Osun and APC’s Art of Manipulation, by Sarafa Ibrahim

A 20th century German writer, Michael Ende, help us understand the foundation for manipulation. In one of his numerous quotes, Ende held that “When it comes to controlling human beings, there is no better instrument than lies. Because, you see, humans live by beliefs. And beliefs can be manipulated. The power to manipulate beliefs is the only thing that counts.”

Looking at the Osun state chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and its penchant for conjuring numbers, one can easily conclude that it is exhibiting same tendency that Ende warned us about decades ago. The latest in its manipulative stunt is the outrageous claim that the Ademola Adeleke administration has received N630 billion in revenue in two years.

Take a pause, and for a moment, ponder about the number. For a moment, I tried to get a breakdown of the supposed revenue, but no where in the Osun APC address read by its Chairman, Sooko Tajudeen Lawal, was the numbers that made up to the figure indicated. It was simply a beer parlour gossip that the Osun APC is well known to entertain as no where in the financial book of the state was such amount recorded. 

While I can understand that the Osun APC will be uncomfortable with the remarkable achievements that Governor Adeleke recorded in two years, however, conjuring figures to water down what is obvious to almost everyone doesn’t make sense at all. Take, for instance, the ridiculous notion by the Osun APC that Governor Adeleke paid a lip service to workers and pensioners welfare.

I am sure you’re laughing because the record is very much at variance with the Osun APC claim. It is rather disturbing that the Osun APC has chosen to be averse to truth, even worse, fiercely fighting realities that may even benefit those who are its members. Prior to the assumption of office of Governor Adeleke, his predecessor, Gboyega Oyetola, granted promotion to workers in 2019 yet, till the moment he exited office in November 2022, he was unable to implement the financial implication of that promotion. 

In April 2023, Governor Adeleke began the implementation of the financial benefit of the promotion, bringing to an end over three years wait of workers to what they were due for. Before that, Governor Adeleke had adopted a template to defray the 30-month half salary owed by the APC administration, which Oyetola could not pay just one month while his 48-month in office lasted. So far, Governor Adeleke has paid seven months out of the owed 30-month by the APC administration for active workers and pensioners already bonded while pensioners who are yet to be bonded had received as much as 16 months of the owed half salary. 

In addition to this, Governor Adeleke has paid the five-month cooperative deductions owed workers by the Oyetola administration. For wage award, the Adeleke administration expended N2.47bn over a period of six months as a temporary support for active workers pending the agreement on a new minimum wage. 

And now, Governor Adeleke has approved N75,000 new minimum wage, with payment beginning this December, less than 5 months after President Bola Tinubu signed a new minimum wage into law. While Oyetola was Governor, it took him about 18 months, that is one-and half year before he could implement N30,000 minimum wage signed into law by then President Muhammadu Buhari. Clear enough, Governor Adeleke faired better on welfare of workers than his predecessor by all measures. 

I have observed the strenuous effort by the Osun APC to mislead the public on the finances of the state, especially under Oyetola, in order to excuse the failings that characterised that period. A typical instance was when the APC incorrectly asserted that federation allocation receipts had gone up by as high as 100% compared to what was received under Oyetola. Well, FAAC is a public record and I just don’t understand why the APC make it a subject of cheap propaganda. 

In 2023, FAAC accrual to Osun was N93 billion according to the audited financial statement of the state and when put side-by-side the N73 billion received in 2022, this represents 27.39 percent increase. In that same year, inflation according to the Nigeria Bureau of Statistics, averaged 28.92 percent. Even more, naira ends 2023 with 96.55 percent loss in its value, significantly impacting finances of the state. It is important to point out that in 2023, Osun used a total of N3.04bn to service its external debt component compared to N344 million used for the same purpose in 2022 due to the significant change in exchange rate.

For Osun APC to be avoiding this basic truth showed it is only out to manipulate thoughts, incorrectly assuming Osun people are docile as most of its fast-depleting members who will just accept numbers thrown at them without interrogating it. There is no question about what Governor Adeleke is using accrued fund to do given the monumental infrastructural strides that his government has recorded in two years.

From Osogbo to Ilesa, Ede to Ife, Iwo to Iresi, every parts of Osun can point to one project or the other initiated by the Adeleke administration. Whether on roads or bridges, healthcare or schools, Osun people cannot only mention but physically connect with the several projects that Governor Adeleke is doing across the state. The same thing cannot be said about Oyetola administration despite receiving in excess of N400 billion in aggregated revenue in four years. 

If allocations for local governments is added to the figure, just as the Osun APC is fond of doing to flare emotions, the amount of revenue at the disposal of Oyetola in four years could be as high as N700 billion. You don’t believe it? Okay, the consolidated revenue for the local councils in Osun state from FAAC for 2022 was 62,485,661,320.36, 2021 was 50,377,429,319.60, 2020 was 46,248,937,736.38 and that of 2019 ranges around N40 billion. This is aside other revenue sources, such as grants especially during the Covid-19 crisis and refunds by federal government for projects done by the Rauf Aregbesola administration. 

Interestingly, that was at a time when a bag of cement averaged at N3,500; when minimum wage was N30,000; when the pump price of fuel was around N246; and when cost of living is relatively lower compared to what it is now. Yet, schools were left in shamble as no effort were made to fix them. Even though the Oyetola government got a $20.5 million from the World Bank to fix PHCs, the delivery was horrible, far from the World Health Organisation (WHO) standard. Road infrastructures left in a deplorable state, putting motorists and passenger in agony whenever they use them. It was so bad that all through Oyetola’s four years in office, the only road he could point to is the 1.5km Lawyer Atanda in the entire Iwo Federal Constituency, comprising three local governments. Sigh!

Perhaps it is these failings that made the Osun APC to erroneously assumed that the N4.3 billion receipts from UBEC was a gift in whole. No, the fund was a culmination of a 50 percent counterpart fund by the State Government, something that the APC administration under Oyetola failed to utilise. So far, more than 200 public primary and juniour schools have been transformed and well equipped to aid qualitative learning. Osun APC should be ashamed that it has no reasonable record to canvass Osun people, hence the resort to plain lies and twisting facts.

By now, Osun APC should wake up to reality and know that Osun people are too enlightened and politically savvy to be lured into the hands of those who not only inflicted pains on them but also blur the future of the unborn with with avoidance binge. Pensioners will always acknowledge the improvement in their welfare as manifest in the over 47bn Governor Adeleke has so far expended on pension liabilities and a free healthcare cover for all of them. Workers can tell the difference between Governor Adeleke and that of the APC government that deceived them with audio promotion for over three years. The same thing with students who no longer see bursary award as an illusion but a reality under Governor Adeleke as over 3100 undergraduate students and hundreds of law students from Osun has received monetary supports. These and many more are those who Governor Adeleke was elected to serve and he is doing very well.

● Sarafa Ibrahim is the Special Assistant to the Osun State Governor and writes from Osogbo, Osun State