Ismail Omipidan, the former Chief Press Secretary to Adegboyega Oyetola, the immediate past Governor of Osun State, has dismissed the claims made by the Ademola Adeleke administration that the former governor abandoned the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) projects in Osogbo and Iragbiji as an attempt to politicize governance…CONTINUE READING
Omipidan asserted that former Governor Oyetola had transferred the SDGs project sites in the state to the relevant authorities before leaving office.
In a statement released by Omipidan and obtained by the media on Wednesday, he expressed his astonishment that the current administration accused the Oyetola government of neglecting projects that had been fully completed, equipped, and inaugurated shortly before the end of its tenure.
He stated, “After the inauguration of the SDG projects, the Oyetola administration handed over the skills acquisition centers to the Ministry of Commerce and Industry and the hospitals to the Osun State University Teaching Hospital,” and questioned how a government that assumed power in November 2022 could suddenly claim, ten months later, that the projects were abandoned.
“It is the present administration that should be accused of abandoning the projects,” he added.
Omipidan accused the current government of lacking the necessary skills and character to oversee the affairs of a state like Osun and alleged that they had not taken substantial actions since taking office in November.
He said, “You only woke up 10 months later to accuse us of abandoning the projects.”
Omipidan highlighted that, to ensure the efficient use of the facilities, the skills acquisition centers were handed over to the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, while the hospitals were entrusted to the management of the University of Osun Teaching Hospital. He questioned why an administration that took such decisive steps would be accused of neglecting these projects.
He also suggested that the Iragbiji community deserved commendation for providing security for the projects to prevent looting, even when they had donated the land free of charge to accommodate the projects.
Omipidan concluded by hinting at a potential bias, suggesting that the government might have abandoned the SDG projects because they were located in Osogbo and Iragbiji, rather than Ede.
The APC in Osun State had previously accused the Ademola Adeleke administration of mismanaging the state’s finances and economy since coming to power in November 2022. In response, the Osun Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) defended the state government, emphasizing that the governor had been prudently managing the state’s economy and finances.
