Nigeria Content Online

Almost eight years
after his exit from the Osun State government secretariat, a former
governor of the state and national Chairman of the Action Congress of
Nigeria, Adebisi Akande yesterday returned to the Bola Ige house,
government secretariat, Osogbo where he rededicated the governor’s
office constructed by his administration with a call on the people of
the state to support the present administration in its bid to right the
wrongs allegedly committed by the immediate past administration of
Olagunsoye Oyinlola.

The administration
of Mr Akande, who served as governor of the state between 1999 and
2003, started the construction of the governor’s office which houses
the offices of the governor, deputy governor, secretary to the state
government, chief of staff to the governor and top civil servants in
2001 and completed it in 2003 towards the end of his tenure.

However, Mr Akande
did not have the opportunity of occupying the office before his
administration ended and he lost to Olagunsoye Oyinlola of the People’s
Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2003 governorship election.

Amidst rousing
ovation from a gathering of civil servants and politicians, the former
governor who described his four-year-tenure as a period of sacrificial
service to his state, noted that he constructed the much praised state
secretariat with the meager resources at the disposal of the state
during his tenure.

Ethos of prudence and accountability

While recounting
how he governed the state, Mr Akande said prudence, transparency and
accountability were his watchwords, adding that the achievements
recorded by his administration created a niche for him in the country.

As a committed
disciple of Obafemi Awolowo, Mr Akande said he followed the legacies of
the late statesman and his mentor, Bola Ige in running the affairs of
the state.

“When I came on
board as the governor of Osun State in 1999, there was paucity of fund
and resources in the state. We were living at a building built by the
late Awolowo, and we were happy, since we believe we were elected to
serve and not to enjoy the luxury of office. There was no money to
cater for the needs of the people of the state, but God helped us and
we succeeded at the end of the day,” he said.

He advised the
incumbent governor, Rauf Aregbesola to reduce extravagant spending if
he wants to succeed in office, and enjoined the governor to give
agriculture priority, saying the state could be more developed than
others if the agricultural sector is well developed.

Describing Mr
Aregbesola’s administration as a replica of his government, Mr Akande
urged the governor to construct a new government house at a serene
location within Osogbo, the state capital.

He described the immediate past administration as “a parasite which
has been cut off from the state” and called on the people to support
the present administration.