SPN Kicks Against Approval Of N77bn  For Overhauling Of Oyo Govt House, Ibadan Airport Upgrade

*Says it’s display of Insensitivity,  misplacement of priority

By; BAYO AKAMO, Ibadan

Oyo State Chapter of the Socialist Party of Nigeria (SPN) on Thursday,  kicked against the approval of N77 billion for the overhauling of Oyo State Government House and the Ibadan Airport Upgrade by the state Executive Council.

The party in a statement by its State Secretary, Comrade  Ayodeji Adigun, said  that the approved fund was a display of insensitivity and misplacement of priority and that these funds should instead be invested in a massive public works programme focused on revitalising public education, healthcare, and  agriculture in Oyo State.

According to SPN, such a programme, democratically controlled by the elected representatives of workers and communities, would generate  decent jobs, expand food production and affordability including upgrade of public infrastructure.

” As far as the SPN is concerned, the Government House is already adequately equipped for administrative purposes and does not require expansion at this moment”, it said.

SPN added, “We are not opposed to airport upgrade but such upgrade must be subjected to public debate and democratic scrutiny to arrive at what level of important upgrade can be accommodated now within a programme of investment that prioritise the welfare of vast majority particularly on public education, healthcare, rural development, agriculture and basic infrastructure including road network upgrade and expansion etc.

” The Socialist Party of Nigeria (SPN), Oyo State Chapter, strongly condemns the recent approval by the Engr. Seyi Makinde-led government of over N63 billion for the overhauling of the Government House, alongside an additional N14 billion earmarked for the airport upgrade”.

It maintained,  ” This combined N77 billion allocation, coming at a time when the vast majority of the working people in the state are groaning under the weight of an unprecedented economic hardship, is a clear display of gross insensitivity and a disgraceful misplacement of priorities.”

SPN noted, ” In other words, this move further exposes the deep disconnect between the Makinde-led administration and the harsh realities faced daily by the masses of poor and working-class people across Oyo state”.

” In a period characterized by rising food insecurity, mass unemployment, collapsing public schools and healthcare services, and soaring prices of basic necessities, the government has chosen to put  scarce public funds on luxury and prestige projects that benefit only a tiny elite circle.

” It is particularly disheartening that, despite the loud propaganda around “free education,” Oyo State’s public education sector remains largely in a poor state. Across the state, public primary, secondary, and tertiary institutions suffer from decaying infrastructure, overcrowded classrooms, and a lack of adequate teaching materials, all symptoms of chronic underfunding and undemocratic management of public education.

SPN stated, ” The healthcare sector is no better. Most public health facilities remain poorly equipped, grossly understaffed, and frequently lack essential medicines. This dire situation forces working people to resort to private clinics they can hardly afford or turn to unverified spiritual solutions rife with fraud and dangerous misinformation. Agriculture should be the backbone of local development and economic growth but is still underfunded despite the government’s access to over N7 billion in loan facilities supposedly meant to reposition the sector.

” Indeed, given the numerous experiences with the past governors, across the country, towards the end of their terms in office, it is not out of place to suspect that this outrageous spending at this stage is a smokescreen for a parting loot from the state’s coffers. “