Meritocracy Takes Centre Stage as Oyo Govt. Screens 2026 Public Service Award Applicants

 

The Oyo State Committee for the 2026 Public Service Week Award Ceremony has commenced the screening of applicants for the 2026 Civil/Public Service Merit Awards.

The screening exercise, which began on Monday, is being conducted by the committee led by its Chairman, Dr. Tunde Aremu, at the Head of Service Conference Room, Secretariat, Ibadan.

Dr. Tunde Aremu said the exercise would ensure a transparent, credible and merit-based selection of deserving Civil/Public servants for recognition during the 2026 Public Service Week Award Ceremony.

He said the ongoing screening exercise  is expected to provide the committee with the opportunity to carefully assess the credentials, achievements and contributions of applicants in line with the established criteria for the awards.

Dr. Aremu opined that the committee  is expected to uphold the principles of meritocracy, fairness, transparency and due process throughout the screening and selection process.

The committee added further that 2026 Public Service Week Awards is part of the activities lined up to recognise and reward outstanding performance, dedication to duty and excellence among the Civil/Public servants in the Pacesetter State.

Abiodun Atilola 

Media Officer to the SSG/HOS 

October 6, 2026.

OYSCOHEST Hosts Radiographers Registration Board of Nigeria (RRBN) Team for Reaccreditation of Medical X-Ray Technicians Programme

The Oyo State College of Health Science and Technology (OYSCOHEST), Eleyele, Ibadan, has hosted the accreditation team of the Radiographers Registration Board of Nigeria (RRBN) for the reaccreditation of its Medical X-Ray Technicians programme.

The reaccreditation exercise, held on Tuesday, 29 September 2026, provided the regulatory team with an opportunity to assess the academic, professional and infrastructural resources available for the training of Medical X-Ray Technicians in the College.

During the visit, the RRBN team interacted with relevant members of the College community and examined academic and administrative records, teaching and learning facilities, staffing, practical training resources and other facilities supporting the programme.

Particular attention was paid to the programme's compliance with established professional and regulatory standards, as well as the adequacy of the learning environment for producing competent health professionals.

Speaking on the exercise, the Provost of the College,  Mrs Oluyemisi Oyewo, reaffirmed the institution's commitment to quality health education and continuous improvement across all its programmes.

She noted that accreditation and reaccreditation exercises provide valuable opportunities for the College to strengthen its programmes, improve facilities and ensure that students receive training that meets contemporary professional standards.

The Provost appreciated the RRBN team for the thorough and professional conduct of the exercise and also commended members of staff for their dedication and collective efforts towards ensuring a successful visit.

The exercise further underscores OYSCOHEST's commitment to maintaining high academic and professional standards and ensuring that its programmes continue to satisfy the requirements of relevant regulatory bodies.

The College remains committed to producing competent, skilled and professionally responsible health personnel capable of contributing meaningfully to healthcare delivery in Oyo State, Nigeria and beyond.

Oyo Govt Clarifies Status of Abandoned Pakiotan 80-Bed Hospital

The attention of the Oyo State Government has been drawn to a misleading report suggesting that the state government is responsible for the non-utilisation and abandoning of the 80-bed Mother and Child Specialist Hospital in Pakiotan, Ogbomoso North Local Government Area.

Contrary to the falsehood, the facility was not built by the Oyo State Government and was never handed over to the state government for operation, officially or unofficially.

In a statement issued by the Commissioner for Information, Prince Dotun Oyelade, he said the hospital is a Federal Government project, facilitated by former Minister of Youth and Sports Development, Chief Sunday Dare, and was inaugurated on May 27, 2023. Available reports indicate that the facility was subsequently handed over to the Federal Ministry of Health through the University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan.

Prince Oyelade said that the Oyo State Government, therefore, cannot be held responsible for the failure to commence operations at the facility or for decisions concerning its staffing, management and commissioning.

He also added that it is important to clarify that the facility had already suffered vandalism and looting before the recent political campaign-instigated reports drawing attention to its non-utilisation.

The Commissioner called attention to the fact that, on August 15, 2025, over a year ago, the Punch newspaper reported that valuable equipment and installations had been removed from the facility by suspected vandals.

