The State Governor of Osun, Adegboyega Oyetola, had in April this year, flagged off the Osun Food Support Scheme as part of his Administration’s efforts to meet the basic needs of the residents, particularly the vulnerable citizens in the state.
A world renowned motivational speaker and workforce activator, Tony Robbins in many of his sessions has related an experience that changed his life forever. According to him, he was born into hardship and family has to survive on whatever comes, one day, his father, having become so helpless and hopeless decided to leave the house, walked away from his family and never to come home again. At Christmas festival, the family sat on the table with empty plates as there was no food in the house to eat, then there was a knock at the door, somebody has brought food for them. Now he thought to himself, this is a stranger that they don’t even know, but cared for them, he made up his mind to replicate same when he gets older. These are true life stories that touches the heart and a further proof that needy people will not perish from the earth.
It has been said that the first physiology need of man is food, followed by shelter. Over the years, this has been proved right, both in war and in peace, one thing remains constantly needed — food. In a period where weapon of war has fast outpaced the weapon of peace, where poverty and lack stares humanity in the face, food has become even more of a necessity. With this, it is safe to conclude that food is mostly needed in the entire human race.
In United State of America, there is almost no town or city you will get to that you won’t find food centre or public kitchen despite the prosperity of America, the poor will not vanish from the earth says the Christian Bible, the war-torn-Somalia has different food ports supported by different international donor organizations.
On the premise of the above, applauding the initiative of OSUN FOOD SUPPORT SCHEME by Governor Adegboyega Oyetola is worth it. To start with, it is true that there are people who really needs this intervention, my sojourn in the political space of this country exposes me to the sad reality of poverty that has really bedeviled our country since time immemorial. Like the popular Yoruba adage situates ‘enikàn ló’mò’ which literally means ‘only those who have experienced it can acknowledge it’, the magnitude of positive feedback from osun food support scheme should encourage all state governments in Nigeria to follow suit. The joy, the cravings, the enthusiasm from common people whose life the scheme is design to touch.
An eye witness shared her experience of delivery of osun food support scheme to a very old grandma in Ede Axis of the state recently, suffice to point that the major ‘dropout opponent’ of the Governor hails from there, nevertheless, the Goodwill dividends of the humane leader of the state not only gets to Ede, but Ede remains one of the greatest beneficiaries of Governor Adegboyega Oyetola’s Adminstration. The eye witness told me in glowing terms how the aged woman danced like no man’s business, while she prayed for Governor Oyetola and his performing cabinet members. ….
This scheme also represents hope for the hopeless, it is necessary to say that the major target of this scheme are the indigents of the society, people whose hope for the next meal is always on God and whoever God is sending, filling this void should be a person with consummate devotion to see everyone happy regardless of social strata, religion or creed; Without gainsaying, Governor Adegboyega in this regards is the one God has sent to them.
Despite making a fantabulous mark in this charitable scheme, the physical infrastructural development hasn’t stopped; inter-city, township roads are been rehabilitated with news been contracted, for example more than SEVENTY inter-city and township roads have been constructed and rehabilitated while others not captured in this figure are ongoing, yet Oyetola is conscious of the fact that our lives do not depend on bricks and mortal alone, number one on the human physiological needs is FOOD, that’s why workers full salaries are paid as and when due, and the unbelievable remains that while other states are battling with payment of salaries, and some are even retrenching workers, Osun governor with arguably the largest civil service workforce have adopted MINIMUM WAGE! an average Osun government workers now earn their salaries in the new minimum scale. This is a renewed capacity to procure food while those not in that radar could rely on Governor Oyetola for supply.
The 44th president of United States of America Barrack Obama postulate that “No society can flourish, children can’t flourish if they’re going hungry. We can’t ask a child to feed her mind when she can barely feed her stomach.” The seeming flourishing state of Osun when compared to other states is not unconnected to the giant strides of Osun governor in ensuring all homes are touched in one way or the other; the beauty of children having their school uniforms returned to them, the joy of market women who trade fabrics and buy food to take home, the happiness of the aged people who benefit from several social intervention programs of the Governor. Even in all of these, the first lady hasn’t been found wanting, the empowerment initiative of the office of the first lady has been applauded from far and near.
A quick analysis of scheme reveals that no less than SEVENTY (70,000) bags of rice, beans and other provisions have been given to indigents in less than three months of the execution of the scheme. No locality is left out including areas Premium Times, an online news platform regarded as enemies’ base, for Gboyega Oyetola; to our amiable governor, all lives matter and every needy must be attended to regardless of their political thoughts and affiliation. We are all from the food constituency, humans who don’t eat will surely die. As he has promised, this exercise which is under strict monitoring of non-state actors, will continue.
Different civil society organizations (CSO), faith based organization (FBO), non-government organization (NGO) are carried along in this scheme, for the sake of transparency and unbiased feedback, my engagement with the Leadership of NGO network in osun reveals the exercise as a fulfilment of the citizens charter signed by the Governor when he was aspiring. They simply call him the promise keeper because of this and I can’t but agree.
Governor Adegboyega Oyetola will have history absolving him, as a man who seeks welfarism of his people in the midst of scarcity, found way where it seems there is no way and created water to drink in the midst of epic drought; the glory of a king remains the welfarism of his people.
Charles Adeyemi writes from osogbo, osun state.
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