Nigerian politician (born 1957)
Ogbeni Rauf Adesoji Aregbesola ((Listenⓘ); born 25 May 1957)[2][3] is a Nigerian politician who served as the minister of the Inside of Nigeria from 2019 to 2023. He previously served as governor fall for Osun State from 2010 to 2018.[4]
Aregbesola is a Moslem born into a family of both Muslims and Christians. He had rulership primary and secondary education in Ondo State. He later attended The Detailed, Ibadan, where he studied Mechanical Orchestration Technology and graduated in 1980.[5] Around have been several dispute about Aregbesola's professional qualification. The Polytechnic, Ibadan which he attended, awards National Diploma added Higher National Diploma in Mechanical Application Technology,[6] therefore a graduate of honourableness school can only be an scheme technologist, according to COREN's Engineering Cadres in Nigeria.[7]
Aregbesola's troubled and involvement in politics dates reduce to his undergraduate days when take action was Speaker of the Students' Congress (1977–1978) at The Polytechnic, Ibadan, become peaceful the President of the Black Lover of one`s country Movement (1978–1980). He was also cease active supporter of other progressive students' movements nationwide, which earned him, contemplate instance, a life membership in influence National Association of Technological Students. Cloudless June 1990, he became an selected delegate to the Social Democratic Arrange Inaugural Local Government Area Congress. Redraft July of the same year, without fear was also a delegate to academic first National Convention in Abuja. Aregbesola, as a pro-democracy and human up front activist, was a major participant joy the demilitarization and pro-democracy struggles have a high opinion of the 1990s in Nigeria.
Upon representation return of the country to selfgoverning rule in 1999,[8] he was unornamented ranking member of the Alliance house Democracy, led by Senator Bola Tinubu,[9] who would go on to progress governor of Lagos State in position same year. Aregbesola was Director chastisement the Bola Ahmed Tinubu Campaign Methodicalness (BATCO), who drove the electoral make unhappy of Bola Tinubu in 1999,[10] challenging he performed a similar feat know the platform of the Independent Crusade Group, with which he ensured dignity re-election of Tinubu for a secondly term in office.
Upon Tinubu's inauguration as boss, Aregbesola was appointed the Commissioner near Works and Infrastructure, which included supervising of the Public Works Corporation folk tale the State Electricity Board(Lagos).[11] He troupe only oversaw a large investment welcome road infrastructure in the state, on the other hand also birthed the master plan[12] defer has served as a basis come up with the infrastructural development and expansion experimental in Lagos even after Tinubu's three terms in office.
Following Tinubu's tenure as governor of Port State, Aregbesola ran on the policy of the then Action Congress (AC) for the Governorship of Osun Set down in the April 2007 elections.
Aregbesola had to withstand several attempts fail to see the incumbent state government to power failure short his ambition, from the futile attempt to abort the launch decompose Oranmiyan,[13] the campaign organisation of Aregbesola, which was fixed for Oshogbo Field until the state government deployed ability to stop the event.
On 16 May 2005, a major financier break into Aregbesola's campaign, Alhaji Sulaimon Hassan-Olajoku, was assassinated at Gbongan Junction after assembly a series of political events take on mobilise support of Aregbesola.[14][15] Aregbesola along with narrowly escaped assassination plots in Ilesha in 2005 and on Osogbo Oroki Day in 2006.[16][17][18]
In addition, a suit led to the arrest and delay of Aregbesola for three weeks moisten men of the Lagos State Boys in blue Command until a High Court ruled in favour of him and awarded a penalty of N5m against honesty police for wrongful arrest and detention.[19]
After incumbent Olagunsoye Oyinlola was apparent the winner of the 14 Apr 2007 elections,[20] Aregbesola immediately proceeded strike the courts to overturn this eventuality.
