AMILOADED MEDIA HUB NEWS UPDATE
A group, The Osun Masterminds, has called on the Osun State Government to distribute palliatives to the people of the state to cushion the effect of subsidy removal on the residents, AMILOADED reports.
The Osun Masterminds said the people of Osun State have been facing hardship over the rising cost of goods and services in the country, adding that the state government has been silent on palliatives for the residents after confirming the receipt of N2 billion from the federal government.
The Executive Director of the group, Prof. Wasiu Oyedokun-Alli, said this at a press conference in Osogbo, Osun State on Wednesday.
It said, “As many organizations have clamoured, we also join our voice to the request for Osun government palliatives to cushion the effect of subsidy removal on common citizens who face daily hardship because of rising cost of goods and services.
“While the Federal Government has made certain palliative provisions, the Osun State Government has remained ominously silent on what it will be giving to the State’s people as palliatives even when it has confirmed the receipt of two billion Naira from Federal Government coffers.
“We request that the State Government immediately makes known its intentions as concerning palliatives, as Osun people are longing for support that most citizens of other States have enjoyed.
“We must also use this opportunity to condemn the secrecy that shrouded the distribution of the palliatives that were received from the Federal Government. For transparency’s sake, we encourage the Osun State Government to be more open with such distribution processes in future. Openness secures public confidence and the government cannot do without it.”
The Osun Masterminds also urged the Osun State Government to shelve the plans to construct flyovers at Oke-Fia and Old Garage areas of Osogbo just as the group advised the government to liaise with relevant agencies of the federal government to maintain the section of the Ibadan-Gbongan-Akure highway that is within the state.
It added, “We recently got informed of plans by the State Government to construct flyovers at Oke-Fia and Old Garage areas of Osogbo. We understand that plans are already underway to get these projects executed, but we want to offer a little counsel that may save the State some resources.
“As one of our subsidiaries, Transparency and Accountability Group (TAG), counselled against the construction of the Olaiya Flyover before it was implemented, we are counselling against the construction of flyovers at Oke-Fia and Old Garage areas. Our counsel is premised on the state of Osun’s finances, vis-a-vis the level of urgency of such infrastructure at the proposed locations.
“A simple dualization of LAMECO – Oke-Fia – Old Garage stretch of road and signalization of that stretch will solve whatever traffic bottlenecks there may currently exist there. More specifically, traffic lights at LAMECO, Oke-Fia and Old Garage, on a dualized road, will ease every traffic congestion currently being experienced on the road.
“We advise that government redirects the funds it will expend on constructing flyovers, to widening major roads in towns whose major roads are currently too narrow for the kind of traffic that goes through them. Major towns like Ikirun, Iwo, Ilesa, Ejigbo and Ila-Orangun are in dire need of wider major roads, to reduce the risk to lives occasioned by the dense traffic that passes through those towns.”
Speaking on insecurity in Osun State, The Osun Masterminds while condemning the rising cases of killings, particularly in Ilesa, said the cases which were linked to cultism, have shown that the state government has a lot of roles to play in addressing the security challenges facing the state.
The group said, “We want to state unequivocally that the State can only grow in a secure atmosphere where citizens can go about their lawful businesses without fear of attacks, intimidation or death.
“We call on the State Government to double its efforts in securing the State. The State Government must also posture itself in such a way that it is not seen to be endorsing thuggery through the relationship of some key elements of government, with known antisocial elements.
“We also urge security agencies in the State to be up and doing in the discharge of their roles. Osun cannot be left helpless in the hands of hoodlums who are striking fear into the hearts of the people of our State.”
On the plans by pensioners to protest in the state, The Osun Masterminds advised the state government to “immediately find a middle ground with pensioners in the State, instead of engaging in needless media brickbats that will make an already bad situation worse. Dialogue, any day, is superior to arguments that proffer no solutions.”
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