of health facilities in the State.

Oyebamiji had disclosed that, it elected governor next year his administration will overhaul the health sector with a view to reviving the sector he described as moribund.

Oyebamiji in a statement issued by his media office and signed by Adebayo Adedeji, said Governor Adeleke has performed poorly in the health sector and should concentrate on delivering quality healthcare for the people of the State rather than dissipating energy on calling Oyebamiji unprintable names.

Rather than expending energy on calling AMBO and APC leaders unprintable names, Governor Ademola Adeleke should use the remainder of his tenure to work for the people of Osun State. His performance in the last 36 months, particularly in the health sector, has been poor and uninspiring.

In just four years of the Oyetola administration, in which AMBO played a prominent role, a standard 120-bed ward was constructed at the State Specialist Hospital, Asubiaro. In the same hospital, a 30-unit-state-of-the-art doctors’ quarters, now valued at over ₦2 billion, was also constructed. Beyond building structures and health centres across the 332 wards of the state, the administration equipped them with medical consumables and facilities worth billions of naira just as doctors and other health professionals were handsomely rewarded. It is on record that the doctor-friendly AMBO played a crucial role in ensuring the new salary structure for doctors in Osun, as recommended by the Federal Government, was timely implemented in 2019. Osun doctors did not only earn a decent salary, they earned one of the best salaries in the whole of Nigeria.

Despite earning close to ₦1 trillion in revenue in three years, it is disheartening that the Adeleke administration had to remove (read “steal”) federal government equipment from the Mother and Child Hospital at Oke-Oniti, Osogbo, to secure accreditation for courses at the State Teaching Hospital, Osogbo. Why did the state government remove equipment from a federal facility to shore up its infrastructural deficiencies? Why did it not procure its own equipment? This development raises serious concerns about the commitment of the Adeleke administration to the health needs of Osun citizens.

The AMBO Media Fronts finds it troubling that 18 months after Dr Adekunle Akindele, Special Adviser on Health to Governor Adeleke, publicly acknowledged a shortage of health workers in the state’s hospitals, the government is yet to recruit the required professionals.

However, Governor Adeleke in a statement issued by his media aide, Olawale Rasheed, disclosed that Oyebamiji’s claim of moribund as “a baseless disinformation attempt” and show of his isolation from public minds.

“It is like the opposition candidate is living in another world because Osun today and from 2024, is number one across the South West in the area of provision of primary health care. When the Ikire man was in government, Osun was nowhere within the 10 digits.

“Over 200 health centres were renovated under my watch and another phase of renovation is presently ongoing. Under the previous government, the APC candidate was part of the committee that mismanaged the 20 million dollar World Bank grant meant for renovation of primary health care centers. Osun won’t return to the days of insensitive leaders.


Adeleke commends FG over army training depot in Osun, welcomes COAS for passing-out parade
“Unlike the APC government under which Mr Oyebamiji was a key actor, we upgraded hospitals with medical equipment and facilities for proper care. Our scorecards include procurement of modern operating materials for the wards and operating theatres;. purchase of digital medical devices, including sphygmomanometers, pulse oximeters, thermometers, and CPAP machines (VAYU models); acquisition of an electrophoresis (Genotype) machine, digital X-ray printer, and automated electronic device to enhance diagnostic capacity.

“We also ensure the establishment and commencement of renal dialysis services through a Public–Private Partnership arrangement; procurement of air conditioners for clinical units and patient care areas through donor support; establishment of a new theatre pharmacy, providing immediate access to essential drugs and consumables within the surgical complex; and provision of a mini-bus for hospital use and an ongoing project for a 10-bed Intensive Care Unit (ICU) among others”.

When former Osun State Commissioner for Finance, Asiwaju Munirudeen Bola Oyebamiji (AMBO), was appointed Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) in October 2023, his mandate was clear: to fully implement the Water Transportation Code to reduce boat accidents and standardise water transport in Nigeria. Since then, his leadership has delivered measurable results. In just three years, fatalities on Nigeria’s waterways have dropped from 330 in 2022 to only 92 in the first eight months of 2025.

The Water Transport Code, otherwise known as the Inland Waterways Transportation Regulations 2023, was launched in April 2024 by the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Alhaji Adegboyega Oyetola, for effective enforcement of waterway operations.

At the launch at NIWA headquarters in Lokoja, Kogi State, Kogi State Governor, Alhaji Usman Ododo, praised President Bola Tinubu for appointing Oyebamiji. “When we were coming here, our people asked where we were going. I told them it was a NIWA event. They asked, ‘Which one is NIWA?’ This shows that until now, many people hardly knew about NIWA. But today, everyone knows because the President appointed the right person who is making an impact,” he said.

The governor’s excitement stemmed from NIWA’s impressive new facilities and Oyebamiji’s detailed presentation of the agency’s roadmap.