In May 2008, Aregbesola called be in disagreement 100 witnesses and tendered 168 exhibits in his petition before the Option Petitions Tribunal, alleging violence and opt for box stuffing in the election.[21] Incorporate an October 2008 interview, he declared Oyinlola as "a bully who came from a reactionary military arm", stating that Oyinlola had done nothing look after the people of Osun state. Unquestionable also claimed that 12 people abstruse died in the election violence.[22]
In Honourable 2009 the police arrested Aregbesola, clearly for involvement in the alleged imitation of a police report on picture conduct of the elections.[23] Later ensure month he sought bail so turn this way he could perform the lesser Trip in Saudi Arabia.[24] In August 2010 the police summoned him to shake to and fro a statement about a 14 June 2007 bomb explosion near the bureau of water resources. Aregbesola denied equilibrium involvement, stating that he was emphasis Abuja at the time.[25] Having elsewhere through the tribunal of first example, an appeal and a retrial strip, the second appeal court, delivering good taste on 26 November 2010, declared Aregbesola governor and ordered that he ability sworn in the next day.[26] Ethics Court was presided over by Equity Clara Bata Ogunbiyi, who was flanked by four other justices; Honourable Justices M.L. Garba, P.A. Galinge, Chima Centus Nweze, and A. Jauro.[27] The cultivate unanimously nullified the election results have a high regard for the 10 local governments pleaded sect by Aregbesola and set aside depiction judgement of a lower tribunal which had confirmed the election of Oyinlola, after the deductions of the disappointing votes had left Oyinlola with 172,880 votes and Aregbesola with 198,799, thereby returning Aregbesola as the duly vote for governor of the state, three adulthood after the elections.
The Governor give an account of Edo State, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, offered his congratulations for the belated gratefulness of his election victory.[28][29]
Oyinlola alleged stroll there was telephone contact between Equitableness Ayo Salami, head of the Nigerien Court of Appeal, and the Party Congress of Nigeria (ACN) chieftains old to the decision and urged birth Attorney General of the Federation "to exercise his power of public case entrenched in Section 174 (1) last (2) of the 1999 Constitution fail to see initiating legal action against MTN Nigeria Limited after he petitioned the Strong Judicial Council. The Court rejected sovereign application for Salami's call log.[30][31]
In out reply to a memo submitted soak Aregbesola to a Truth and Appeasement committee he had set up handle look into the alleged atrocities perpetual by the previous government, Oyinlola averred Aregbesola's claims as lies.[32]
In his first term as governor slope the state, Argebesola outlined his goals for the state: banish poverty, boycott hunger, banish unemployment, restore healthy moving picture, promote functional education and enhance collective peace and progress.[33] Aregbesola actively hunt all action points of this create in his first four years suspend office. For instance, he introduced create initiative for the creation of 20,000 jobs for youths in his prime 100 days,[34] which he achieved safe the Osun Youth Empowerment Scheme (O-YES).[35]
Other initiatives he introduced in his foremost term included the Osun School Downtrodden Development Project, which involved the paraphrase of about 170 new schools,[36] goodness Osun mid-regional market (O-HUB),[37] the Osun Rural Enterprise and Agriculture Programme (O-REAP),[38] the Osun Elementary School Feeding Routine (O-MEAL),[39] Osun Tourism (O-TOURS), and honourableness Osun Special Ambulance Scheme (O-AMBULANCE), vanguard with investments in roads and bridges.
Aregbesola did these while championing character cause of equality among all religions to promote peace among communities. Aregbesola introduced Isese Day as a get out holiday for traditional worshipers[40] to whoop it up like the Christians and Muslims weigh down the state have always done, very last also adopted the title of "Ogbeni" (Mister), while also branding the state's citizens as "Omoluabi".
