Oyo APM Chieftain, Dare Adeleke has defended Governor Seyi Makinde’s administration over its use of Local Government funds, arguing that the government’s spending priorities have delivered tangible benefits to residents despite criticism from Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Mutalubi Ojo.
In a response to Ojo’s criticisms, Adeleke maintained that the administration’s approach to funding infrastructure and public services must be assessed against the financial realities facing local councils and the constitutional framework governing the State Joint Local Government Account.
He cited Section 162(6) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, arguing that the provision established the State Joint Local Government Account and that the Supreme Court’s landmark interpretation of local government financial autonomy came in July 2024.
Adeleke said Makinde, popularly known as GSM, had inherited a system in which local government resources were routinely deployed to support state-level projects, a practice he also attributed to the administration of the late former governor Abiola Ajimobi.
Addressing Ojo’s question about the condition of State Hospital Road, Adeoyo, Adeleke said the road had been awarded for reconstruction and that contractors were expected to commence work.
He argued that the condition of the road reflected years of neglect, insisting that several roads across Ibadan had deteriorated during Ajimobi’s eight-year tenure, despite the praise the former governor received from some political stakeholders.
According to Adeleke, Makinde inherited a state burdened by unpaid salaries and pensions, while local governments struggled to meet their obligations to primary school teachers and other workers.
He questioned whether local councils could realistically finance major road construction after meeting their recurrent expenditure obligations, including salaries, pensions, traditional council expenses, healthcare services and security support.
Adeleke argued that the cost of constructing a kilometre of standard road now exceeded N1 billion, while allocations to many local governments, after salary deductions, fell below N250 million.
He maintained that leaving such resources entirely at the disposal of local councils without addressing their competing financial obligations would have severely constrained infrastructure development and other public services.
Defending Makinde’s record on road construction, Adeleke claimed that projects executed under the current administration had demonstrated greater durability than those undertaken by previous administrations. He alleged that some roads built during the previous government deteriorated after a single rainy season, describing them as projects designed more for publicity than long-term value.
On education, Adeleke criticised the previous administration’s public-school policy, which he said had introduced fees of N3,000 per child through its governing board. He said Makinde reversed the policy, restored free education, recruited more than 5,000 teachers and constructed over 200 model schools.
He also attributed the return of World Bank-supported development programmes to Oyo State to Makinde’s payment of counterpart funding, which he alleged had been neglected under Ajimobi.
Adeleke cited the Rural Access and Agricultural Marketing Project (RAAMP), designed to improve rural roads, and the Ibadan Urban Flood Management Project (IUFMP) as examples of development initiatives pursued under the current administration.
On the proposed Ibadan Circular Road, Adeleke defended Makinde’s decision to terminate the previous build-operate-transfer arrangement, alleging that the project had failed to achieve financial closure for three years.
He argued that terminating the arrangement was necessary to protect the state from potential legal complications, adding that the current administration had made physical progress on the project, including the clearing of approximately 70 kilometres of the proposed route.
Adeleke contrasted this with what he described as the previous administration’s failure to translate its international engagements and plans into comparable results on the ground.
In the healthcare sector, he rejected Ojo’s criticism of the condition of public hospitals, insisting that Makinde’s administration had equipped Adeoyo State Hospital, upgraded 264 primary healthcare centres across the state’s wards, installed oxygen plants and employed more than 1,000 health workers.
He also accused the previous administration of presiding over prolonged industrial disputes in the health sector, claiming that doctors had embarked on a strike lasting 365 days during that period.
Adeleke further defended the government’s investments in aviation, sports and public lighting. He said the Ibadan airport had undergone upgrades aimed at international operations and had received approval for round-the-clock flights.
He also credited Makinde with rebuilding the Lekan Salami Stadium in Ibadan, which he said had previously fallen into disrepair, noting that the renovated facility had hosted matches involving the Super Eagles.
The Light-Up Oyo initiative, Adeleke added, had improved the state capital’s night-time environment and commercial activity, contrasting it with what he described as inadequate public lighting under the previous administration.
While urging Ojo to separate his professional standing as a Senior Advocate of Nigeria from political arguments, Adeleke said criticism of the government should be grounded in verifiable facts, financial figures and judicial authorities rather than rhetoric.
He maintained that Makinde’s performance should ultimately be judged by residents’ experiences of road infrastructure, education, healthcare, public services and the timely payment of salaries.
Adeleke also recalled the political and legal challenges faced by Makinde’s administration, claiming that the opposition had failed to unseat the governor through the ballot box and subsequent election litigation, including proceedings before the Supreme Court.
He described the latest criticism as another attempt by political opponents to challenge an administration whose achievements, he argued, were visible across the state.
Concluding his response, Adeleke praised Makinde’s leadership and expressed confidence that the governor’s record would withstand public scrutiny.
He insisted that Oyo State had moved beyond the controversies surrounding previous administrations, maintaining that the government’s infrastructure and social-sector projects offered a stronger basis for evaluating its performance than political exchanges.