The Commissioner said that the state government acknowledges the importance of the facility to residents of Pakiotan and surrounding communities and shares the concern over the fact that an investment of this nature has not been put to full use. According to him, the Oyo State Government knows exactly how to utilise and deploy such a facility for the betterment of our people.

He also clarified that responsibility for the ownership, management, staffing and operationalisation of the facility should be properly attributed to the relevant Federal Government authorities.

Prince Oyelade said the Oyo State Government remains committed to improving access to healthcare across the state and will continue to support initiatives that contribute to the wellbeing of residents.

He added that it is very misleading to present the Pakiotan Federal Government hospital as an abandoned project of the Oyo State Government.

OYO GOVT REJECTS MISREPRESENTATION OF ENVIRONMENTAL VANGUARDS WORKING CONDITIONS

The Oyo State Government

through the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources, has rejected a publication alleging harsh, unsafe and unconducive working conditions for Ad hoc Environmental Vanguards engaged by the State Government, describing the claims as misleading and a misrepresentation of the Government’s commitment to their welfare, safety and effective deployment.

The Commissioner for Environment and Natural Resources, Hon. Ademola Aderinto, said Environmental Vanguards remain an important component of the State Government’s environmental sanitation and enforcement architecture, stressing that their engagement is aimed at supporting the restoration and maintenance of environmental sanity across Oyo State.

He explained that the present administration has continued to strengthen the workforce through the re-engagement of Environmental Vanguards, sweepers and packers to support sanitation operations. He added that efforts have been made to deploy personnel closer to their places of residence to reduce transportation costs, while their monthly payments are made alongside other government workers.

Aderinto further disclosed that the monthly remuneration of Environmental Vanguards had been increased from N30,000 to N80,000 under the present administration, describing the improvement as part of the Government’s commitment to supporting personnel engaged in environmental sanitation and enforcement.

The Commissioner clarified that Environmental Vanguards deployed to identified black spots are specifically charged with preventing indiscriminate disposal of refuse on road medians, open spaces and other prohibited locations. He explained that personnel are expected to educate members of the public on proper waste disposal and, where necessary, facilitate the apprehension of offenders in accordance with the law.

He stressed that the directive is not intended to punish personnel or compel them to generate fines, but is part of the Ministry’s strategy to address persistent environmental infractions and ensure that areas under their supervision remain clean. According to him, the primary objective of enforcement is compliance and environmental sanitation, while penalties are applied only where prescribed by law and due process.

Aderinto noted that whenever Environmental Vanguards are given clear responsibilities and achieve positive results in their areas of deployment, the Ministry recognises such performance as a means of encouraging and motivating them to remain diligent. He said positive results are not intended to constitute undue pressure or victimisation of personnel.

The Commissioner also dismissed claims that members of the Environmental Vanguard were arbitrarily dismissed from service. He explained that personnel identified with performance related concerns are first warned or placed on probation, while those who perform below expectations continue to receive their payments before any administrative decision is taken. He added that the Ministry believes in correcting, guiding and giving personnel opportunities to improve.

On safety, Aderinto said the Ministry takes concerns about attacks, security threats and operational challenges seriously and would not deliberately expose its personnel to unnecessary danger. He explained that Environmental Vanguards primarily operate within the metropolis and during daylight hours, where an existing security architecture is in place, adding that it would not be practicable to attach dedicated security personnel to every field officer.

He, however, disclosed that the Ministry has an emergency security response arrangement that can be activated whenever an alert is received. He said the Ministry maintains security collaboration with the Oyo State Rule of Law Agency, Operation Burst and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, while personnel have been directed to promptly report threats, resistance or situations that could escalate for appropriate intervention.

The Commissioner said the Ministry has consistently responded to reported security concerns and would continue to provide necessary assistance where circumstances require it. He added that operational arrangements, including security and logistics, are regularly reviewed in line with prevailing circumstances and the responsibilities assigned to personnel.

Aderinto also explained that the participation of Environmental Vanguards in the Oyo Soro Soke Sita (OYO SSS) initiative forms part of the Ministry’s broader strategy of involving the public in environmental enforcement. Under the initiative, environmental infractions may be reported through photographs or by facilitating the apprehension of offenders and reporting such cases to the Ministry.

He disclosed that while the collaborator’s share under the OYO SSS programme is 10 per cent, the share applicable to Environmental Vanguards who facilitate the apprehension of offenders was increased to 15 per cent to accommodate expenses that may be incurred in the course of carrying out such assignments.

