The Chairman of Ilaji Hotels and Resort, Chief Jubril Dotun Sanusi, has challenged the Oyo State Government to publish a comprehensive 2019–2026 Governance Scorecard detailing total revenue, IGR, FAAC allocations, borrowing, debt servicing, capital and recurrent expenditure, infrastructure projects, and actual budget implementation in key sectors.
The Gbonka Olubadan of Ibadanland also urged the government to publish verifiable data on its performance in education, healthcare, agriculture, employment and poverty reduction within the period.
Sanusi dismissed insinuations that he was speaking for unidentified persons in his recent criticism of Governor Seyi Makinde’s administration, declaring that there is “no masquerade” behind his statement.
“There is no masquerade. The statement was mine. The convictions are mine. The concerns are mine. And I am prepared to defend every word in the full daylight of public scrutiny,” he said in response to an article by Ibadan-based lawyer, Mr. Morohunkola Thomas.
Thomas had described Sanusi’s earlier intervention as vague and asked the ‘real author’ to come forward.
Shifting focus to governance, Sanusi said the conversation should be about evidence, not personalities. He acknowledged that the Makinde administration had recorded achievements in road construction, education, healthcare, agriculture and recruitment, citing the Oyo-Iseyin Road, teacher recruitment, agricultural support programmes and upgrading of primary healthcare centres.
However, he argued that projects alone do not equal ‘universally people-friendly governance.’
“Acknowledging projects is not the same thing as declaring seven years of universally ‘people-friendly’ governance. That distinction is fundamental,” Sanusi stated.
He raised questions on whether poverty had declined, household purchasing power had improved, unemployment had fallen, and whether education and healthcare outcomes had recorded measurable progress.
The Okanlomo Oodua also called for scrutiny of the state’s fiscal position, saying borrowing and debt obligations must form part of any honest assessment.
“A responsible government must be judged by both sides of its balance sheet: What did it build—and what did it obligate future taxpayers to pay?” he asked.
Sanusi said the figures in the proposed scorecard should be subjected to independent scrutiny by economists, engineers, accountants, academics, civil society, journalists and citizens.
“That is the debate I want. Not insults. Not insinuations. Not ‘masquerade.’ Facts. Figures. Documents. Outcomes,” he declared.
Sanusi stressed that his intervention was not a personal attack on the Governor, adding that respect for the office does not mean silence.
“There is no war between me and Governor Makinde. Governor Seyi Makinde is the Governor of Oyo State. He deserves the respect due to the office. But respect for an office does not mean silence.”
He concluded that “Oyo State belongs to all of us—not to PDP, APC or any individual politician. Government comes and goes. But Oyo State remains.”
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