Date Published: 12/05/10

Mimiko rallies Yoruba race for greater exploits, commends Awolowo

The Ondo State Governor, Dr Olusegun Mimiko at the weekend gave a wake up call to the Yoruba race saying that concerted efforts must be made by them to sustain the values that hitherto portrayed them as pace setters for other ethnic nationalities in the country.

The Governor, gave this rallying cry at the Government House Akure while playing host to the chairman and members of the Governing Council of the Yoruba Academy, a pan-Yourba socio-cultural group set up for the re-awakening of the ethos and value of the race, led by Prof. Wale Omole, a former Vice Chancellor of the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile Ife. Mimiko insisted that the Yoruba must not allow the fighting spirit of their fore fathers to die, adding that the old Western Region was widely acclaimed among others as a leader and as the model for education in the country.

He commended Late Chief Obafemi Awolowo for his doggedness and zeal to put the region on the pedestrian of excellence in education and to ensure that free and quality education was attained by the children of both the rich and the poor, of which many notable Yoruba sons and daughters of today were beneficiaries.

Dr Mimiko appealed to the Yoruba to brace up for the challenges of nation’s development and rediscover themselves in the task of being major stakeholders in the political arena of the country.

He said his administration had, since inception, embarked on several measures to recreate governance and to bridge the yawning gap between the people and government with a view to making them closer to their own government.

His words: "Without a synergy between the government and the people, with each believing the other and working together, we can never move forward. When we were growing up in those days, when we talked of government, the man that zoomed up in the horizon then was Pa Obafemi Awolowo, the larger percentage of Yoruba man then wanted to pray for him. That was the type of connect we had between the people and government. We need to recreate government and we need to do things that will fire the imagination of the people so that they can make all necessary sacrifices for the development of the society.

"Look at our history, we had the relative advantage in education but look at the same education sector today, we barely have 25% pass in examinations. So, as as sure way of redeeming the situation and bring us back on track in Ondo State, we thought we needed to do something concerning education and we created what we called Education Quality Assurance Agency. Prof. Peter Okebukola was here and he said it was a bench mark for the country. We are also using ICT to create employment, to create a new Ondo State.

"In Ondo State today, we are creating a new perception of what government is all about. We have come to the conclusion that in Ondo State, that if we must attack unemployment, which is the greatest challenge for our generation, we have to make use of ICT. And the other one is Agriculture, as I speak to you sir we are building 3 Farm Cities, the first one is going on at Ore now and it will accommodate 280 graduates who will be working and living in the farm which will have modern housing and facilities to make them feel comfortable . Our calculation is that each of the graduates working in the farm will be earning a minimum of N50, 000 per month and we are replicating this all over’.

Speaking earlier, the chairman of the Yoruba Academy, Prof Wale Omole said the vision of the academy was to seek the advancement and understanding of the Yoruba history as a major player in the socio-political development of the country.

Prof. Omole added that the academy would also be engaged in, encouraging and funding researches and systematic reflection on the history, culture, position and future of the Yoruba in the context of Nigeria .

He however commended Governor Mimiko on his achievements in office, describing him as a proud son of the Yoruba race.