The Commissioner stressed that the Ministry’s environmental enforcement activities are not designed to witch-hunt, intimidate or unduly punish members of the public, but to promote compliance with environmental laws and create an orderly environment necessary for public health, safety and economic activities. He urged enforcement personnel to carry out their duties professionally and within the ambit of the law, while members of the public are expected to comply with environmental regulations and desist from indiscriminate waste disposal.

He further noted that the Ministry maintains regular interaction with Environmental Vanguards through periodic meetings to discuss operations, exchange ideas, receive feedback and address emerging concerns. He therefore urged the public to disregard misleading reports about the welfare and working conditions of the personnel, stressing that the Ministry remains committed to the welfare of its workforce and that all legitimate salaries and approved entitlements are duly attended to.

Omituntun 3.0 anchored in competence, continued development, not hegemony

By Sulaimon Olanrewaju

In the past few days, certain All Progressives Congress (APC) apologists in Oyo State - individuals who have recently received vehicular and financial inducement - have gone into overdrive, pushing the narrative that Hon. Bimbo Adekanmbi is being positioned as Governor ‘Seyi Makinde’s surrogate. Eager to justify their largesse, they have deliberately amplified this rumour in selected circles, claiming that Makinde, now approaching the end of his constitutionally permitted tenure, is quietly preparing to continue governing the state from the shadows. 

It is a simple, seductive, and politically convenient allegation. But like most political rumours, it thrives on falsehood rather than fact. When weighed against Makinde’s public statements, his governance philosophy, and Adekanmbi’s technocratic pedigree, the proxy narrative does not merely weaken, it collapses entirely.

Makinde himself has been unequivocal. In August, at the Hijrah 1448 Luncheon in Government House, Agodi, Ibadan, he made one of the clearest declarations by any outgoing Nigerian governor in recent memory: “I won’t be a political godfather to my successor.” He went further, articulating a leadership philosophy that directly rejects the godfather tradition that has shaped politics in many Nigerian states. According to him, “The essence of political leadership should not be the ability to control those who come after a public office holder, but the willingness to serve humanity and leave behind institutions and structures that can continue to benefit the people.” He also pledged not to interfere in his successor’s decisions. 

These are not the words of a man plotting to govern from the shadows; they reflect a leader who believes governance should be institutional rather than personal, and that competence, not control, is the true legacy of leadership.

To understand why the surrogate narrative fails, one must examine Makinde’s governance record, the systems he has built, and the kind of successor those systems require. Across his two terms, Makinde has pursued a quiet but deliberate philosophy: build durable institutions, strengthen administrative capacity, and let competence speak louder than political theatrics. His achievements reflect this approach in a sustained, statewide pattern that has reshaped Oyo State’s governance culture and elevated expectations of what public leadership should look like.

Makinde’s infrastructure agenda has been one of the most transformative in recent Oyo history. The reconstruction of the Moniya–Iseyin Road opened a vital economic corridor between Ibadan and Oke Ogun, reducing travel time and boosting agricultural trade.

 The Oyo–Iseyin Road strengthened inter zonal connectivity, while the Iseyin–Ogbomoso Road created a strategic link that binds Oke Ogun to Ogbomoso and enhances economic integration across the northern zones of the state.

He also embarked on one of the most ambitious infrastructural projects in the state’s history: the Ibadan Circular Road. Designed to decongest the city, attract investment, and modernize urban mobility, the Circular Road represents a long-term economic artery that will shape the future of Oyo State’s capital for decades. Complementing these flagship projects is the reconstruction of over 300 kilometres of roads across Ibadan and other towns, a sweeping renewal effort that demonstrates his commitment to statewide development rather than isolated showcase projects.

Makinde’s education reforms have been equally significant. He abolished school fees in public primary and secondary schools, recruited thousands of teachers, and renovated classrooms across the state. Enrolment increased, dropout rates declined, and public schools regained dignity. In a state with a large youth population, these reforms signalled a commitment to human capital development that transcends political cycles.

His health reforms strengthened the foundation of public healthcare. The upgrade of Adeoyo Maternity Hospital, rehabilitation of primary healthcare centres, and expansion of the Oyo State Health Insurance Scheme brought affordable healthcare to families long excluded from the system. These reforms are not glamorous, but they are essential.

