Your appointment is to serve the people of Osun, Governor Oyetola charges new cabinet members

The Osun State Governor, Adegboyega Oyetola, on Wednesday, charged the cabinet members to hit the ground running immediately, declaring that the team is in a hurry to transform the state.

He also reaffirmed the administration’s determination to deliver a state that works and can compete with any other globally in terms of basic amenities and provision of modern facilities that will enable citizens to live happily and productively, while fulfilling all their God-given potentials.

He said the government was poised to continue the running of a wholly empathetic government whose singular preoccupation is to significantly uplift the well-being of the people of Osun.

Governor Oyetola spoke at the ongoing Four-Day State of Osun Executive Council Retreat, held at MicCom Golf Hotels and Resorts, Ada, Boripe Local Government Area of the state, where he also reiterated the commitment of the administration to make more unprecedented progress with a view to building a greater Osun that would become a benchmark for national development in all ramifications. He spoke to the paper: “My Development Agenda for the State of Osun.”

The governor also charged cabinet members to see their appointments as a clarion call to serve humanity and promote the policy thrust and development agenda of the administration.

He said the government would continue to do more in carefully implementing the comprehensive State of Osun Developmental Agenda to place the state on the path to sustainable growth and development.

The governor added that government was poised to create a prosperous economy that provides opportunities for all, saying, “This shall be done through strategic investment in agriculture and food security, creation of a bustling tourism sector that would see Osun becoming the nation’s destination of choice, and ensure the full exploitation of our mineral resources for wealth creation.”

He further said: “We shall do more to invest in the education that adequately empowers our people to realise their full potentials. We know that an equitable public education is central to a healthy democracy and a thriving economy. Therefore, building on the strong foundation laid by the last administration, we will challenge our children with high expectations from a rich, well-rounded education curriculum that will provide them hope in a time of despair and help them thrive and become useful adults.

“We are also fully committed to strengthening and enhancing technical and vocational education while also improving on the welfare of our hardworking teachers. My goal is to make Osun known as the state for employment and jobs in the country.”

Charging the cabinet members on the need to key into the lofty policies, programmes and development agenda of the government, Oyetola said “Together, we must build a state that provides opportunities for all classes of our people irrespective of backgrounds or even political inclinations. We must build a secure and assured future that offers hope for today and for the generation yet unborn.

“In selecting you to serve, we have followed a most inclusive and participatory approach that included our party and other stakeholders who worked hard with us to deliver victory during the last election. After a much painstaking process, we are assured therefore, that your emergence is a pointer to your capacity as some of the best our state can muster.

“This call to serve is a sacred duty that you must not take lightly. Since the past 10 months when our administration assumed office, we have, in line with our avowed electoral promise that the mandate to govern this state will be held in close trust and not be abused; been executing an agenda of continuity and revitalisation.

“We have laboured tirelessly to deliver significant dividends of democracy to our people. Despite our lean financial resources, we have comported ourselves cautiously, devoted attention to strategic thinking and shown commitment to utmost conscientious implementation of tasks.

“Yet, for us, it is very clear that the journey has just begun. It is certain that political appointees cannot succeed alone. To succeed, we must work closely with our colleagues in the bureaucracy and forge a shared vision, mission and passion that prioritise the interest of our people and the development of our beloved state above any primordial sentiments.

“More than anything else, we must work together as a team to deliver on our bold vision. In the face of paucity of financial resources, we must be audacious. We must stridently seek the pathways of creativity, innovation, courage and forthrightness to deliver on our affirmed mandates. We must achieve more with less”, the governor added.