Special Announcement: Change in Osun Free Train Movement...

This is to inform all interested holidaymakers who are intending to travel back to Lagos with the Omoluabi Free train service provided by the Government of Osun that the schedule of movement of the train has been changed from its initial 11 am today to 5 pm today Tuesday 27th.
This change in schedule has been compelled by a sudden rail derailment at the Ashipa area of Ogun state which has caused disruptions along the route.
We apologise for any inconveniences this sudden change might cause.
Thank you...


Signed:
Ministry of Industries, Commerce, Cooperatives and Empowerment
state of Osun, Osogbo....

OSUN SALARY: We Are Committed Towards Improving Workers Welfare in Osun

The administration of Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola is committed towards the improvement of the welfare of workers in the employ of the state government while also guaranteeing job security. 

This commitment of the administration was reinforced today with the decision of the Fund Apportionment Committee set up by the Governor last year to look into ways of shoring up the resources accruing to government while at the same time overseeing payment of salaries and pension after deducting the critical expenditures of government at the end of every month. 

The Committee under the leadership of renown labour leader Comrade Hassan Sunmonu rose from its meeting today with decisions that will bring smile to the face of the workers. At the meeting, it was decided that the loan refund paid to the state should be used to settle the salary and pension bill for the months of September, October and November with immediate effect.  

While workers on grade levels 1 -7 will be paid 100% (full salary), those on levels 8 - 10 will receive 75% and the others 50%. Pensioners earning below #20,000.00 per month will also receive their full pension for the three months while those earning between #20,000 - #80,000.00 will receive 75%. Added to this is the decision taken that remaining arrears of leave bonus for the last quarter of 2014 should also be paid immediately. 

Also conveyed to the meeting was the instruction of the Governor that December salary should be paid immediately the allocation for November is received next week.  The decisions have put an end to the insinuations by enemies of the government and detractors that all is not well between the workers and the government while outstanding arrears will be cleared as soon as the economy of the state improves.

N-POWER: We Discovered Applicants With Fake Certificates - Staff.

As the screening of the Youth Empowerment Scheme of Federal Government continuing, it has been discovered that a number of applicants applied with fake credentials.

Yesterday, in the State of Osun, our correspondence in a dialogue with one staff of the agency conducting the authentication process who pleaded anonymous said, "We have discovered that many of the applicants used fake documentation, which has been exposed during the screening exercise that is ongoing."

He added said, "At Boluwaduro Local Government, we discovered that out of about 94 applicants that were successfully shortlisted, almost 10 have been debarred on certificates scandal and other related issues.

He alleged, "Some applicant submitted fake results, while others have Ordinary National Diploma (OND) and claimed to have gotten National College of Education, which is against the lay down principles of NPOWER scheme.

He said, "Also, in Ifelodun Local Government and loads of others, there are issues of forgery and credential manipulation."

It was also established that the screening has been completed in some of the 30 Local Governments of the state while, the rest are expected to report to State office to complete theirs, for some of the applicants failed to show up within the time stipulated.

He advised, "Federal and State Government should entreat in working perfectly for the reason that, there are thousands of graduates who have good documents but, could not get this opportunity. The government should maintain merit so as to encourage youths with better certifications and also shun engaging people through back door."

I Have Not Received Any Salary In 6 Years- Rauf Aregbesola.

The Governor of Osun State, Rauf Aregbesola, says he has not earned salary since he assumed Office six years ago.

He said this during the launch of Oodua FM in Ile- Ife on Sunday.

“When people complain about our financial state, I begin to wonder if they think I am spending people’s money. Some of you do not know that I have not received any salary since I
became governor- of Osun state, why will I take that of others,” said Mr. Aregbesola.

Osun State has been in deep financial crisis for a long while and has been unable to pay salaries of workers. Besides, the governor who began his second-term in office in November 2014, has not appointed Commissioners.

The Poor financial condition of the state has also made it impossible to live up to its obligations to the Ladoke Akintola University, Ogbomosho, which it jointly funds with Oyo State.