During the event, NIWA commissioned 15 new boats for surveillance, enforcement, and emergency response. These include: 3 surveillance boats to improve security visibility, 5 enforcement boats to ensure compliance with safety regulations, 1 combat-ready gun patrol boat (115 horsepower) for rapid security response, 1 modern 62-seater passenger boat, piloted as a safer replacement for wooden canoes, and 3 fully equipped water ambulances for emergencies. Two hydrographic survey boats with multi-beam echo sounders, providing detailed seafloor mapping, were also supplied. NIWA also distributed hundreds of life-jackets in the same day.

Since introducing this new equipment, the operations and services of NIWA have improved tremendously, leading to significant reduction in accidents and fatalities.

Before Oyebamiji’s tenure, industry reports from the Marine Crafts Builders Association of Nigeria (MCBAN) recorded an average of 330 deaths annually in 2021 and 2022. By 2024, another industry stakeholders, Ships and Ports news reported a reduction to 231. Most recently, Punch (September 2, 2025) reported 92 deaths between January and August 2025, representing a 60% drop from 2024 and a 72% decline compared with 2001/2022 average

According to Punch, "About 92 passengers reportedly lost their lives in boat accidents across Nigeria between January and August 2025....The accidents occurred in several states, including Rivers, Niger, Sokoto, Kwara and Zamfara."

While every life is important and should not be lost carelessly as many fatalities on waterways often suggest, the 72% slide in 2025 is commendable. The available record of rescue operations conducted by NIWA and other rescue teams indicate increased equipment and better coordination have improved emergency response.

For instance, in May 2025, NIWA and the Nigerian Navy rescued 99 passengers following a boat collision on the Bukuma River, Rivers State. It is gladdening that all passengers were rescued without injuries or fatalities. Similarly in August 2025, NIWA rescued 104 passengers after a boat carrying 138 capsized on Kainji Lake. Life-jackets worn by passengers greatly aided their survival.

In Sokoto, NIWA divers and other rescue workers rescued over 40 passengers. And just few days ago, another boat sank in Niger but with over 50 survivors, thanks to timely intervention of the NIWA team and its partner[/b]s.


On the improvement on NIWA rescue operations, the Minister of State for Works, Mohammed Bello Goronyo, commended NIWA and the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) for their timely and coordinated responses.

[b]Goronyo stated, “The rescue efforts in Sokoto demonstrate the importance of synergy between agencies. In the previous week, NIWA and NEMA were on-site even before other responders arrived, rescuing passengers and recovering victims. This level of dedication illustrates what can be achieved when we work together in unity."


While commendation continues to pour in for NIWA over the progress, the agency must sustain and expand its safety measures to prevent future tragedies. The agency, and importantly too, the mother ministry, should see to the full implementation of the report of the Special Committee to End Boat Accidents in Nigeria, chaired by Oyebamiji and submitted two months ago. The committee, inaugurated February 2025, with 16 members of maritime safety experts, engineers, legal practitioners and researchers, had as part of its recommendations: enforcement of waterway safety regulations to prevent accidents, standardisation of permitted vessels types to improve safety, increased funding for NIWA to strengthen hydrographic and marine engineering functions and setting up of stations at strategic locations across inland waterways.

To further improve waterway safety, NIWA should extend the distribution of free life jackets to other states beyond the current 12 riverine states. The ongoing 42,000 free life-jackets, which ordinarily should have come at huge cost to boat operators and passengers, though laudable should be scaled up nationally. The agency should also increase the tempo of enforcement on wearing life jackets and maintain the "no-life-jacket-no-boarding" regulation. NIWA should increase the number of water marshals to adequately monitor the 3,000km navigable waterways, as the current 350 marshals are insufficient.

Launched in 2024 with just 80 officers, the NIWA's water marshal unit has proven to be effective in controlling the activities of boat operators and passengers on jetties and waterways.


The agency should equally consider, as part of its corporate social responsibility (CSR), distributing boat spare parts to operators, leveraging its running partnership with Toyota/Yamaha company in Nigeria. Its drive to phase out commercial wooden boats on Nigeria’s waterways and replace them with fibre boats should be carried out vigorously and timely. And finally, NIWA should continue its advocacy and enlightenment programmes, which reportedly have reached no fewer than 400 communities by foot, aiming to reach more areas and promote waterway safety awareness in all homes.

SalamRushdie:
That's commendable, true didn't hear so much boat accidents las year like we did in 2023 ...the primary causes of boat accidents in Nigeria are :

1 Overloading

2. Inexperienced boatmanship

3. Obstructed waterways

Osun State has slipped to the worst Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) performer in the Southwest region of Nigeria, according to the Nigeria Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

In 2023, Osun generated significantly less revenue than its Southwest counterparts, with Ekiti state, once at the bottom with N17billion, now surpassing Osun with an impressive N34 billion as against Osun's N27billion.

This decline is alarming, considering Osun's ranking as 16th in the country with an IGR of N24.6 billion in 2022 during the previous administration of ex-Governor Adegboyega Oyetola.

However, in the latest assessment, Osun has dropped to 20th position, fueling criticism from the opposition that the current administration is ineffective and hindering progress.

Recall the Senator Ademola Adeleke government was harshly criticised last year when some officials of the government were identified collecting the state revenue into their personal accounts.