The Governor of the State of Osun, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola will today (Saturday 9th September, 2017) perform the Official Ground Breaking Ceremony for the Mass Housing Project by African Nations Development Programme at Awere, Oke-Ogberin, along Loogun road, Ede.

This is contained in a press release signed by the Commissioner for Ministry of Lands and Physical Planning, Arc. Akintunde Akinajo saying that about 400hectares of land have been provided for the housing project which is aimed at assisting the less privileged in five selected cities of Ede, Iwo, Ikirun, Ilesa and Ila-Orangun.

    According to him, the 5,000 housing units of 2bedroom bungalows with full infrastructure for the less privileged will be delivered to the State by the African Nations Development Programme (ANDP), a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) and an International and Multilateral Organization.

   While appreciating the African Nations Development Programme (ANDP) for the good gesture, Arc Akintunde Akinajo enjoined Executive Council  Members, Government Officials, Politicians, Traditional Rulers and other relevant stakeholders across the State to be at the venue by 11.00am.

Governor, State of Osun, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, on Wednesday said no effort would be spared in rolling back malaria scourge in the state, saying dredging of drainages, streams and expansion of river channels were part of the measures deployed by his administration to enhance a healthy environment.

 

 
He contended that filthy environment, which serves as impetus for breeding mosquitoes; spreading malaria would not be tolerated in the state to boost the health of the citizenry.
Speaking during the flag-off ceremony of the replacement campaign of Long Lasting Insecticide Nets (LLINs) ‎held at Nelson Mandela Freedom Park, Osogbo, Aregbesola, who was represented by his deputy, Mrs Titi Laoye Tomori affirmed that the distribution of  3 million pieces of LLINs anti-malaria mosquito nets would complement the efforts being made so far in the fight against malaria in the state.
He described malaria as one of the factors mitigating ‎against productivity and as well causing poverty in the country, saying his government would not rest on its oars to wage war against the scourge.
While observing that studies have shown that malaria contributed significantly to poverty because it reduces productivity by as much as 40 per cent and increases household expenditure on drugs and treatment from five to 20 per cent, Aregbesola maintained that malaria also reduces life expectancy by about 20 years.

According to him, “In spite of the huge amount the governments, both the Federal and the state, spend in the provision of curative malaria drugs with the support received from the Global Fund, the state still records high rate of malaria cases, hence the shift to prevention of mosquito bites through the current use of treated nets by sleeping inside the net.”.
“Malaria still claims up to one million lives a year and most of these deaths are in Sub-Saharan Africa, a part of the world in which our country is located. Of this huge number, 75 per cent are children under five years.”
“It is also a known fact that Nigeria alone bears about 25 per cent of Africa’s malaria burden. Deaths from malaria account for up to 11 per cent of maternal mortality (death of pregnant women up to six weeks after delivery), it is sad to note that 25 per cent deaths among children below one year, 30 percent of deaths among children under five years and 60 per cent of all hospital presentations are recorded from malaria in Nigeria,” Aregbesola remarked.
He further stressed that unlike the conventional net that lasts for about six months to one year, saying that the present one could last for three years if instructions are followed as recommended.

The Osun Government in collaboration with the African Nations Development Programme has concluded arrangements to build 5,000 housing units of two-bedroom  bungalows  in five major towns  in the state to support the efforts of the present administration  of President Muhammadu Buhari.
 

 
 
This is contained in a statement made available to our correspondent in Osogbo on Friday by the media officer of the Osun State Ministry of Lands and Physical Planning, Olusola Adepoju.
Governor  Rauf Aregbesola was quoted to have said  this during the visit of the representatives of the ANDP to him in Osogbo .
The governor, who was represented by the Commissioner for Lands and Physical Planning, Mr. Akintunde Akinajo, said that about 400 hectares of land had been provided for the housing project and other infrastructures in the five towns.