Mr. Aregbesola said the Economic crisis was not only affecting Osun state but also other States, noting “there is no Free Money anywhere.” He explained that he refused to appoint Commissioners because of the state’s poor Financial condition.

“How will I have commissioners when we have no money?” he asked.

“The Minority Leader of Osun state House of Assembly wrote a post on Facebook complaining that I have not paid them. We don’t have the Money, even the minority leader does not have a
Car.”

The Governor advised the Owner of the radio station, Hon Rotimi Makinde, to use it to develop of the state rather than for Politics. Mr. Aregbesola criticized the Nigerian Broadcasting Corporation for allegedly performing below expectation.

According to him, “Nigerian Broadcasting Corporation has set standards but they just do things anyhow. There was a time that Osun state was almost torn apart by the media but Nigerian Broadcasting Corporation refused to act...

O'Ambulance Paramedics Rescue Man In Osogbo

What could have resulted in a tragic loss today was averted at Olaiya junction in Osogbo by the intervention of paramedics team of the State government of Osun which is known as O'Ambulance.

As reported by Adabanija Qamarudeen, the victim who was a passenger of a motorcycle popularly called Okada suddenly fell off the bike and completely become unconscious. 

"The rider of the motorcycle noticed his passenger was blackout after he fell down from his back and for the reason, no one could ascertain, the rider zoomed off immediately," Adabanija accounted.

He stated that the O'Ambulance paramedics team appeared at the scene of the incident just at a time the helpless man was lying down with no hope and almost out of breath, the team gave him some first aid treatments and rushed him to the nearest hospital.

'The O'Ambulance is one of the many initiatives of Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, the governor of the State of Osun'

Osun Followed CBN Guidelines In Disbursing Bailout – Labour

 

The Chairman, Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Jacob Adekomi and his counterparts from the Joint negotiation Council (JNC), Bayo Adejumo, Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees (NULGEE), and Nigeria Union of Teacher (NUT), Wakeel Amuda, confirmed that they monitored Osun bail-out fund and found that it was used for salary, allowances and pensions.

They said, the labour unions and the state government agreed on how to spend the bailout fund and the government respected the agreement by spending the fund in line with the CBN guidelines.
According to each of them, pensioners were not captured in the fund released to the state government, but they prevailed on the governor and had an understanding to include the pensioners, which the governor magnanimously agreed.

The labour leaders confirmed that the government set up a committee, headed by the first NLC President, Comrade Hassan Sunmonu, with labour unions and other stakeholders as members to monitor the fund and the revenue from other sources, saying this has given them the opportunity to monitor the transactions.

Presenting the analysis of the fund, the Accountant-General said, the state government had requested for N64,327,492,947.01 to cover salaries, allowances, pensions and gratuties, but the CBN approved only N25,871,920,000 to cover just salaries and allowance, leaving out pension and gratuities.

“No fund was released for pension and gratuity despite the fact that we included it in our letter to the CBN. We explained this to the pensioners repeatedly but they did not believe us.

“If you look at the letter we wrote for N64bn, it covered every category of staff.
They pensioners should not have been paid from the fund, but for the magnanimity of the governor, who said we must include them because they had served the state diligently.

“It will also interest you to note that what I presented here is the same document I sent to the ICPC and I believe they are satisfied, because it is about six months now and they have not return to ask any other question”.

He said, inspite the non-inclusion of pensions, the government had paid the pensioners up till August 2016 in line with modulated salary structures as applicable to civil servants in the state.

According to him, as at November 30,2016, the state government still has‚ N2.040 billion in First Bank and N1.312 billion in Wema Bank as balance of the bailout fund, which according to him, would be used to augment salaries in months to come.

The statement further noted that he stressed that the government has demonstrated high sense of responsibility in the application of the fund.

For the arrears of salaries, allowance, pension and gratuities of local governments workers, the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Local Government, Mufutau Oluwadare, the statement added, said, a sum of N23,887,975,810
.26 was requested, but only N9,117,070,000 was approved and released by the CBN.

