From Priscilla Ediare, Ado-Ekiti

Each time a new administration comes on board, hopes are high that the new government will bring relief to the masses.

In Ekiti State, a new governor, Biodun Abayomi Oyebanji, popularly known as BAO, who will steer the affairs of the state for four years, has been sworn- in.

Oyebanji, who took over the mantle of leadership from Dr Kayode Fayemi, was sworn-in as the governor of the state on October 16, 2022.

As a new administration has begun in the state, our correspondent spoke with some residents concerning what they want Governor Oyebanji to do for them.

A resident, Mr Arimiyau Oyesiji, urged the governor to attend to the epileptic power supply in the state. He also tasked Oyebanji to attend to the construction and repair of the dilapidated roads in the state.

He said: “I want stable power supply of  electricity, and construction, repairs of roads especially in the new sites of Ado Ekiti. He should pay attention to new sites. For instance, in Olorunsogo area of Ado-Ekiti, the roads there are very bad, I want the Ekiti State governor to assist us in rehabilitating the roads linking our community, because during the rainy seasons we can’t drive our cars to our houses, and they are also not accessible to motorcycles. 

“As I earlier said that the community is a new site, I also want Gov Oyebanji to assist us in the electrification to put an end to total darkness in our community.”

An Ekiti-born, Lagos-based businessman and CEO, Timeless Prints, Mr Opeyemi Obafemi noted: “One noticeable shortcoming of the Fayemi administration was to ignore potholes that dot almost all roads of the capital city of Ado-Ekiti, whereas they could be fixed almost immediately, thereby reducing travel stress experienced by motorists. So the new governor should address this very important observation.”

Prof O. Abiodun, a university lecturer, said: “I want the new governor to pay strong attention to the following, in order to positively touch the lives of all Ekiti people. The immediate repair of all township roads, state roads and inner-city roads, especially in Ado Ekiti; As an APC government, Ekiti people need to experience the benefits of being associated with the federal APC government in terms of repairs of federal roads linking Ekiti State with other states – Akure – Ikere – Ado roads, Ilesa – Aramoko – Ado roads, Omuo -Ikole-ifaki-Ado roads, and so on. Thirdly, if roads are fixed, transportation costs in Ekiti will reduce for commuters; cost of transporting farm produce to the market will reduce and so prices of food will be more affordable. And more importantly, there won’t be bad spots on the roads for bandits and kidnappers to operate in Ekiti State.”

He added: “it will be important to pay attention to technical education to help the youths to become self employed and entrepreneurs. This will reduce unemployment rate in the state and consequently increase the Internally Generated Revenue of the State. 

If the new government can achieve success in these two areas (roads repair and technical education) within the four years of its term, I am sure the governor would have significantly contributed to the development and prosperity of Ekiti State more than any of the previous governments.”

A clergyman, Pastor Emmanuel Olutayo, urged the new administration to provide employment for the youths, pay salary arrears, fix the bad roads and provide security for the people.

His words: “I want the new governor to provide work for the youth, I mean the university graduates. For the NCE graduates, Gov Oyebanji should provide teaching jobs for them.

“Most of our roads are in poor condition, As a state governor, he should try and fix the state roads and other roads in our towns and communities. He should try and pay all the backlogs of arrears of civil servants. Security of lives and property is of great concern to us. We no longer want kidnappings and killings of our people.

“We beg the governor to equip the Amotekun, the vigilance group, local hunters  and other security outfits, so that they can be able to face criminals wreaking havoc in our communities.  The governor can also provide CCTV cameras in strategic places to enhance the work of security officers and help them detect criminals easily.”

A business woman, Mrs Bosede Emmanuel, urged Governor Oyebanji to be a governor of the people irrespective of their political affiliations, provide the environment for businesses to thrive, encourage farming and provide the people with adequate security.

“I expect good governance from the new governor without party discrimination. “Ekiti has been labelled a civil service state because there are no industries, this is making it lacking in industrial development. 

“There is need to attract investors to the state with good infrastructure projects that can fast-track development and reduce huge unemployment rate.

The state needs to acquire a large area of land that can contain market women and men, people doing business, in all local governments, especially in Ado-Ekiti, the capital city, to ease the crowded roads, which make the capital city so rough. The government must encourage all kinds of farming in the state to help reduce high cost of foodstuff.

“Also, we want adequate security for our people. Ekiti State used to be known as a peaceful state but in recent times, kidnappers, bandits have taken over our roads and forests, kidnapping and killing our people in various communities.

“We want Gov Oyebanji to equip the security outfits in the state like the Amotekun, the vigilantes, local hunters and others. The governor should employ more people into these outfits and provide them with those things they need to confront these challenges in the state.”

Prof E. O. Ogunleye, a university lecturer, identified five areas Governor Oyebanji should focus on.

His words: “Improved welfare through prompt payment of salaries, pension and gratuities. The primary goal of every government is to ensure the wellbeing of the people. Any new government, regardless of whether it is a continuation of the previous one or not, should endeavour to improve on the performance of the previous one. 

“The immediate past government of Dr J. K. Fayemi admitted that N57 billion arrears of salaries and pensions are being owed indigenes of the state. This has a lot of implications for the wellbeing of the people. A workable plan to start defraying the arrears should be put in place. This will also imply that regular payment of salaries and pensions should be a priority of the new government. This will raise the purchasing power and hence aggregate demand of the people and lead to a boost of the economy.

“The state of infrastructure is currently unacceptable. Many of the roads in the state are not motorable. There is the need to have extensive rehabilitation of state roads and to call the attention of the Minister of Works to the deplorable federal roads in the state. The immediate past administration committed some substantial sums of money in laying pipes all over the state. There is hardly any house without metered water tap, but they are all dry. The new admiration should ensure that water begins to flow from the taps. Power supply remains epileptic in spite of the 133KV transformer at Omisajana here in Ado-Ekiti, which was supposed to be the solution to the problem of power supply, at least in some parts of the state. Investors can only be attracted to the state when there is adequate infrastructure on ground.

“Insecurity in Ekiti has become worrisome. The security outfit in the state should be well equipped to face the challenges posed by bandits/kidnappers. It is a well-known fact that the bandits/kidnappers are always armed with sophisticated weapons in carrying out their nefarious activities. It will be suicidal to confront those criminals with locally fabricated guns and sticks. There is no rational investor that will venture into a geographical area where the safety of his life and property cannot be guaranteed.     

“The new administration needs to take adequate measures to transform the economy in order to enhance its viability. The first step in this direction is to prepare a home-drawn development plan. The 2022-2050 development plan unveiled by former Governor Fayemi at the end of his tenure may not really address the key issues in the state if it had been drawn without interaction with the people of the state. Moreover, a long-term development plan should be supported with both short-term and medium-term plans. 

“There is also the need to broaden the revenue base of the state. The monthly Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) of less than a billion is certainly not good enough. With the agro-allied cargo airport now put in place, the new government, being a continuation of the last one, is saddled with the responsibility of ensuring that the state begins massive production of agricultural produce such as yams, rice, cocoa, cassava, etc. in such large quantities that will justify being airlifted to other parts of the world. Increasing agricultural value chains that entails processing, packaging, and distribution is also implied here. 

“Government should be able to demonstrate a good measure and transparency in the management of available resources in order to win the confidence of the people.”