OPEN LETTER: 44TH Olubadan, Gov Makinde and matters arising by Rev Niyi Adebayo

OPEN LETTER: 44TH Olubadan, Gov Makinde and matters arising by Rev Niyi Adebayo

Profound congratulations, Your Excellency, Engr Oluseyi Abiodun MAKINDE on the successful coronation and installation of His Imperial Majesty, Oba Rasheed Adewolu Ladoja as the 44th Olubadan of Ibadanland. It’s like the loudest of such events that our own generation has witnessed in Ibadan.

Painfully, Your Excellency had to bury three former governors: Their Excellencies, Senator Abiola Ajimobi, Otunba Adebayo Alao-Akala and Baba Omololu Olunloyo (all of blessed memories). No doubts, such was going to be a harrowing experience for you as the governor, wondering you were voted as a governor, not an undertaker. Death is one call that cannot be challenged when it’s time. However, immortalising those departed heroes with state monuments is one of those things that make Your Excellency a living legend. It takes a statesman to draw the lines between party dichotomies and your hallowed duty as the leader of all. Kudos, Your Excellency.

Providentially, Your Excellency has crowned more kings than almost all those three pragmatic governors put together. I’m sure their spirits would be blessing you today (if there is something like that after death). God seems to have compensated your mourning with those historic celebrations. It’s to your credit and history won’t forget that, Your Excellency.

MY APPEALS:

1. Your Excellency, as a mark of honour to the memories of those your late predecessors, please do all in your capacity to sustain the legacies of their administrations. You have shown what intelligence, exposure, dynamism, pragmatism and brilliance add to leadership. You have shown what governance turns out to be where vision marries focus. Let’s have Your Excellency revisit whatever they left behind as state assets, projects and facilities. It’s one more additional honour that will keep their impacts fresh in the annals of the state. That Your Excellency visited LTH Ogbomoso and renamed the Technical University after Gov. Ajimobi shows how much of those projects you believe in. We can only ask for more. Your Excellency, the LAUTECH Teaching Hospital in Ogbomoso needs your passionate attention now like never before. The values that LTH Ogbomoso has added to life and living can’t be wished away. People from within and outside of Oyo State have benefited largely from the services and facilities in the hospital. Since the hospital got riddled with frequent strike actions, lives have been lost in dozens. Those who are close to Your Excellency said you hate to see people die, especially where such could be avoided by the verdict of medicine. Your visit to that hospital, the workers that Your Excellency magnanimously restored and the gradual attention your administration has given to parts of the salaries outstanding before the advent of your administration speak volumes of your interest in that hospital and the total health of your people.The GSM that we know will definitely leave that hospital better than you met her.

2. Now that God has used Your Excellency to revive, reform and review the Oyo State Council of Obas and Chiefs, it’s time to get them started on their meetings. With one word from Your Excellency, the move starts. A council peopled by egg heads and celebrated achievers like the newly installed Olubadan, Soun, Alaafin, Eleruwa, Aseyin and other pillars of tradition who have been holding sway on the Council such as the Olugbon, Onpetu, Okere, Alajaawa, Onjo and other noble souls in that category MUST NOT SIT IDLE. They have so much to offer. Should there be some grumbles and discords among our traditional rulers in the state, Your Excellency possess the reconciliatory skills, the goodwill, and the apparatus of governance to deal with those issues. If those issues have some legal dribbles that executive intervention may not tame, a commission of enquiries may help.

3. Your Excellency, if you have travelled on Ogbomoso roads often, it’s likely going to be the major road from Oyo axis to LAUTECH axis. More often than not, Your Excellency may not have had any reason to travel through our community routes. Our roads are too bad. Since haulage vehicles diverted to those inner roads when the usual main road became totally unusable, the roads have been in terrible shape. It’s a nightmare to move from Maternity Adeoye to Starlight junction; from Ogbomoso Baptist High School to General Area; from Caretaker to Ora Motor Park and from Ora to Orita Naira. Except those of us in the community speak up like this, Your Excellency may not know the horrible conditions of these roads because they are within the community. Like God has used your administration to fix roads in Ibadan zone, the good people of Ogbomoso zone too will be extremely happy to have Your Excellency graciously consider these. Ogbomosos haven’t hidden their profound love for Your Excellency. We love you like one of us, and will always do.

Again, congratulations, Your Excellency, GSM.

Congratulations, Your Imperial Majesty, Oba Rasheed Adewolu Ladoja, the 44th Olubadan of Ibadanland.

Congratulations, the good people of Ibadanland.

Congratulations, Oyo State.

Congratulations, Your Excellency, the President & Commander-in- Chief of the Federal Republic of Nigeria for living to witness the desire of a friend of many years.

Adebayo is Lead Pastor, True Worshippers Church, Ogbomoso and Director, Zoe Schools Ltd._

niyibayo2013@gmail.com