Adeleke in Reminiscence over 2022 Victory, Praises God, Osun People

Yinka Kolawole in Osogbo

Osun State Governor, Senator Ademola Adeleke, has recalled with nostalgia and praises to God and the people of the state the 2022 governorship election in which he defeated former state Governor, Adegboyega Oyetola.

In a message to mark the landmark victory, Governor Adeleke saluted the steadfastness of the state voters, “who defied all pressure to reject the then incumbent governor and endorse his candidature,” declaring his ever-thankful spirit to God and humanity as well as his undiluted resolve to serve nothing but the best interest of the citizenry.

 Recalling the travails he and his family passed through from 2017 to July 16, 2022, the governor lamented the dehumanising treatment meted on him during the 2018 gubernatorial struggles, his self-imposed exile to conclude his education, and his triumphant return to the country before the 2022 elections, tagging his experience as “divinely driven but humanly testing and tasking.”

The governor, in a commemoration message, said: “Today (yesterday), 12 months ago, you voted massively for me to become your governor. Your votes a year ago reclaimed the stolen mandate of 2018. My dear people of Osun State, I am eternally grateful.

“You rallied around me as the light (Imole) of liberation. When the going was tough, the Osun people were there for me. Together, we salvaged our state. My people, I will never forget your strong backing which gave us a resounding victory in 2022, a year ago today.

 “I want to report back that in the last one year, I have kept faith with my covenant with the Osun people. I have pursued no private agenda except that of the public interest. I have devoted myself to only that which satisfies the aspirations and wishes of the people. In those intervening days, my preoccupation is peoples’ welfare and security.

“I was able to deliver on several fronts, from infrastructure to digital economy. We succeeded in raising the bar in the delivery of good governance, and the delivery of dividends of democracy is on a sustainable basis.

“My good people of Osun State, despite the tight fiscal situation, I have achieved more with less resources. We have been very prudent and transparent. We block revenue leakages and stop wasteful expenditures. Pro-people projects and programmes were our key priorities.

“As we mark this one year of that landmark election, your government and the governor remain focused on the implementation of the five-point agenda. We pledge to remain pro-masses and pro-people, fulfilling your needs shall remain our principal goal.

“We shall not waver in the delivery of quality services to women, youths, old, the poor and the rich. We shall remain a government of the people, by the people and for the people.”