The N4 billion planned for roads in Ekiti State in the amended supplementary 2022 federal budget, according to Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele, is an extension of Governor Biodun Oyebanji’s drive for infrastructural development.
Bamidele stated that the amended supplementary budget enacted and approved for President Bola Tinubu’s ability to provide palliatives to soften the consequences of the elimination of fuel subsidies and address other nations’ economic issues will assist Ekiti State greatly.
The Federal lawmaker spoke at Ikogosi Ekiti on Saturday after a service held at the First Baptist Church to commemorate the 90th birthday of Ekiti State governor’s father, Pa Ezekiel Oyebanji, who he said inculcated good deeds in his children.
Bamidele said, “Some of the new projects that were approved will be in the overall best interest of Ekiti people. One of them is the sum of N2 billion that was approved for the construction of Iyin-Ilawe Ekiti Road which is something that we believe will connect not only the two communities but will connect Ekiti Central Senatorial District with Ekiti South Senatorial District.
“Recently, Federal College of Education was approved for Ilawe Ekiti, the road will also serve the purpose of trying to open up the community to make life easier even for that campus. Other approvals in the budget are the sum of N1 billion for the construction of inner roads in Ado Ekiti and N1 billion for the construction of inner roads in Ijero Ekiti.
“These are all parts of the extension of the infrastructural development drives of Governor Oyebanji. He met with all of us and he gave us a list of projects that were of utmost concern for him,” Bamidele said.
The governor, Oyebanji, described his nonagenarian father as “a man who places great value on honesty, integrity, humility, hard work and self-discipline, virtues”, which, he said had helped in shaping his (governor) own personality.
Oyebanji said that he inherited his simplicity and humble approach to life from his dad, who he said contributed immensely to his spiritual growth, which had buoyed his faith in God, as the only one with the capacity to provide solutions to all life’s challenges.
The governor said that the family decided to have a low-key celebration devoid of any formal invitation to anyone in line with its modest manner of doing things, coupled with the fact he, as the governor of the state, had to live by example.
The 90-year-old celebrant, Pa Oyebanji, said his strong belief in scholarship as a weapon to overcome poverty, propelled him to acquire Western education through hard work and resoluteness.
Pa Oyebanji, thanked God for being alive to celebrate the age of 90 in good health and charged parents to invest in their children’s education to make their future brighter, more rewarding, and glowingly remarkable.
The Pastor in charge of Gateway Baptist Church, Ado Ekiti, Revd Michael Otun, in his sermon titled, ‘Teach us How to count our days’, urged Nigerians to always do things right for Nigeria to experience radical development in all facets.
Otun showered encomiums on the celebrant for his discipline, humility, prudence, and honesty.