According to him, it was this that sum up to N34bn released to both state and local government, saying, the fund released was not inclusive of the pension, but they were magnanimously included to ensure that they are paid, just like the serving government officials.
The Speaker of the Assembly, Honourable Najeem Salaam, the statement further noted, said, based on the analysis made on the disbursement of the fund, there was no any other way it could be shown that the fund was used for the purpose of salary, allowances and pensions.

Salam, who debunked the insinuations that the House was prompted to investigate the bailout fund based on the decision of the Senate to investigate the matter, said, the Assembly had been following the application of the fund since 2015.

He cited a letter dated 12th November 2015 with reference No: LM94/vol4/277 in which the House requested the Accountant General to give update on the Sukuk Bond, bailout fund and multilateral loans of the state and it was responded to through another letter, detailing the disbursement of the funds.

“We have been monitoring the activities of the executive on how the bailout and other loans are being spent. If the Senate wants to come for its oversight function, we will not say they shouldn’t come, but it has to come through relevant state authority, which is the state legislative arm.

“We are not fighting with the Senate. We are not saying that the Senate can’t perform it’s oversight function but things have to be properly done,” Salam said

SPEECH BY THE GOVERNOR OF THE STATE OF OSUN, OGBENI RAUF AREGBESOLA, AT THE FIFTH NATIONAL WOMEN’S SUMMIT OF OYO STATE OFFICIALS’ WIVES ASSOCIATION (OYSOWA) HELD AT THE EMERITUS PROF THEOPHILUS OGUNLESI HALL, OPPOSITE UCH, IBADAN, ON WEDNESDAY DECEMBER 7, 2016