He said the housing units would be built in Ede, Iwo, Ikirun, Ilesa and Ila-Orangun, stressing that  the state government had held  series of meetings with traditional rulers and other relevant groups in the five towns in a bid to carry all stakeholders along in the project.
He noted that all  the required documentations had been communicated to the ANDP on the selected sites.
While appreciating the ANDP for choosing Osun for the development project, the governor  assured the group of his total support.
He said the current administration in the state had invested so much in the development of infrastructure and others, saying this had created a framework upon which development could be built.
The Country Director of the ANDP, Mr. Eze Ifeanyichukwu, stated that the housing projects of  5,000 housing units of two-bedroomed  bungalows would have facilities such as hospitals, schools , police stations and markets.
According to him, the project was conceived to assist the low-income earners to have homes of their own.
He added that the project would commence after the groundbreaking ceremony.

The beneficiaries of the free train ride organised by Osun State government for peopled travelling from Lagos to Osogbo, Osun State capital have commended the state government for the gesture.

 

 
Speaking with newsmen when they arrived in Osogbo on Wednesday evening, the train passengers said the free train ride afforded them the opportunity to come to celebrate the Eid-El-Kabir with their relations.
Mrs Kadijatu Ibrahim, Mr Ramoni Ajisefini and Miss Wulemot Sulaimon who came to Osun with the free train ride lauded the administration of Governor Rauf Aregbesola for the gesture.
The train passengers including the indigenes of neighbouring states took the advantage of the train provided by the Osun State government to celebrate the Sallah with their relatives.
The passengers boarded the train from the Ido Terminus in Lagos and the travellers had fun from Lagos to Osogbo. The train stopped at terminus along routes such as Abeokuta, Ogun State and Ibadan in Oyo State.
Some indigenes of Kwara state who also boarded the Osun free train alighted at the Osogbo Terminus and took vehicle to their various hometowns including Offa and Erin-Ile.
After dropping the passengers in Osogbo, the train returned to Lagos to bring another set of people to Osogbo on Thursday. Meanwhile, the train will also take the passengers back to Lagos from Osogbo on after the Sallah.
The passenger of another Ilorin bound train that stopped briefly in Osogbo on Wednesday morning said they paid N1,200 for the trip. Majority of the passengers of the train who were going to Ilorin for Sallah urged the governor of Kwara State, Mr Abdul-Fatah Ahameed to emulated Aregbesola by providing free train for them in the next festive period.

The Triangular Group of Pensioners in Osun State has expressed dismay over what it described as politically motivated attacks on Governor Rauf Aregbesola by the 2011/2012 group of retirees.
 

 
They urged the group, led by Omoniyi Ilesanmi, to desist from actions and utterances capable of breaching the peace in the state.They said this in a statement by its Chairman, Rotimi Adelugba, who confirmed the group’s position on the true state of finances and its resolve to champion the plight of the pensioners.
In his words: “We are not the mouthpiece of the government but we are in constant touch with the Osun State government on its financial status, hence we consider it necessary to inform members of the public.

“As responsible senior citizens, we have been demoralised by the lies, unguarded utterances and malicious statements by the Ilesanmi group that the Aregbesola administration paid each political office holder who served between November 2010 and November 2014 N50 million each as severance allowance.”
He said the group also alleged that the government refused to pay their gratuities but instead spend the state’s lean resources on frivolities, “adding these allegations are baseless and unfounded.
“Available evidence shows that the severance allowances given to former commissioners and special advisers were in the range of N2.8 million-N4million and these were only paid to those who are entitled to such payment as gazetted in the state Public/Political Office Holders and Revised Remuneration Package Law of 2007, which is in consonance with the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) Act.”
The group said it was disturbed that the 2011/2012 pensioners have turned themselves into a weapon of destruction in the hands of the opposition party and have now resorted to cheap blackmail against the government, which has been responsible towards the welfare of the people in spite of the paucity of funds.
“We, however, appeal to Aregbesola to continue to offset the pensions and gratuities of our members as and when due, notwithstanding the cheap blackmail by Ilesanmi and his group,” he stated.