A governorship aspirant in Oyo State, Prof Adeolu Akande, yesterday called on the state Governor, Abiola Ajimobi, to allow compassion to guide his decision when dealing with matters that directly involved the people he governed.
Akande called on the governor to remember the promise he made to cater for the security and welfare of the people of the state when he was elected.
Akande in a press statement personally signed by him, noted that recent actions of the government suggest that some elements in the Ajimobi government have forgotten that the government won election in 2011 with the promise to cater for the security and welfare of the people of the state.
He explained that many recent actions of the government are at variance with its disposition at inception in 2011 and only suggests that some forces who are not privy to the pledge of Governor Ajimobi to the people of Oyo State have made ascendancy in the government to the detriment of what the government stood for at inception.
Akande, who teaches Political Science at Igbinedion University, Okada, Edo State explained that “no government without the element of compassion can go down in history as a successful government”.
“The primary responsibility of any government is to protect lives and property. The sacredness of private property is second in importance only to that of the preservation of life.
“A government has a duty to make all necessary measures to protect the property of private citizens just as it has a duty to protect their lives”, he stated.
“The furore generated by the demolition of the property of Mr Yinka Ayefele must have demonstrated to the government by now that it was an unpopular decision. Government is about the people and not the anger and emotions of the people in government. The Yoruba captures this truism when they say “Ogbon ni Oba n lo, Oba ki lo agidi” meaning a “ruler rules with wisdom and not with stubbornness”.
“The Ayefele saga has once again brought to the fore the need for Governor Ajimobi to rethink his government and review its personnel and focus, as he embarks on his homestretch so that history can be kind to him.
“As the premier Chief of Staff in the administration, I am pained to see that many of the lofty ideals that endeared the governor to the people in the early years have been abandoned and replaced with practices that can only wipe out the achievements of these early glorious years of his administration.
“It is more painful that many of the personnel who encourage controversial government decisions and actions claim innocence in private conservations and never identified themselves with those decisions, even in public”.
Akande counselled that Governor Ajimobi should rethink his posture on the demolition of the building belonging to Mr Yinka Ayefele and make amendments that will restore public confidence in his government and in his person. Ayefele means many things to many people. His rise to grace in spite of a major life challenge makes him a model for a good percentage of our people. As a musician, he has been the purveyor of joy and happiness to many of us because of his melodious and philosophical music. As a philanthropist, he is a great shield for hundreds of thousands of people. As the promoter of Fresh FM, he is a trustee of public thrust as the station has become the Voice of the Voiceless.
“I recall that the location of the building was at issue when the dualization of the Challenge-Toll Gate road was conceived by government about 2012 but the governor in his magnanimity directed that all government agencies involved must take measures to protect the building from demolition, even when some forces encouraged him to demolish the building. I plead that Governor Ajimobi should exhibit this same compassion in taking measures that will protect Mr Ayefele, protect private investment in the state, and restore public admiration for him instead of the present angst that pervades the state. Government should open discussion with Mr Ayefele and find an amicable resolution of the dispute. Ayefele needs to be protected because he is a valuable icon of our society.
Akande advised Governor Ajimobi to extend this same sense of compassion to the handling of subsisting issues of LAUTECH and the closure of tertiary institutions occasioned by the reduction in subvention to the institutions.
“I make this appeal because Governor Ajimobi is on the homestretch of his administration and there will not be such auspicious opportunity for him to etch his name in the positive side of history. Those who encourage the governor to embrace hard-line positions in his last months in government are not his friends and do not mean well for him and Oyo State. “Ogbon ni Oba nlo. Oba ki lo agidi”, he concluded.
