A hope renewed

Nothing happens in this terrestrial, mortal realm, unless it is permitted by the omnipotence, immortality and greatness of Almighty God, before whom we all stand today to celebrate a new beginning; fully conscious that the divine instrument, the special purpose vehicle for bringing about “Ileri Oluwa”, (the will of Almighty God), are the votes of the good people of this state, freely and fairly cast in a closely fought election.

Let me affirm before you fellow citizens witnessing this historic moment that the mandate to govern this state will be held in close trust by me.  This trust will not be abused. Today, I state clearly that this is our commitment. We will build on the progress already achieved and we shall do so farm by farm, industry by industry, village by village, school by school, person by person, until everyone in this state feels the beneficial influence of progressive good governance in the most important aspects of their lives.

We rest not and quit not. We forge ahead because progress is all we know. Neither defeat nor retreat is for us. We shall learn from the past, yet we shall never be stuck in the past, we shall forge ahead to sustain the hope and greatest good of the greatest number of our people. Let me, at this juncture, point out what will become the defining hallmark of our intervention in governance, in the next four years, namely; a social partnership between government and the people based on the execution of a social contract. We will combine the sagacity of Obafemi Awolowo, the vision of Bola Ige, the wisdom of Bisi Akande, the dexterity of Bola Tinubu and the innovative capacity of Rauf Aregbesola to make our State even greater.

We will ensure that workers’ salaries are paid promptly bearing in mind the financial inflow of the state. We shall resolutely defend, extend and prioritise the welfare of workers and pensioners. To reposition the economy of our great state, we shall organise the Osun Economic Summit within the first quarter of our first year in office. The multi-stage, multi- stakeholder summit will dissect and recommend strategies which will drive meaningful youth employment, enhance food security, agricultural development, activate mining prospects and boost tourism potentials of this state. We will showcase Osun as a strategic location for industrialisation.

We are convinced that the peaceful atmosphere, a welcoming people, low crime rate, communal peace and the relative stability of electricity supply (particularly in the capital city) will attract local and foreign investors. We will develop the free trade zone while strengthening Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) as a way to enhance their productive capacity to generate jobs and create wealth. To further boost our local economy and increase the revenue base, we shall make Osun a cultural destination and a tourism enterprise zone in the Southwest. We shall improve on the Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) of the state in ways that do not bring additional burden to the people.  We will make health and education more accessible.

Employment opportunities will be created through industrialization and expansion of agricultural activities through appropriate incentives. To boost agriculture and food security. Our administration will consolidate on the agricultural land expansion programme (the Land Bank), with additional target of 20,000 hectares to the Land Bank. We will establish nine (9) new farm settlements (one each per federal constituency) while we push forward on our promise to establish agro-industrial parks and produce markets.

It is time to create jobs for our youths. We will upgrade our vocational technical institutions to make them more vibrant with the demands of a technology-driven, fast-paced world. We will in partnership with the private sector, establish light manufacturing industries in the major sectors of the economy to create at least 30,000 jobs.