OUR WOMEN, OUR TREASURE


Protocols,

It gives me great pleasure to be at this event, the fifth edition of the national women’s summit, under the auspices of Oyo State Officials’ Wives Association (OYSOWA). The theme of this conference, ‘The Ultimate Woman at a Time like This’ is very apt and prescient. When things are tough, we need the moderating influence of women.
The theme also suggests that all women are not equal, hence the qualification for the ‘ultimate woman’. The ultimate woman is the ideal woman, the woman every man wants as wife, every child wants as mother, every parent wants as daughter and ultimately, every woman aspires to be.
But generally, women are a wonderful creation. God has a purpose in creating women to be unique. Some men of recent have been pretending to be women by going through cosmetic surgery and cross dressing. This will never make you a woman. You cannot be a woman if you are not biological designed by nature with the physical features.
The greatest and the strongest of men have been melted by the soothing balm of womanhood as epitomised by their beauty, gentle nature, charm and strength of character.
A woman has been prepared by nature from childhood to hold forth the home front and guarantee the family and society. As a child, she helps the mother at managing the home. As a wife and mother, she ministers to her family and in old age she becomes a matriarch. A woman’s life therefore is a lifetime of service to humanity.
To be able to fulfil her role, it is interesting to note that nature has prepared women to be stronger. While men may appear to be physically stronger, women are far stronger than men in many other respects.
Right from conception, medical science tells us that the X chromosome in a man’s seed (which will result in a baby girl if it meets with a woman’s seed) are stronger than the Y chromosome (which results in a baby boy) and therefore will live longer by at least 24 hours. The Y chromosome is usually the first to die. Also, a female foetus has greater chance of surviving the first trimester than a male in the womb. A girl will most likely survive the first three years of life than a boy while globally, women enjoy greater life expectancy.
Men are most likely to engage in dangerous and life threatening activities like starting wars, driving dangerously, living recklessly and putting their lives and others at risk. There is no society, no matter how well advanced, where men live longer than women. Women, on the average, live longer than men.
A woman is less likely to have car accident than a man. This has even made the car insurance premium payable by women in some countries lower than that for men.
A woman has greater capacity to cope with pressure than man. That is why suicide is rare among the female species than in men.
This is why women development is very important. We must develop and empower our women, beginning with full education for the girl child. Considering the role that women play in the family, they need to be well educated. The level and quality of education of the mother will, to some extent, determine the development of the children.
Women must also be empowered to work and participate actively in the economic activities of the society. It has been well established by studies upon studies that the level of development in a society is directly proportional to the level of empowerment of women and the role they play in the economy. Strangely, we have seen also that the societies, globally and in our country, with the most conflicts and instability are where women are mostly relegated.
Women must be empowered. There is no society that shackles more than half of its population that can develop or progress. This must begin with compulsory education of the girl child. I have searched the religions traditional, Islam and Christianity, I did not see anything that stands in the way of women education and empowerment.
In Osun, we have taken women empowerment to be an integral aspect of governance. Our O’meals programme in which we feed school children in Primary 1–4 every school day is basically a women empowerment programme. We engaged the services of 3,007 community caterers to prepare the food for the pupils as hygienically as possible. To be able to achieve this, the caterers were first medically screened and certified fit and proper, retrained on the rudiments of cooking and particularly made to understand the importance of, one, hygiene in disease prevention and secondly, good nutrition to healthy living.
Each caterer also benefits from a government facilitated interest-free loan of N41,500 for the acquisition of cooking and other kitchen utensils. The loan repayment period is spread over 36 months, with N1,152.78 kobo deducted from their account every month.
The community caterers are all provided free-of-charge with a pair of uniforms (comprising gowns, caps and aprons) by the State Government of Osun at a cost of N11.6 million to the government.
We also instituted a grooming programme at the grassroots under which we train women in vocations and empower them to stand on their own. The programme has nearly 30,000 clients and has distributed loans in excess of N1.7 billion. Each beneficiary receives loans ranging from N40,000 to N150,000. Interestingly, the women have been faithful in loan repayment as the programme recorded 99.89 per cent loan recovery.
This is in addition to nearly N2 billion that have been provided as interest free loans in our micro-credit agency; majority of the beneficiaries are women.
As a government, we share the belief that, if properly empowered, our women, particularly from the rural areas, can make meaningful contributions to the development of our dear state. To underscore this, we saw the need to establish a full government ministry to cater to the issues that concern women’s development and empowerment.
We are determined as a government to elevate the status of our women, both in the rural and in the urban areas. Beyond the economy, we are also mindful of their potential to contribute meaningfully in politics. Thus, we are making serious effort to encourage women to take up more prominent roles in political affairs. One positive fruit of this effort is the fact that my deputy is a woman; a woman of substance, Iya-Afin Grace Titi-Laoye Tomori, one of the very few that occupy that seat in the country. There are other women occupying top positions in the government. It is our belief that their position in government will serve to encourage more women to develop a higher level of confidence in their political capacities and efficacy.
There are other ways we provide for rural women. One of them is their inclusion in the ‘Agba Osun’ elderly support scheme. The government provides a monthly stipend for the most vulnerable among our elderly folks and predictably, most of them are women.
We hold women in high esteem. It is my sincere hope that as a society and government, we should raise the status of our women and help them to realize their greatest potentials.

I thank you all for your attention.

SPEECH BY THE GOVERNOR OF THE STATE OF OSUN, OGBENI RAUF AREGBESOLA, AT THE FIFTH NATIONAL WOMEN’S SUMMIT OF OYO STATE OFFICIALS’ WIVES ASSOCIATION (OYSOWA) HELD AT THE EMERITUS PROF THEOPHILUS OGUNLESI HALL, OPPOSITE UCH, IBADAN, ON WEDNESDAY DECEMBER 7, 2016

APC Win Lagos National Assembly by-election

There were indications on Saturday that the All Progressives Congress candidate in the Ifako–Ijaiye House of Representatives by-election, Mr. Akinwunmi Olaitan, was leading other contenders in the exercise.

It was gathered that the Peoples Democratic Party candidate, Mr. Babatope Akinyele, is trailing behind the APC candidate.



