Obasanjo Speaks Again: READ What He Said About Rural Areas

Olusegun Obasanjo, former president of Nigeria has urged Nigerians in the country to come together to improve on their respective rural areas in the country, describing rural development as a collective responsibility.

‘Ebora Owu’ as fondly called emphasised that government alone cannot satisfy all the infrastructural needs of the rural dwellers.

Olusegun Obasanjo, former president of Nigeria

He declared that the physical, social and educational development of the rural dwellers largely dependent on contributions, which individual members that have passed through the village settings can facilitate to their communities.

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Obasanjo made the call at this years’ ‘Ibogun-Olaogun Day’, held at his ancestral home town, Ibogun Olaogun village in Ifo local government area of Ogun state at the weekend.

He said: “As responsible people to our respective rural areas, we should not wait for the government. We don’t need to wait for government before developing our communities, particularly some of us who were raised from the village.

“Let us think of what we can do for ourselves and our communities; what can we do for ourselves to make the village communities more habitable for us,” Obasanjo advised.

The former military Head of State recalled that his paternal village in Ibogun-Olaogun lacked basic amenities such as latrine and bathroom during his growing up days, and however expressed happiness that the village could today boast of a Primary Health Clinic (PHC), modern toilet, good road network as well as modern structure for the primary school, which were all constructed through the communal efforts.

“When I was growing up in this community, there was no latrine, no bathroom and a clinic. But today, there are over a dozen of people who would have died, if the clinic we constructed through the community’s self-effort had not being in existence.

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“Each of us can encourage village renewal; we don’t need to wait for government, if we don’t want to tarry for too long. The need to raise fund for our community secondary school, is borne out of the need that, we cannot wait for government to do it for us.

“We have to carry our load by ourselves, before we say government should come to our aid, that is the reality today,” Obasanjo said.

Speaking also at the event, the former Oyo state deputy governor, Honourable Taofeek Arapaja corroborated the view of the former president, with a call on the younger generation to heed to the clarion call from an elder like Obasanjo.

He also stated that youths’ rural-urban migration in search of the non-existence, “white-collar” jobs would have been greatly checkmated, if the rich in the society could fraternise with the rural communities and establish industries in those areas.

“If Baba Obasanjo could be championing the call for rural development, there is nothing stopping us the younger ones to take to his call and go back to our respective rural areas to bring development,” the former deputy governor of Oyo state declared. 

The post Obasanjo Speaks Again: READ What He Said About Rural Areas appeared first on Nigeria News today & Breaking news | Read on NAIJ.COM.

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