…says Senator Adaramodu, Ojuawo, other political office holders have failed to attract meaningful project
OPEN LETTER TO HIS EXCELLENCY GOVERNOR BIODUN ABAYOMI OYEBANJI
Executive Governor of Ekiti State
From Ambassador Tosin Michael Owonifari
AU Agenda 2063 Ambassador
AU Liaison Officer, North West United Kingdom (Merseyside)
Founder, AU Gateway Global CIC
Chief Executive Officer, T21 Services United Kingdom
Chief Executive Officer, T21 Consultancy Services Nigeria (Ado Ekiti Office)
Your Excellency,
With deep respect and high regard for your person and office, I write as a proud son of Ekiti State and a concerned citizen of Ise Orun Local Government. This message is written with humility and sincerity. It is not an attack but an appeal for fairness and inclusion for a people who have remained loyal and peaceful while waiting for visible development.
I congratulate Your Excellency on your recent victory at your party’s primary election ahead of the 2026 governorship poll. This victory reflects the confidence that many have in your leadership. As you prepare for the next phase of service, this is a time to reflect on legacy and equity. Leadership is remembered not by years spent in office but by lives transformed.
You are widely admired for humility, accessibility, and bridge building. You have maintained cordial relationships with past Ekiti leaders across party lines. That spirit of unity is commendable and should also be reflected in equal development across all parts of the state.
Across Ekiti there are visible achievements that deserve recognition. In Ado Ekiti, township road projects and the Ekiti Knowledge Zone are clear examples of progress. Oye Ekiti hosts the Federal University Oye Ekiti which continues to expand academic and research activity. Ikere Ekiti is home to the Bamidele Olumilua University of Education, Science and Technology. Ifaki Ekiti accommodates the Ekiti State University Part Time Programme Unit, giving that town a university presence. Iyin Ekiti benefits from the Ado to Iyin dual carriageway completed and inaugurated in 2021 and is now set to host the Federal University of Technology and Environmental Sciences. Ikole Ekiti and Ekiti West have received rural electrification and transformer upgrades through state and federal programmes. Your own hometown, Ikogosi Ekiti, has equally benefited through the revitalisation of the Ikogosi Warm Springs Resort and the improvement of surrounding road networks that have boosted tourism and economic activity. Recent reports also confirm the approval of scheduled flights at the Ekiti Agro Allied International Cargo Airport. These examples show vision and activity across the state.
In all these developments, however, Ise Orun Local Government has been completely left behind. There is no newly commissioned project, no major road construction, no hospital or school upgrade, no electrification or industrial scheme, and no vocational or innovation centre. What occasionally appears as government presence is limited to small repairs or maintenance works. Routine maintenance is not development. Real development transforms communities and lives.
The long announced College of Agriculture remains unfulfilled. The Olowe Museum of Art and Heritage, publicly announced for Ise Ekiti, has not moved beyond fundraising and press statements. Meanwhile, our land is one of the most fertile in Ekiti, perfectly suited for agricultural estates, processing centres, and youth training farms. The potential is there but the inclusion is missing.
Your Excellency, we acknowledge the value of the Ekiti Knowledge Zone in Ado and the growth of educational institutions in Oye, Ikere, Ifaki, Iyin, and Ikole. These are thoughtful projects but they highlight the imbalance in the spread of development. If education, knowledge, and innovation thrive in those areas, then Ise Orun should naturally serve as the agricultural and industrial base of the same vision. Balanced development is the true foundation of unity and growth.
Those entrusted with representing our people have not delivered results. From the Senator representing our district to the Honourable Member of the House of Representatives, to members of the State House of Assembly, commissioners, advisers, board chairmen, aides, and the Local Government Chairman, none can point to one major project that has changed the lives of our people in more than ten years. Many respected elders and political figures who could have spoken up have remained silent, some out of fear, others out of caution. But silence in the face of neglect is costly.
Among the younger generation of Ise Orun sons and daughters, frustration continues to grow. Many feel unrepresented both at the state and national levels. Those who currently occupy positions of leadership have not shown the courage and vision required to defend our collective interest. The community needs capable and selfless leaders who will speak boldly, think strategically, and work sincerely for the people.
It is also important to define what empowerment truly means. The distribution of rice, pepper grinders, wheelbarrows, cutlasses, or clothing materials may bring momentary relief but it does not create lasting change. Even the recently introduced Bao Game Centre cannot meet the real needs of our youth. What we require are training centres, agro processing estates, technology hubs, renewable energy projects, and sustainable jobs that restore dignity and hope.
Ise Orun is not lacking in talent or patriotism. We have professionals, entrepreneurs, and academics at home and abroad who are ready to support your administration if given the opportunity. Appointments and projects should be guided by competence and sincerity of purpose. When capable people are given the chance to serve, progress naturally follows.
We therefore appeal to Your Excellency to order a transparent reassessment of the development agenda as it concerns Ise Orun Local Government. Let there be a review of unimplemented projects, a performance evaluation of those who hold public office on our behalf, and a clear plan for a landmark project that will place Ise Orun on the map of progress. Our people have been loyal and peaceful; it is time for that loyalty to yield visible results.
As an ambassador working on Africa’s Agenda 2063, and as one leading development programmes in both the United Kingdom and Nigeria, I know that lasting transformation begins with inclusion. When people feel seen, heard, and valued, they invest their energy in building the common good. Ise Orun is ready to contribute its land, people, and ideas to your legacy if carried along.
Your Excellency, you have united Ekiti politically. The next stage is to unite it through development. Let Ise Orun share in the story of progress. Let a road, a hospital, an electricity expansion, an agricultural estate, a training or innovation hub, or an industrial cluster rise from our soil and carry your name. Let history record that under Governor Biodun Abayomi Oyebanji, no community in Ekiti was left behind.
With my highest esteem and warm regards,
Ambassador Tosin Michael Owonifari
AU Agenda 2063 Ambassador
AU Liaison Officer, North West United Kingdom (Merseyside)
Founder, AU Gateway Global CIC
Chief Executive Officer, T21 Services United Kingdom
Chief Executive Officer, T21 Consultancy Services Nigeria (Ado Ekiti Office)