Early results as of  press time showed that in ward A, APC polled 475 votes while PDP polled 166. In Ward B, APC polled 540 and the PDP got 135.

In ward C, APC polled 841 while PDP polled 195.

At of press time, other results were still being collated.

The election recorded a low turn-out as a large number of voters stayed away from the 687 polling units in the constituency.

The election was held to get a replacement for the late House of Representatives member representing the constituency, Dr. Elijah Adewale, who died on July 20, 2016


SOURCE: PUNCH

Progressives e-Group Congratulates Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola

Progressives e-Group congratulates Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola on his 6th Year Anniversary as the Governor of the State of Osun, warns political walla to keep off.

The social media volunteers under
the banner of Progressives e-Group has congratulated Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola on his 6th year anniversary as the governor of Osun.

In a statement released through the office of its coordinator, the group affirms that the State of Osun under the leadership of Ogbeni Aregbesola has witnessed many transformations, progress, and development.

The group insists that the modernisation of towns and cities in Osun starts with the administration of Aregbesola.

"Within the last 6 years, it's obvious that Aregbesola has raised the bar excellence in governance ."

"He had shown to the world that leadership is about service, sacrifice, endurance, and patience."

"We, therefore, celebrate him as it's his 6th year of managing the affairs of the State. We supplicate to God in his infinite mercy to strengthen him and his government to record more success." The statement confirmed.

Also, the group implores members of the public to support the government of Aregbesola by taking in high esteem their civic responsibilities to the society which it listed as; prompt payment of taxes, dues, fees and charges.

The group also advises all political walla and rumour mongers who are engaged by the opposition to peddle rumour and fake news with a sole aim of causing disaffection between the government and the general public.

Osun a dara o
Progressives e-Group

PeG Felicitates With All Muslims, Advocates For Peace and Harmony

The Progressives e-Group enjoin all Muslims across the country and the world on the occasion of this 2016 Eid-Ul-Mubarak celebration, urges them to pray for peace and be hopeful for recovered state of affairs of the Nation.

PeG urges Muslims across the globe to coexist in peace and love, as there's no alternative to peaceful coexistence.

The group insists that Nigeria can only progress and develop, when her citizens care and love one another. 

Pointing to the importance of today's Eid, the group reminds Muslims of the sacrifice Prophet Ibrahim and Ismail made and how their faithfulness to Allah became a model that gave birth to today's celebration.

The nation cannot survive amid any act of indecency, violence and unrest.

Also, the group enjoins Nigerians to unite and support the administration of President Muhammad Buhari in order to make Nigeria a better nation for all. Though, it may be tough at present, but we should all note that tough time never last, only tough people do. What we are facing today is not permanent but a temporary situation that will soon be a thing of the past.

Conclusively, as Muslims are celebrating with our loved one to mark the festive atmosphere, Progressives e-Group wishes Nigerians and Muslim all over the world happy Eid-ul-Mubarak's celebration. May we all live to witness many of it in sound health and prosperity…

Text of State Address of Governor Rauf Aregbesola to the People of the state of Osun on the Visit of President Muhammadu Buhari to the state on Thursday, September 1, 2016

My good people of Osun, Once again, I congratulate us all on the 25th anniversary of the creation of our state, The State of Osun. Last Saturday we celebrated this milestone at the Osogbo City Stadium where 4,000 wonderful children treated us and our guests to breathtaking callisthenics display.

In this spirit of celebration, I am most pleased to inform you that your president, our president, President Muhammadu Buhari will be visiting us on Thursday September 1, 2016. During his visit, he will commission the ultra-modern, newly constructed, Osogbo Government High School.

President Buhari has visited us in Osun before. He was here during the governorship campaign of 2014. He was here also for my second term inauguration and was here during his own presidential election campaign last year. Osun, therefore, is one of the states he has visited more often. This is a demonstration of the esteem to which he holds us.

His visit here this time however, is as your national leader and president. It is like no other visit.