Makinde’s establishment of the Amotekun Corps became a symbol of proactive governance and regional collaboration. It required political courage and administrative clarity, qualities that define his leadership. But he did not stop at community-based security. He expanded the state’s surveillance capacity by acquiring two surveillance aircraft, a bold investment that signalled a shift toward modern, technology-driven security infrastructure. This has strengthened aerial monitoring, improved response capabilities, and demonstrated a willingness to innovate where many subnational governments remain hesitant.

His commitment to long term economic planning is also evident in the upgrade of the Ibadan Airport. By improving runway capacity, expanding facilities, and enhancing operational standards, Makinde positioned the airport as a regional aviation hub capable of supporting increased passenger traffic, cargo movement, and business travel. 

The upgrade is not merely a construction project; it is a strategic investment in Oyo State’s future competitiveness, tourism potential, and economic integration with national and international markets.

These achievements form the backbone of Makinde’s governance identity. They also explain why he would naturally support a successor capable of sustaining and expanding this momentum. 

Continuity, in this context, is not about preserving personalities or entrenching hegemony; it is about ensuring the continued development of the state. Makinde’s reforms are systemic. Systems do not mature overnight. 

They require consistent leadership, steady policy implementation, and a successor who understands the architecture of governance. 

Economic momentum cannot survive abrupt disruption. Institutional strength requires stability. Security architecture needs continuity. Public trust is built over time. In this light, Makinde’s support for Adekanmbi is not about perpetuating control, it is about ensuring that the systems he built do not collapse under a successor who lacks the competence to sustain them.

Adekanmbi embodies this competence. During his tenure as Commissioner for Finance, he strengthened financial reporting, improved budgeting processes, and helped stabilize Oyo State’s fiscal posture at a time when many subnational governments were struggling with debt and revenue volatility.

He has also confronted the surrogate narrative head on. Appearing on the Arise News Morning Show in September, he rejected the suggestion with measured clarity: “I do not have any godfather apart from the people of Oyo State. I will take responsibility for every decision I make.” He added: “I’m no surrogate to Governor Makinde.

 The governor made it clear that I shouldn’t inherit his enemies.” And then, with the confidence of someone whose career has been built on competence rather than political dependency, he said: “I’m owning every action I take as governor, just as I have always owned my actions in life. I’m prepared. I have my own manifesto and strategy.”

These remarks reinforced what his record already suggests: he is not seeking office to serve as anyone’s proxy, but to serve with the autonomy and expertise that have defined his professional journey.

Yet Adekanmbi’s appeal is not merely technocratic. It is geographic, cultural, and political - a rare statewide identity that few aspirants can claim. His family roots stretch across Ibadan, Iseyin in Oke Ogun, and Oyo town, giving him organic ties to three of the state’s most influential zones. His running mate, Engr. Mufutau Open Salawu, hails from Ogbomoso, adding another layer of regional balance. His strong relationship with influential figures in Ibarapa completes a statewide mosaic that positions him as a bridge across communities, traditions, and political tendencies.

This matters in Oyo State, where political legitimacy is often shaped by geography as much as ideology. 

Adekanmbi’s identity is not sectional; it is integrative. He is not a candidate who must manufacture acceptance in certain zones, he already has it. This statewide spread gives him a political posture that is independent, grounded, and difficult to caricature as a proxy.

And this is precisely why Makinde’s support for him cannot be reduced to hegemonic ambition.

 A governor seeking to “rule by proxy” would typically choose someone dependent, inexperienced, or confined to a narrow political base. Adekanmbi is the opposite: strong, widely accepted, and capable of building his own legitimacy. His administrative record gives him credibility; his statewide identity gives him reach; his technocratic grounding gives him stability.

In many ways, Adekanmbi represents the logical extension of Makinde’s governance philosophy. He understands the systems Makinde has built. He understands the importance of fiscal discipline, the value of data driven policy, and the need for statewide inclusion. He is not a candidate who needs to be controlled; he is a candidate who understands the architecture of governance well enough to sustain it.

This is what makes him the embodiment of continuity without control. He can protect the integrity of Makinde’s reforms without compromising his own integrity. He can maintain momentum without sacrificing independence. He can inherit a governance structure without inheriting a political leash. 