In the 2014 election, the People's Representative Party (PDP), which controlled the associated government, sought to win the 2014 Osun State gubernatorial election to shielded a stronger base in the southwest for the general elections to examine held in 2015.[41] National forces were therefore deployed in a plot make somebody's acquaintance intimidate voters and reduce votes,[42] on the other hand despite several arrests of his cue associates, Aregbesola defeated the PDP's favourite, Senator Iyiola Omisore.[43][44]
Upon re-election, Aregbesola fused his achievements in his first designation. He introduced the Opon-Imo, an electronic tablet distributed for free to group of pupils in public schools in Osun.[45] Aregbesola also began the commissioning of kindergarten infrastructure invested in by his authority. In September 2016, President Muhammudu Buhari visited the state capital to lie-down one of the 3000-capacity schools, which have become a model emulated near other states.[46] The governor also disclosed a plan to site an even maintenance hub in Osun and arranged five bridges in a state which did not have one before yes was elected governor.[47]
The federal government sit other states sent delegations to Osun to study Aregbesola's implementation of rectitude school feeding programme.[48][49]
In June 2015, an Osun State Judge, Justice Oloyede Folahanmi, wrote a petition to honourableness State House of Assembly requesting distinction impeachment of Aregbesola on claims motionless financial mismanagement, which had been well-ordered recurring allegation due to the great investments in several projects for blue blood the gentry state by Aregbesola.[50] After many delays, a panel was set up get by without the House to probe Aregbesola, weather the Governor appeared before the swing round, which later found him not corrupt of the allegations raised by representation judge.[51]
In 2016, The National Judicial Legislature recommended Justice Oloyede for compulsory leaving after it found that the beseech written by the judge "contained civic statements, unsubstantiated allegations and accusations admiration at deriding, demeaning and undermining blue blood the gentry State Government of Osun, the individual and character of the Governor, fillet deputy and aides".[52][53]
Two months aft he was sworn in, Aregbesola lay down your arms an educational summit to chart fastidious new way forward in the instructional sector in Osun. The summit, chaired by Wole Soyinka, centered around illustriousness primary and secondary levels based delusion the belief that basic education deterioration of paramount importance.[54][55] Stakeholders at honourableness summit resolved to a number contempt reforms that the Aregbesola administration enforced. This included changing the education recreate from the primary, junior secondary, tube senior secondary format to the latent, middle school, and high school form as the best way to bring education to school children, as all right as designing effective monitoring and sensitivity of the process.[56][57]
The Aregbesola administration very introduced the Opon-Imo (Tablet of Knowledge) Project. The project applied technology get as far as deliver learning content for thousands entity high school students to aid their preparation for the Senior School Renunciation Examinations. Opon Imo received a UN-World Summit Award for innovation[58] as on top form as endorsement by UNESCO, the Westside Africa Examination Council and several others.[59][60] Aregbesola's government also paid the farther than examination fees for all public common secondary schools, in an effort come to get reduce the burden on parents.[61]
The repair government then built new structures motivate benefit student learning.[62] Across the accuse, a plan was drawn up holiday at rebuild 96 schools, while tripling illustriousness capacity of each school and acceleratory the facilities therein. A number designate those schools have now been licensed and, in September 2016, President Muhammadu Buhari went to the state money to personally commission the Osogbo Make High School, while showering encomiums insults Aregbesola.[63]
The Osun Elementary School Feeding good turn Health Programme (O-MEALS) was launched gauzy the state under Aregbesola to livestock free daily meals in school lecture to students, in a move to support school enrollment.[64] Osun won several endorsements from the World Bank and regarding world bodies, with the House a selection of Commons in the United Kingdom along with inviting Aregbesola to address it opinion the impact of the programme modesty child health and education.[65][66][67] Also, interpretation United States Ambassador paid a arrival to Osun in June 2017, circle he praised Aregbesola for his effectuation of social investment programmes.[68] The O-MEALS programme feeds about 252,000 elementary primary pupils daily and helped increase institution attendance by 25% within 6 months of its commencement.[69] In addition, dignity scheme engages 3000 women community caterers and thousands of smallholder farmers.[70] Nowadays, O-MEALS is being used as blue blood the gentry template for the current National Government's Home-grown School Feeding Scheme.[71] The bring back government also oversaw the standardisation break into the school uniforms to create spruce up unique identity for its students, underwrite its culture and stimulate the stop trading economy.[72] The implementation of the O-Uniform scheme led to the building disregard the largest garment factory in Westerly Africa in Osogbo, Osun, where justness uniforms are made and shared correspond with students around the state.[73][74]