President Buhari was elected because you voted for him. You were part of the making of this history; the first time that a progressive leader would be elected president in this country.

He is also the symbol of the political alliance between the North and the West that rescued our country from brigands and crooks.
I am asking therefore that you all come out to welcome and honour him. We are Omoluabi, the epitome of virtue. One of the hallmarks of Omoluabi is being hospitable. We are going to demonstrate this to the president and his entourage. You will give Mr President an opportunity to have a good impression of you. Please put up your best performance as Omoluabi and give the president a rousing welcome.

President Buhari was elected at a turbulent period in the nation’s history but he has given a good account of himself and has not let down the people who voted for him or the progressive platform under which he contested.

He is a patriot par excellence and a man of integrity. In one year of his administration, he has recovered trillions of naira from the crooks that ruled Nigeria for a decade and a half and is making them to give account. He is returning integrity to government and positioning it to function again as the agency of the people for providingt good government. He needs our understanding and support and we are going to give him.
It is true that reform and change often come with bitter pills. But I want to assure you that Mr President and his team are working round the clock to ease the pain of the people and usher in the season of prosperity and abundance.

His coming to Osun is significant for us. This is the first time a president of our own making is coming to us. This visit will provide us the opportunity to discuss areas in which the federal government can be of assistance to us.

Please join me on Thursday morning to welcome Mr President to Osun. I am calling on women and their groups, market women, traders, artisans, workers, teachers, students, transporters, drivers, commercial motorcyclists, employers of labour, organised private sector, the business community, non-governmental organisations, community based organisations, youth organisations, student organisations, traditional rulers, community leaders, religious leaders, security agencies, men and women, young and old. Let give honour to whom honour is due.

I thank you. A ku odun, a ku iyedun; odun a yabo fun wa o.

Osun a dara!

#OsunAt25: Omoworare Advocates Continuous Love, Progressive Consciousness

Posted by Editor

The Senator Representing Osun East Senatorial District at the Senate, Babajide Omoworare has advocated for continuous expression of love to one another to sustain harmonious relationship peaceful atmosphere of the state.

Omoworare urged residents of the state to sustain their progressive consciousness for the development of the state, saying that the administration of Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, members of the National Assembly from the state and members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) acknowledged their undying support.

According to Omoworare, the people of the state have strongly showed their passion for the development of the state by standing in support of Aregbesola on his developmental projects and during the financial quagmire of the state.

Speaking through his Media Assistance, Mr Tunde Dairo in a congratulatory message to the people of the state on the 25th anniversary of Osun, Omoworare maintained that Aregbesola stands out among other previous administrations in terms of infrastructural development.

Omoworare said: “Looking back at the last 25 years of our existence as a people, we must give Glory to God for the peace and progress we have experienced over time. In the last 25 years, we have been living up to the dreams and visions of our founding fathers and the manifest destiny that brought us into existence regardless of our previous and present challenges.”



The Senator also commended the workers, artisans and the youths for their collective sacrifices, perseverance and believing in the collective development and peaceful coexistence over the years.

“God has been faithful to us and kept us together regardless of our enormous challenges and limitation. We have witnessed various degrees of development under different dispensation and we can boldly say that Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola stands out.

“We must sustain the spirit of love and progressive consciousness for a collective development drive to take the state to greater heights”, he said.

Omoworare congratulated Aregbesola for his unique achievements and his ability to move the state forward over the years despite the numerous challenges that confronted his administration.

The senator appealed to the people to look beyond limitations and challenges of the present and see a brighter future as enshrined in the change mantra of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and President Muhamadu Buhari.

According to Omoworare, “0the present global economic meltdown is no respecter of any state especially a monolithic economy like ours with heavy reliance on oil revenues which has dwindled globally in recent years.

“The Present administration of the APC is spiritedly driving the economy towards diversification for more economic earnings, block all leakages and stamp out corruption to secure a mutually viable economic future for Nigeria.”

