My Administration Has Performed Very Well – Aregbesola

Osun State Governor, Mr. Rauf Aregbesola, said on Tuesday that his administration had performed creditable well despite its inability to pay some workers in the state for the past seven months. 

According to a statement made available to our correspondent  in Osogbo on Tuesday by his media aide, Mr. Semiu Okanlawon, the governor, who scored himself high, spoke during a courtesy visit to him by Osun Action Strategy and Development Group. 

He, however, said he was pained by the inability of his government to pay workers, but also sympathised with workers while assuring them that the hardship  would soon come to an end. 

The statement read, “Despite the financial shortage, even the most virulent critics of this  government cannot deny that the administration has  performed creditably well.

“This government built roads, schools, supplied students with Opon Imo (Tablets of Knowledge) distributed uniforms to all public students in the state, created welfare programmes for the old and vulnerable people as well as support farmers.

“No state has  done what Osun did in the area of security, which today has totally checked crimes and other anti-social activities in the state. Huge  amount of money was committed to purchasing armoured personnel carrier and ambulances, which are strategically located in the state and responding to distress calls round the clock.

“If all the programmes with the huge cost involved are factored into the accrue-able revenue to the state, it will be crystal clear why the state is where it is today.”

Describing the situation as an economic tragedy, he attributed the current misfortune to gross mishandling ‎of the nation’s economy by the last regime of the Peoples Democratic Party.

He stated that the unchecked oil theft under the PDP, in which the nation was losing 400,000 barrels per day, culminated in drastic reduction of oil price in the international market.

This price fall has created for the country a tragedy of huge proportion that translated to economic disaster, pains and agony for the workers across the country.

Aregbesola stated the state  collected N5 billion  as monthly allocation in February 2013 but the allocation drastically reduced to a mere N540 million  in April 2015.

He said further, “As we are trying to find solution to this challenges, we must not also run away from what brought us to this situation.

“For those who think this is an opportunity to pillory us in this economic condition, I pity them. Only God does not fail. We shall overcome; we shall recover from this challenge. I sympathise and feel for the workers. I appeal to them to bear with us as we work assiduously to end this problem. I assure them that the period of agony will soon be over.

“It is disheartening for people to work and such work fails to translate into wages. It is a  harrowing experience for both workers and government.

“The challenge of unpaid salaries should not be seen as opportunities by some to pillory either the government or any others facing the same challenges.”