One thing partisan politics does is that it blurrs the vision of loyalists to see the true picture of what is ahead. Some loyalists and supporters will take outlandish claims and promises hook, line and sinker.
Even those you expect to be knowledgeable enough to apprehend the key issues that affect governance and performance of elected officials are also carried away by the euphoria of the moment. They are suffering from abecedarian ignorance that precedes knowledge basically because of ‘stomach infrastructure’.
They come in several forms as members of the ‘notice-me-at-all-costs chaps’, e-rat advocates, latter day do-gooders, jobbers and members of ‘any government in power club’ etc. They are the urchins who hang around men in power.
These beasts of no nation usually crowd the space and entrench themselves not to add any value to the new government but to ply their trade and continue business as usual to their own selfish advantage.
With the conclusion of the gubernatorial election in Osun State and the declaration of Senator Ademola Adeleke as winner, they have invaded social media space with their sychopantic congratulatory messages and articles that seek to promote division rather than peace and progress of the state.
They lack ideas that would assist in solving problems of governance, and those that would assist in uplifting the socio-economic condition of our people. They are men for the season who lack decency and will do anything to stay afloat to survive the current economic crunch.
The situation of Osun State now is pathetic. It has a debt overhang in the region of N136 billion which the current administration reduced from N179 billion it inherited from Rauf Aregbesola-led admnistration.
No doubt, the current debt portfolio of Osun State does not give room for anything to cheer about. It constitutes a clog in the wheel of progress for the state.
In essence, the problem confronting Osun now, that must be tackled head long by the incoming administration, is purely the economic problem.
The administration must worry about job creation for our jobless teeming youths, raise the level of production through cottage industries, jumpstart the economy by focusing on agricultural production and value addition but not the importation of white Zimbabweans as done by Senator Bukola Saraki in Kwara State that ended up as means of capital flight.
The government must open the window of opportunities in the tourism sector through private participation.
The reality of the dire economic situation in Osun State and others below the table across the country calls for sober reflection on how to get out of a quagmire that may soon pitch the civil servants and the general public against political office holders.
The implications of the new status of the NNPC as a corporate entity that will now operate outside the whims and caprice of the federal government should not be lost on governors across the states of the federation.
It should be noted that the monthly remittance to the federation account of the proceeds from crude oil will cease.
It will now call for ingenuity and economic wizardry at the states and federal levels to meet their financial obligations.
As already been witnessed in many states who are inching towards insolvency, salaries of workers are likely to be delayed or owed for months on end.
At the risk of sounding a doomsday prophet, the signs of the days ahead are omnious. This scenario will have nothing to do with political party or affiliation. It will be purely economic. And how to stay afloat will depend on how those at the helms of affairs manage the crisis to the benefit of our people.
As Senator Adeleke look forward to take the mantle of leadership in Osun state, he should gird his loins and brace up to the arduous task ahead so as justify the confidence of the Osun people who gave him their mandate.
I wish him well and pray he would effectively use this opportunity to etch his name in gold by running a pragmatic and people-centred administration.
Omoba Adewale Olayemi writes from Osogbo
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