Omoworare specifically congratulated his constituents of Ife/Ijesa senatorial district, Justas he assured them and the entire nation of his principled, conscientious and progressive representation and legislative activities that will impact positively on all.

#OsunAt25: WE ARE FOR THE LONG HAUL - Rauf Aregbesola

SPEECH BY THE GOVERNOR OF THE STATE OF OSUN, OGBENI RAUF AREGBESOLA, AT THE CALLISTHENICS DISPLAY COMMEMORATING THE 25^TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE CREATION OF THE STATE OF OSUN, AT THE OSOGBO CITY STADIUM, ON AUGUST 27, 2016

Protocols,

WE ARE FOR THE LONG HAUL

I am greatly pleased to be with this beautiful gathering this beautiful morning to celebrate the silver jubilee of the creation of our state. We are being treated here to beautiful and breath-taking callisthenics display by Osun school pupils. Today’s display involves 4,000 pupils between the ages of nine and 14, drawn from 17 Middle Schools in Osogbo and Olorunda Local Governments.

We began this programme in 2012 with the assistance of Cuban duo, Francis Rodriguez and Raiza Guerra, who trained the first set that performed during the 21^st anniversary of the creation of Osun, four years ago. They also trained the trainers as well. We are happy that our people trained by the Cubans are the ones coaching the next generation and are responsible for today’s feat.

In 2012, a total of 8,000 athletes drawn from 24 schools and 60 coaches were trained in the nine federal constituencies in the state. The callisthenics programme has been well received in our schools and communities by the students, teachers and parents.

The Osun School Calisthenics is not a frivolous brainwave that will be swept away by the tide of time. Rather, it is a well-conceived programme as part of the overall redesign and reorganisation of the education system in Osun. Our administration views physical education with all seriousness, and we regard formal education as incomplete without its physical development component. Accordingly, we give it the required priority in the restructuring of education. 

As we have emphasised, the calisthenics programme is not only an out-of-school sports activity but a lifestyle-change project for building a new generation of students who are physically fit, mentally sound and socially well-adjusted. And we are not alone in this view. We have history to draw upon, and this is also supported by practices in other lands and climes. Even the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) regards physical education programmes as part of its crucial brief.

The importance of physical education in the development of healthy and wholesome human personality has been realised as far back as ancient Greece where, for instance, the human body was regarded as a temple that provided a sacred abode for the human mind and soul. The Greeks of old therefore believed that gymnastics and calisthenics were necessary to keep this temple-abode healthy and functional. This tradition eventually gave birth to organised sporting activities.

As the Encarta put it, these ‘Games that foster competition and stimulate play behavior are often used as a means of enabling students to understand and practice specific physical skills so that a high level of fitness can be maintained.’

This perhaps also explains why, in the advanced countries of the world, like the United States, physical education is generally taught to school pupils right from kindergarten and up to the tertiary level. It covers a whole range of organised physical activities including sports, calisthenics, gymnastics, dance and so on.

The importance of physical exercise to the development of a healthy human person cannot be over-emphasised.  Calisthenics, for example, has been known to have the substance of unity, harmony, balance and team work and thus presents one of the best engagements for teaching young pupils the cooperative spirit in a simple, delightful and interesting way. In other words, virtues such as team work, esprit de corps, which are highly desirable in society and social interactions are also derived from and fostered by calisthenics. This is in addition to its healthful benefits for the body such as flexibility, physical strength, agility and the capacity for endurance. Indeed, modern researches into health and diseases have established the incontrovertible fact that physical exercises accrue health benefits to, and keep many a harmful disease away from, the body.

An added advantage of this programme, especially in our own peculiar situation, is that, by providing a platform for fraternisation and positive integration and engagement in a worthwhile endeavour, it makes the students unavailable for potentially destructive out-of-school activities, such as political brigandage and other criminal activities. This is further underscored by the fact that sporting, besides other things, has become a big industry in the modern world. it is not only advantageous for the individual sports-person in terms of earning a living, it is also important for the sporting nation in regard to its status in the comity of nations and its performance in international sporting competitions.