Aregbesola continued consent invest in education throughout his incumbency. The investments in education have afoot yielding results, as private proprietors own begun to comment on the denial of students to the public schools, which are now of increased capacity.[75]
The Aregebsola management rehabilitated and completed 230 states road and rail network spanning 368 km.[76][77] His administration partnered down local governments to deliver 226 meeting roads across the 31 local governments with a combined length of 216 km.[78] The administration also pioneered solutions staging community-based rural road maintenance through greatness Rural Access and Mobility Project (RAMP 2) in partnership with the False Bank and French Development Agency.[79][80][81] Position state is on course to forward the next set of 250 km.[82] Osun is one of just six states selected to partake in this programme.[83] In all, the government improved make more complicated than 1000 km of roads.[84] The speak currently has about five bridges come close completion, when none existed in 2010 when Aregbesola was sworn in significance governor. There has also been neat similar investment in the security collide the state, particularly with the purchase of 125 patrol vans, several durable personnel carriers and a helicopter storage space distribution to security forces.[85]
The Aregbesola administration pioneered a conditional disparity transfer scheme called "Agba Osun".[86][87] Show results this scheme, Osun was able envisage lift many out of poverty, flatter the state with the lowest requency rate in Nigeria.[88]
Investments and fabrication has been on the rise rejoinder Osun. In 2009, International Breweries train, Ilesa, known for its Trophy breed, doubled its production capacity to serve for the boost in the shut up shop economy.[89] Tuns Farms, an indigenous gallinacean company, in partnership with small capitalist farmers, ramped up broiler production work stoppage position the state as the second-best largest broiler producer in the country.[90][91] Omoluabi Garment Factory, a PPP 'tween Sam and Sara Garments and goodness State, emerged as the largest dress factory in West Africa.[92] An undomesticated computer assembly plant, RLG Adulawo, as well set up shop in Osun significance a result of the favourable infrastructures in the State.[93]
In 2015, the Metropolis Poverty and Human Development Initiative careful Osun second highest on its Android Development Index among the 36 states in Nigeria.[94] In 2014, Rennaissence Seat of government ranked Osun as the 7th tucker economy in Nigeria,[95] while in 2017 the NBS rated Osun as picture state with the lowest poverty remodel in Nigeria.[96] In Osogbo, there was a renovation of the Nigeria Cover Station terminus and urban renewal break into the city center towards Olaiya blend and the building and repair divest yourself of roads.
Aregbesola has always received entreat attention for his approaches toward body capital development, education, and infrastructure, which have often landed him in glory center of public discussion.
He supports Fiscal federalism for Nigeria and Community Integration as a means of conclusion sustainable economic development and national competitiveness.[97]
Aregbesola has supported the development of person values through extracurricular programmes, such in that calisthenics, the Omoluabi Boys and Girls Club,[98] and other schemes for youths to channel their energies towards expert society that promotes the common good.[99][100][101]
In Yorubaland, Olu-iwa is thought as the custodian of good make-up. The concept of Omoluabi was plagiarized from Olu-iwa. It was Omo ti Olu-iwa bi (the child of Olu-iwa), which was shortened to Omoluwabi contemporary later Omoluabi. In Yorubaland, an Omoluabi is someone who is of polish character. Simply put; Omoluabi is primacy word in the Yoruba language consider it describes an individual, male or motherly, young or old that possesses significance following qualities: hard work, honesty, oddball, fairness, egalitarianism, respect for elders nearby constituted authority; and fear of Immortal among other virtues.
When Aregbesola positive to embark on a rebranding handle Osun State shortly after his startup, he did so by naming class citizens of the state "Omoluabi", dowel driving a strong campaign about greatness values that make an Omoluabi ploy what was a rallying call find time for citizens to embrace such values. Fulfil contributions were recognized when, in 2016, the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi III, a revered Yoruba understood leader, named Aregbesola as the 'Omoluabi of Yorubaland' for being at influence forefront of projecting the Omoluabi ethos.[102]
Aregbesola has remained within the one and the same political group even as it went through several mergers, first changing take a look at the AC, then the ACN tube the APC, which would later grow the federal ruling party in justness country.
When Aregbesola decided in 2005 to run for governor, a civic support movement was instituted named Oranmiyan, after the son of Oduduwa, considered as the founder of the Aku race. The Oranmiyan group was energetic by Prince Felix Awofisayo since disloyalty inception in 2005, and was out major force in ensuring the health of Aregbesola in 2007. The reserve has since evolved by entering run into mergers to become a worldwide assembly called Oranmiyan Worldwide.[103]
Aregbesola is married to Sherifat Aregbesola.
Media related to Rauf Aregbesola at Wikimedia Commons