Oyo State Governor, Engineer Seyi Makinde, has put a lie to the persistent claim by the immediate past administration of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the State, that it built a modern Oyo State.
He stated that the claim was unjustifiable bogus, noting, however, that his government was determined to lift the state out of the mess left behind by the previous administration.
The governor, who was speaking at the sensitisation programme on the new waste management system in the state, said his administration inherited a decayed system in the governance of Oyo State in May 2019.
A statement by the Chief Press Secretary to Governor Makinde, Mr. Taiwo Adisa, quoted the governor as saying that the administration of Senator Abiola Ajimobi, which claimed it built a modern Oyo, bought no functional fire-fighting truck to take care of fire outbreaks in eight years.
He added that the past administration had no functional ambulances for state-owned hospitals and failed to leave a sustainable waste management structure.
He further made it clear that the waste management programme left behind by the immediate past administration was ineffective and unsustainable despite huge investments.
The statement added that with the launch of the new waste management architecture, Oyo State has begun its journey to becoming one of the cleanest in the country.
He said: “The past administration claimed to be the architect of modern Oyo State but, four days ago, I received some calls and when I picked, I was told that the wife of a former governor of Lagos State, who was in Ibadan for a visit, had health challenges and an ambulance was needed to convey her to Lagos. When we called the Government House Clinic to provide an ambulance, we were told there was none in the Government House Clinic.
“I also know that the Oyo State Road Transport Maintenance Agency (OYRTMA) refurbished a particular ambulance and I said they should make use of that one. Also, the Ministry of Health sent another ambulance that could be used but none of the ambulances could be used because they don’t have an oxygen facility. That is the modern Oyo State they claimed to have created.
“Now, there have been issues of fire incidents here and there and we thought about it. When we checked the records, we observed that they did not provide a single fire truck. If they bought, I challenge them to bring out the record and put them in the public domain that they truly did.”
The governor warned the opposition party to stop fomenting trouble and stop making unjustifiable claims, as he asked them to accept the verdict of the people which sent them out of office.
“The people of Oyo State have said that they sent them packing because of those inhumane acts and they are still fighting that they don’t want to leave.
“They said they have set traps and that if they can take over the councils, it equally means they have captured the State as well. Please, help me ask them: were they not in charge of the councils before you sent them away from the state? We can only ask God to calm their minds but if they fail to soft-pedal, then God himself will handle them”, the governor concluded.