Therefore, countries around the world where there is a well-organised and deliberate sporting programme of catching them young always excel in global competitive sporting events. The sterling performances of countries like the United States, Great Britain and China in the recently concluded Olympic Games in London attest to this fact. It also contrasts with our country’s showing in the Games.

When Chief Bola Ige, as governor of the old Oyo State, introduced callisthenics in the Second Republic, it was to the delight of all and was well applauded all over the country. Regrettably, it was discontinued as a result of military incursion into government. By reintroducing it, we are just continuing the worthy legacy of this colossus.

When we started callisthenics in 2012, the then opposition in Osun, dazed by this uncommon phenomenon, rushed to town to make the ludicrous allegation that we were training the youths as armed militias with the aim of using them to secede from Nigeria. How could children holding flags and bending their bodies function as armed militias or be used to secede from Nigeria?

Nevertheless, callisthenics is, in a microcosm, the philosophy of education we have introduced in Osun. We have been inculcating the values of unity, harmony, discipline, teamwork, hard work and creativity into the school children. It can be seen from callisthenics for instance that the whole is the sum of the parts. You must do well your part for the team to succeed and your own success is only meaningful in light of the success of others. If one athlete should be out of sync with the team, the formation fails.

We have been raising the new man. We are providing education as the infrastructure of the mind that develops our youths to become models of good character, innovation and competence; the true Omoluabi. This Omoluabi personae is honest, courageous and rational; one who excels in character, innovation and competence. The educated person is well connected to his or her Yoruba culture and heritage. Everything he or she does with others, the society, family and friends is driven by the desire to live and demonstrate good deeds.

This is also a foretaste of the future of the products of our education system. As a developing nation, a disproportionate percentage of our population falls below 25 years and a greater number of that segment still are within the schooling age. At the golden jubilee of Osun in the next 25 years by the grace of God, therefore, the beneficiaries of our education system and the legacy we are leaving behind would constitute the majority of the population.

We picture these children in the next 25 years, having imbibed these traits and having formed their character with them.In addition to the learning they have acquired, they are going to take the world by storm. They would have been equipped with the learning and character needed to function and excel in an increasingly digitised and competitive world. They would be winners and leaders in this state, our country and the world at large. We are long distance runners, not sprinters. We are for the long haul.

Let me thank the brains behind this callisthenics programme and all the people that made today’s event a huge success.I will like to thank all the members of the 25^th anniversary committee, under the leadership of Dr Charles Akinola and supervision of my Chief of Staff, Alhaji Gboyega Oyetola.

Mr Adebayo Ojo, Director, Department of Social and Grassroots Mobilisation and Guidance in the Office of the Governor, leads the callisthenics team, while Barrister Gbenga Akano is responsible for Administrative Coordination.

Ojo is assisted by eight officers in his Department. These are Wale Balogun, Temilade Olokungboye, Sadeeq Olajide, Gbenga Adedeji, Prince Fatai Tadese, Popola Alaba, Seun Abosede and Yaya Ademola.

The coaching crew consists of the Chief Coach, Prince Adedeji, and two Assistant Chief Coaches, LS Ajayi and Alhaji Ilesanmi, three Principal Coaches, S.S. Egbeyemi, B.M. Amiola and A.R. Oyekanmi and 38 other Assistant Coaches.

I acknowledge the assistance and support of corporate bodies and organisations, particular Wema Bank, Zenith Bank, Sterling Bank and First Bank.

I thank also the parents whose children have treated us to breath-taking display this morning. Your investment of hope in them will come to fruition in due season. Last but not the least, I thank the 4,000 athletes who have kept us spellbound with their extraordinary performance. Your future will be as bright and fulfilling as this display you have treated us to.

I congratulate us all on the occasion of the 25^th anniversary of the creation of our state.

I thank you all for coming and for your kind attention.

Osun a dara!