Adekanmbi’s emergence, therefore, is not a sign of Makinde’s desire to extend his influence; it is a sign of Makinde’s desire to extend competence, to ensure that the systems built over eight years do not collapse under a successor who lacks the capacity to maintain them.

In a political climate where succession often means rupture, Adekanmbi represents continuity without stagnation, stability without subservience, and progress without puppetry.

Makinde’s support for Adekanmbi is not an act of political dominance; it is an act of political maturity. It reflects a belief that leadership should outlive the leader, that institutions should outlast administrations, and that competence - not control - is the most valuable inheritance a governor can leave behind. In a political environment often defined by personal dominance and shadow influence, Makinde’s stance is unusual. And his support for Adekanmbi, when viewed through the lens of continuity without control, may well be one of the most consequential decisions shaping Oyo State’s political future.

So, the people of Oyo State will do well to support Honourable Bimbo Adekanmbi to sustain the momentum of allround development across every zone of the state, which Governor Makinde has firmly established since May 2019.

Dr Olanrewaju is Co-Director (Media and Publicity), Oyo State APM Governorship Campaign Council

How Seyi Makinde-built Circular Road sparked civil war in APC

 

By Sulaimon Olanrewaju

The Ibadan Circular Road has done far more than reshape the physical landscape of Oyo State; it has detonated a political crisis inside the All Progressives Congress (APC), exposing a party locked in open warfare with itself over a project it neither conceived nor funded. As the APC led Federal Government rushes to smuggle the Circular Road into its list of achievements, the party’s own gubernatorial candidate in Oyo State, Senator Sharafadeen Alli, is simultaneously tearing the same project to shreds - calling it inflated, defective, and politically tainted. In one monumental road, the APC has managed both to celebrate and to sabotage the same achievement, revealing a level of internal confusion and desperation that Governor ‘Seyi Makinde’s infrastructure legacy has now made impossible to hide.

The Ibadan Circular Road began in 2005 under Governor Rashidi Ladoja, who conceived the 110 km project and acquired a 150 metre Right of Way. In 2017, Governor Abiola Ajimobi expanded the corridor to 1 kilometre in line with the new Ibadan Master Plan and concessions it to ENL. 

When Governor Makinde assumed office in 2019, the project was dormant, prompting a review of its concession structure. In July 2021, the state re awarded the entire project to the SEL–Vydra Consortium, marking the true start of active construction. At no point did the Federal Government make any contribution to the project.

What makes the APC’s internal clash astonishing is that the Ibadan Circular Road is not a project that invites controversy. It is a project that commands admiration. Its sweeping geometry, modern interchanges, and wide, meticulously engineered carriageways have given Ibadan a new visual and infrastructural identity - one that signals ambition, competence, and a metropolis ready for the future. Even in its partially completed state, the road has begun to transform mobility across the city, easing congestion, opening new development corridors, and offering a cleaner, faster alternative to old, overburdened routes. Ordinarily, such a project unites political actors in praise. Yet within the APC, this landmark achievement has become the trigger for a political firestorm, turning a symbol of progress into the epicentre of a bitter internal war.

A particularly striking dimension of this conflict is Senator Sharafadeen Alli’s posture. In his scramble for political mileage, Alli, who is addled, has chosen to deny the beauty, scale, and transformative power of a project that members of his own party at the national level are openly applauding.

 His attacks on the Circular Road are not rooted in technical critique or policy analysis; they are driven by the urgency of cheap politics. Even as the APC Federal Government attempts to showcase the road as a symbol of progress, Alli insists on portraying it as a failure; dismissing the very features, from modern interchanges to improved mobility and new development corridors, that have earned the project widespread admiration. In doing so, he positions himself against an achievement that is visibly reshaping Ibadan and contradicts the narrative of his own party’s leadership.

Instead of rallying around this transformative project, the APC has turned it into a stage for internal combat.

 The Federal Government’s eagerness to appropriate the Circular Road as its own achievement - despite not conceiving, funding, or executing it - has collided head on with Alli’s determination to weaponize the same project against the incumbent governor. What should have been a straightforward celebration of progress has become a political tug of war, with Abuja dragging the road into its national scorecard while Alli drags it into the mud of local politicking.

