WHO’S PLAYING ON AKEREDOLU’S INTELLIGENCE?
BY YEMI AKINTOMIDE
When the news came and it was all over the airwaves that flood had sacked the hometown of Arakunrin Oluwarotimi Akeredolu’s mother and several other communities in Ese-Odo council area of Ondo state, I instantly knew that some people within the corridor of Alagbaka Government House are again, out to play on our dear Governor intelligence excertly the way they did during “snake in the hallowed chamber” drama that got the attention of the whole world.
Why now, who’s out there playing on our Governor’s intelligence again, especially when he is out of the state, yet again? Do they want Aketi, like Aisha Buhari, rushed to the state, straight to the coastal areas of Igbotu, Igbekebo, Kiribo, Igbekebo and the rest, shouting on top of his voice; “where is the flood now, tell me which house or houses the flood had took away?”
You could remembered the snake in the Chambers’ story sometimes in July that almost shook the Ondo State House of Assembly to it foundation and nearly consumed some principal officers of the Assembly, including the Speaker, Bamidele Oleyelogun. It was later revealed as a deliberate plan to embarrass the Governor by forcefully draw his attention to the deplorable condition of the Assembly complex.
Until the snake in the chamber drama, it was alleged that several appeals and save our souls message had gone to Akeredolu on the disgraceful condition of the Assembly complex and the need for quick intervention of the Executive without correspondence response, even when honourable members of the House knew that Governor Akeredolu has committed huge amount of state fund to repaired, restructured and refurbished his own office upon resumption as Governor on February 2017.
And like late Professor Pellet magic act, the governor nearly fall for the snake in the chamber gimmick as he rushed over to the state a day after the story went viral, straight to the hallowed chambers to chase away the snake that had sacked his honourable members from their duty posts; but alas, no snake was found. Even, the Speaker, on whose head the purported snake made attempt to land on from the ceilings, couldn’t find word to defend his claim.
Like the snake saga, the flood sacking the Governor mother’s coastal village of Kiribo was cleverly woven round Akeredolu’s mother as a way to draw the Governor attention to the town for some urgent and cogent government projects which were neglected for so long a time.
Do you want to augue with me on this? If so, please first take a trip to Owo, the Governor’s paternal town and try to tour the length and breath of the ancient town to experience the unprecedented development that has took place in Owo, in less than three years of Akeredolu administration. If you’re from Kiribo, you will definitely green with envy. The Governor has never hide his preference love for his father’s town. This, we all know.
So, do the people of Kiribo waited in vain until their priced son committed all the state fund to Owo, his father hometown, while his mother’s village continue to sink into the deep ocean? Everyone of us know the history of these coastal towns and villages during the wet season. They’re always submerge by flood beacuse they’re by the river coastal, and whenever the volume of water in the river increases, definitely it will over flow it banks to visit it neighbours in their homes. This is the annual occurrences, but what makes it look diffence and attract global attention this time around is the biological link with Akeredolu, the sitting Governor of Ondo state. Period.
So, even when the Governor is still on leave and faraway from the state, he has to quickly set up two fact finding teams to carry out assessment tour of the affected communities with his Chief of Staff, Olugbega Ale leading the Ese-Odo team and his special adviser on Niger Delta, Oyebo Aladetan as team leader of Ilaje council area.
However, a House of Representatives member for Ilaje/Ese-Odo Federal Constituency, Hon Akinjo Kolade Victor has stressed the need for the state Government to urgently put in place palliative measures to ease the sufferings of the affected people in the affected communities of the federal constituency and the state at large, urging the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) and Ondo State Oil Producing Area Developmeny Commission O(SOPADEC) as well as the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) to be more alive to their responsibilities by making sure to alleviate government-imposed poverty, dearth of infrastructure and sufferings in their mandate areas. He listed the communities affected in the two local government areas as; Igbokoda, Itebukunmi, Igbolomi, Mahintedo, Ugbotu, Igbekebo, Sabome, Igbobini, Ilu Agbo, Ojuala Inikorogha, Oboro and Ipoke.
Akinjo said the sad occurrence was as a result of negligence by both the state and federal intervention agencies in putting in place critical plans that would attend to the unending effects of flood, occasioned by ocean surge and torrential rains in the are, lamenting years of neglect and undeserved mistreatment of the people in the oil-rich part of the South West, which has over the years become an eyesore that demands urgent attention.
“In a world where robbing Peter to pay Paul has become a culture, government at all levels must in actual fact rise up beyond the politics of propaganda. And deploy necessary mercenaries to undo the damages done over these years by mandating designated agencies saddled with the responsibility of attending to the welfare of these mandate areas to stem situations that could disrupt not only governance but also truncate the livelihood of our ever industrious and peace loving people,” the lawmaker stated.
While awaiting the Governor’s return to the state, I hope the people of Ese-Odo would have perfected their plans to convince him that the flood is actually coming fast to the doorsteps of his mother which warrant the big noise, and not that someone somewhere is playing another costly plank on the Governor, after all, if you lives very close to the forest, you’re bound to be visited by reptiles, and when you lives by the river banks, water definitely has to take over your home. Its natural and not Akeredoku making.
Yemi Akintomide wrote from Ireakari Estate, Orita-Obele, Akure. 08069204292 email: yemiakintomide02@gmail.com