The managements of South West Development Commission, O’dua Investment Company Limited and the Development Agenda for Western Nigeria (DAWN Commission) have all pledged to do the very best to ensure the uplift of the South Western part of Nigeria.
The Chief Executive Officers of the three foremost South West institutions made this pledge on Tuesday during a joint courtesy visit by the Association of Retired Heads of Service and Permanent Secretaries, South West Nigeria (ARHOPS-SWN) to the DAWN Commission, Odu’a Investments Company Limited (OICL) and the South West Development Commission (SWDC).
SWDC was represented by its Managing Director, Dr Charles ‘Diji Akinola and OICL was represented by the Group Managing Director, Mr. Abdulrahman Yinusa while DAWN Commission had its Director General, Dr Seye Oyeleye in attendance.
The engagement, held at the DAWN Commission’s headquarters in Cocoa House, brought together the leadership of the three regional institutions and members of the newly constituted executive council of ARHOPS-SWN.
In his welcome address Dr Oyeleye urged stakeholders in the South West to look beyond the 2027 elections and focus on long-term development plans that will benefit future generations.
The iconic bureaucrat submitted that the three institutions could not afford to fail the people of the South West, stressing that their success was critical to the future of the region.
“We are condemned to succeed; there is no halfway. These organisations are the present and future of South West of Nigeria.
“We should not be thinking of the 2027 election; rather, we should be thinking of 2047, 2067 and beyond. We should be thinking about future generations.
“This is a critical time for the South West, and we must make giant strides. The challenges we are facing in the region are humongous, and it is in our own interest to put our heads together and work with one accord.
“Our forefathers were thinking about the next generation, not the next election, and that is why they recorded many firsts and left assets such as Cocoa House and Odu’a Investments Company for us. We need to take hold of our future. Our young ones are not lazy; they only need opportunities,” he said.
The DAWN Commission boss expressed the commission’s readiness to work with ARHOPS-SWN, while charging members of the association to become advocates for the development and interests of the region.
Also speaking at the event, the Managing Director of OICL, Mr Abdulrahman Yinusa, described the initiative as inspiring, saying the engagement marked “the beginning of what we can do together.”
Yinusa said collaboration was important to the company, stressing that the present management was determined to achieve more than it inherited.
“If there are things we can do together, we are very open to them. Excellence is a journey, not a destination.
“The idea is to continue to do much more than what we met, and we believe that in the next five years, we will move Odu’a to a ₦1 trillion company,” he said.
Mr Yinusa also spoke about the giant strides OICL has made since he became the GMD.
“God has been so good to us. We have been able to transform Cocoa House and environment, we have something big going on at the location of Epe Plywood, we have strengthened our partnership with British American Tobacco Company, Odua Foundation is also there. In fact, we believe collaboration is germane for those who want to go far and we intend to achieve much more and go very far.
While making his own contribution, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of SWDC, Dr Charles ‘Diji Akinola, said retired permanent secretaries would remain critical stakeholders in the development of the region.
According to Akinola, the commission was open to partnerships and joint business relationships, adding that collaboration was essential to sustaining development in the South West.
“Partnerships are the only way to sustain development in the region,” he added.
He used the opportunity to thank Engineer Seyi Makinde, the governor of Oyo State for providing temporary office for the Commission.
“We need to cooperation of all because our assignment here is big. Very big. Our major focus for now is laying the foundation. We know how important it is to network the South West. Our people want more.”
Earlier, the Regional President of ARHOPS-SWN, Demola Badejo Esq, said the visit was aimed at introducing the association’s new executive council and establishing a closer and more enduring relationship with the three institutions.
Badejo said the association also sought to acknowledge the contributions of Odu’a Investments Company to the development of the region and explore areas of partnership with OICL, DAWN Commission and SWDC.
He said ARHOPS-SWN was presenting copies of its publication, Proposed Plan for the Economic Development of the South West Region, to OICL and SWDC as its contribution to the conversation on regional development.
According to him, DAWN Commission provided technical support, professional guidance and institutional assistance during the preparation and production of the publication.
Badejo said the book represented the contribution of retired senior public servants to the economic development and transformation of the region.
“We believe that development is a continuous process. We also believe that the experience of those who served the public sector for several decades should not be allowed to disappear merely because they have retired from active service.
“Retirement should not mean the retirement of ideas, experience or commitment to public service.
“The publication is therefore our modest contribution to the ongoing conversation on how we can build a stronger, more economically vibrant, more integrated and more prosperous South West,” he said.
The ARHOPS-SWN president said members of the association had accumulated considerable experience in public administration, policy formulation and implementation, institutional management, governance and public sector reforms, adding that the expertise could be deployed to support the work of the three institutions.
He identified policy dialogue, research, leadership and capacity development, institutional strengthening, mentorship, documentation of institutional experiences, knowledge transfer and strategic advocacy as some of the areas where the association could collaborate with the institutions.
“Our approach is not to come seeking what we can obtain from these institutions. Rather, we come to ask a more fundamental question: What can we collectively do to make the South West better?
“For us, it is time to give back to the society that produced us.
We believe that there is strength in collaboration. We are convinced that the combination of the institutional mandates and resources of these three organisations with the experience, expertise and institutional memory available within ARHOPS-SWN can produce meaningful and sustainable results,” Badejo added.
The ARHOPS-SWN president said South West had historically been known for its intellectual capacity, enterprise, innovation, progressive ideas, good governance and commitment to development, adding that stakeholders must ensure these attributes were harnessed and deployed for the benefit of present and future generations.
He said ARHOPS-SWN remained committed to contributing its experience, knowledge, networks and institutional memory to the development of the region.
The meeting was attended by the SWDC Executive Director, Projects, Engr. Olusegun Olufehinti; OICL Company Secretary, Mrs Abiola Ajayi; OICL Group Head of Human Resources, Mrs Odunayo Adeniji; and other members of ARHOPS-SWN.
The association’s executive council includes Badejo as President; Pastor Mrs Adenike Olufadewa, General Secretary; Alhaji Adegbite, Assistant General Secretary; and Mrs Juliana Folabi-Fayehun, Public Relations Officer.
Packaged by Temitope Afolabi with additional reports from newspeakonline.com