 In the process, the APC has exposed a deep fracture within its ranks: a party unable to agree on whether the Circular Road is a triumph worth claiming or a failure worth attacking.

What emerges from this clash is not merely a disagreement over infrastructure, but a revealing portrait of a party struggling with its own identity. The APC Federal Government, desperate to showcase development footprints across the Southwest, has latched onto the Circular Road as a convenient symbol of progress, though it played no role in its conception or execution. 

Meanwhile, Alli, driven by the urgency of local politics, has chosen to undermine the same project to weaken the incumbent. These two impulses - one grasping for borrowed glory, the other tearing down genuine achievement - collide violently at the Circular Road, turning a landmark project into a battlefield for competing ambitions within the same political family.

What this contradiction ultimately reveals is a troubling pattern within the APC at both the state and national levels. A party that can, in one breath, claim credit for a project it neither conceived nor funded, and in the next breath attack the same project as a failure, is a party struggling with consistency, sincerity, and credibility. 

Such behaviour reflects a political culture built on opportunism rather than principle; one that thrives on falsehood, selective narratives, and convenient distortions. When a party oscillates so wildly between praise and condemnation depending on whose interest is served, it shows that it is not deserving of the public’s trust; it shows that it is not a party that should be entrusted with the destiny of the people.

In the end, the Ibadan Circular Road does more than showcase the beauty of modern infrastructure; it exposes the fault lines within a political party that cannot decide whether to celebrate progress or sabotage it. It reveals a party torn between national ambition and local desperation, between the urge to claim and the urge to destroy. 

It reveals a party at war with itself over a road that has become too important, too visible, and too politically valuable to ignore. And in that contradiction lies the story of a party whose internal civil war was birthed not by ideology or policy, but by a road built to move a city forward - a party confused about what is good for the people, and one that should be rejected at the polls, not just in Oyo State but across the country.

Dr Olanrewaju is the Special Adviser (Media) to the Governor of Oyo State. 

OYRTMA Officer Assaulted During Traffic Control at General Gas, Suspect Arrested

A female officer of the Oyo State Road Traffic Management Authority (OYRTMA) was allegedly assaulted by a motorist on Friday, October 2, 2026, at the General Gas Command, Ibadan, during a road repair operation.

The incident occurred while the Kopek Construction Company was carrying out repairs on damaged sections of the General Gas Bridge. 

The construction company arrived at about 10:00 a.m. to commence the repair work, leading to the temporary closure of a portion of the road.

To ease traffic movement and prevent congestion, an alternative route was provided, while OYRTMA and officers of the Nigeria Police Force were deployed to strategic diversion points to direct motorists. Most road users complied with the traffic directives and used the designated alternative route.

However, at about 4:05 p.m., a driver of a green Toyota Camry reportedly attempted to pass through the restricted section of the road. The female OYRTMA officer on duty approached the driver and directed him to use the alternative route because of the ongoing construction work.

Rather than complying with the directive, the driver allegedly alighted from his vehicle and repeatedly slapped the officer, who was in full uniform and had been performing her official duties since the morning.

The incident attracted the attention of residents, passersby and other motorists, who intervened to prevent further escalation. Officers of the Nigeria Police Force from Akobo Divisional Police Station also arrived at the scene and arrested the suspect.

The suspect was subsequently taken to Akobo Divisional Police Station, where he was detained pending his arraignment before a court on Monday.

Reacting to the incident, the Executive Chairman of OYRTMA Major Adekoya Adesagba (Rtd), condemned the alleged assault, describing it as unacceptable and stressing that officers deployed to the roads were performing their statutory responsibilities to ensure order and the free flow of traffic.

“This unprovoked attack on our officer is totally unacceptable. Our officers are on the road to serve the public and ensure order, not to be assaulted. We will not tolerate any form of violence against OYRTMA personnel,”Adekoya said 

He commended the police, motorists, residents and other witnesses for their prompt intervention, adding that the Authority would continue to monitor the matter and ensure that due legal process was followed.

Adesagba  also urged motorists to cooperate with traffic management personnel, particularly during road construction, diversion and other operations designed to protect road users and facilitate smooth movement.

OYRTMA reiterated its commitment to protecting its personnel while carrying out their official duties and maintaining safety and orderly traffic movement across Oyo State.