From former governor of Oyo State and national leader of Accord, Senator Rashidi Ladoja came a warning to incumbent Governor Abiola Ajimobi against dabbling into the Ibadan chieftaincy matters, adding that any attempt to pokenose into it may have grave consequences.
He, however, advised Ajimobi) to face governance squarely by addressing issues of state importance which include the lingering crisis at Ladoke Akintola University of Technology (LAUTECH) Ogbomoso, dwindling fortune of education, health, delay in the payment of workers salaries and pensioners, conduct of local government election among others.
Ladoja, who is the Osi Olubadan of Ibadanland, spoke in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, during the distribution of empowerment tools by Hon. Fatai Adesina who represents Ibadan SouthEast 1 in the State Assembly.
Ajimobi, had in a move to reduce crises arising from the Olubadan stool took a step towards the review of the Olubadan chieftaincy declaration and other related chieftaincies in Ibadanland with the inauguration of a seven-man judicial commission of inquiry.
Headed by a retired High Court judge, Justice Akintunde Boade, the commissionwas inaugurated in Ibadan, last Friday. But Ladoja who is alsoinformed that there is nothing that concerns government with Olubadan succession processes.
According to him the purported inauguration of committee to review the 1958 declaration by the state government is “a distraction”, adding that “I read it in the paper today, it is a distraction. Distraction in the sense that there are more pressing issues in the hand of the governor.The people in the Chieftaincy lines have the council, the Olubadan-in Council and they are in the position to handle their matters without the interference of the government. And he should first of all go and settle the pressing matters. He should go and settle the problem of employment, he should go and settle the problem of schools that are not functioning, he should go and settle the problem of LAUTECH and he should go and settle the problem of the hospitals not Ibadan Chieftaincy matters.
“I told you three months ago, one year ago, two years ago that we are ready for the local government election and I told you about the hand of jacob and the voice of esau. If somebody says don’t conduct local government election and they went to court, the matter is still in the court, that means that the only thing that concerns the governor is the issue of local government fund, now that the fund has been released nobody want to know how the case went again.There is nothing that concern government with Ibadan chieftaincy affairs, what are they doing on the issue of LAUTECH, when student who spent six years could not get certificate”.
He urged the people of the state to think well and know the kind of people they vote for in 2019. “I am using this medium to call on good people of Oyo State to think well. The local government election is there, all these court issues are tactical moves to prevent conduct of the local government election, this is why I want the people of Oyo state to think very well.
The problem that will come out of this interference will be much.“It is half time now, two years have gone. So don’t think the government is forever, the people will still have time to elect someone that will pay them.
“This is the time to reorganise our party. Because of this, I want the people of Oyo State to be careful. In the 2004/2005 session, LAUTECH was the 5th in the country but where is it now? In 2005, SUBEB said Oyo state is the best in the country, it has changed now.”
