The Beulah Team, representing Amofin Beulah Adeoye, recently visited Lagelu Local Government Area of Oyo State as part of its ongoing grassroots consultation and stakeholder engagement ahead of the 2027 governorship race in Oyo State.

The visit marked another significant step in the Amofin Beulah Adeoye team’s outreach efforts, aimed at fostering unity, enhancing political coordination, and solidifying support across local communities. The team was warmly received at the Lagelu LGA Secretariat, where a strategic meeting was held with a broad spectrum of party stakeholders, political leaders, youth representatives, and women groups drawn from all wards within the local government area.

Coordinated by Hon. Afeez and the Beulah Movement, the session provided an opportunity for robust discussions on the progress made so far, challenges being faced by members within the local government, and the way forward for the movement. Leaders of the Beulah Team presented updates on recent initiatives and reiterated their commitment to inclusive development and participatory leadership.

Participants at the meeting expressed appreciation for the team’s efforts and also called for stronger internal communication and an increased visibility at the grassroots level. Stakeholders emphasized the need for extension of ongoing impactful, community-based projects that had reached other local government to reflect the vision and values of Amofin Beulah Adeoye to their community as well.

The highlight of the day was the address by Amofin Beulah Adeoye, whose presence led to rapturous chants of Igba Otun! Igba Otun! The women leaders led in song and dance and could hardly be restrained for joy. Amofin thanks the crowd for their consistency and support over the last couple years and assured the members that all their requested were receiving his personal attention. They were all overjoyed and said prayers for the fulfilment of the mission ahead in 2027.

There was a strong consensus on the importance of active participation by Beulah Team members in the forthcoming party congresses. Attendees also advocated for enhanced rewarding support system that recognizes grassroots loyalty and dedication, whilst appreciating the existing mechanisms.

In response, representatives of Amofin Adeoye reaffirmed their commitment to increased empowerment opportunities, especially those that directly benefit the youth and women of Lagelu. The visit concluded on a hopeful note, with stakeholders pledging continued support and alignment with the Beulah vision for a more prosperous Oyo State.

It begins with a road—cutting through ancient farmlands toward a future not yet fully imagined. Asphalt, warm under the Ibadan sun, winds past markets, valleys, and memories, until it touches the gates of a half-built industrial park near Ipapo in Itesiwaju Local Government of Oyo State. Trucks idle. Transformers hum beside solar panels auto-tilting North-westward. Somewhere behind them, the water murmurs low from the Ikere Gorge Dam. You could mistake the silence for inactivity. But to the trained eye, it’s the pregnant hush before emergence. This white silent-noise is conclusive evidence that something is now happening – definitely.

For too long, Oyo’s potential has lived in fragments—good roads without industries at their ends, artisans without access to markets, energetic youth without guided purpose. We’ve laid pipes without planning where the water should flow. We’ve built houses without the jobs to make them homes. Yet what if these fragments could be woven together—what if the dam powered the agro-factory, the agro-factory fed the SME cluster, the SME cluster birthed a housing estate, and the estate became the anchor for a vibrant, inclusive city? This is no longer theory. It is the architecture of the possible. What if the urban and regional master planning did in fact have a credible philosophy behind it. Take for instance the linkages of the economic hubs of Oyo to Iseyin via Fasola; Ogbomoso to Iseyin via Fapote and Ibadan to Iseyin via Moniya which His Excellency Engineer Seyi Makinde has not executed. Thus unblocking the route to market bottle-neck in those regions, with the Ibadan to Ibarapa axis also coming on-stream. We can now boast inter-connectivity for economic growth and thereafter development and thereafter industrialisation, in a step-wise sustainable manner. Nothing done for optics only, but re-igniting soul of our economic juices for the economic growth of our people, who were once famous for what we did with our brains, our hears and our hands.

I tend to digress to bring in Singapore, a small island nation who forged prosperity from disciplined governance and strategic clustering. In case that example is over beaten and too far away, what of Rwanda, a post-conflict state who turned ethics and order into economic revival. In Oyo, we too have begun to lay the same bricks: with digital land reforms and model road networks; with youth skill hubs and biometric transparency; with the Ikere Gorge Dam whispering of kilowatts to come. And who wouldn’t just love the Engineer Seyi Makinde now turned His Excellency, Governor Seyi Makinde, as the road to Ikere Gorge is being fixed very silently but resolutely and on schedule. Speak about noiseless impact making!One Engineer unlocking an engineering wonder that could re-engineer Oyo state’s economic future for centuries to come.

We’re seeing other signs: estate rooftops rising in Bodija and elsewhere; cultural festivals drawing tourism into Oke-Ogun; cooperative savings schemes flickering into existence in Igboora. This is no longer a disconnected story. It is a developing ecosystem.

The real challenge is orchestration. Power alone does not industrialise a state—but when aligned with artisan hubs, processing centers, and export corridors, it does. Housing alone won’t transform communities—but when planned beside job clusters, tech labs, and safe transport, it can. Culture, once treated as nostalgia, now becomes intellectual property; when exported as Egungun Festival, black soap, woven cloth, festivals, and hospitality. Tourism meets enterprise. Craft meets commerce. Identity becomes economy.

In the heart of this vision is a worker, any worker, or all workers —not merely a labourer but a builder of futures. His/Her savings, when pooled and safeguarded, can finance micro-industry, buy shares in housing cooperatives, or seed start-ups. Like Singapore’s provident funds, the wealth is not out there—it is in us. Why? We have our own wealth fund. Our workers are not just participants; they are funders of the industrial dream. Their voices must be counted in every fiscal plan.

But what holds this vision together is trust. Trust that land titles are secure. That procurement is fair. That leadership is ethical and accountable. That innovation won’t be punished by bureaucracy. These are not soft values; they are the steel bones of serious economies. Singapore didn’t rise on efficiency alone, it rose on integrity. Rwanda did not rise on Ideology alone, it rode on forgiveness and fairness. So must we. This is why leadership reform and anti-corruption aren’t moral luxuries, they are industrial imperatives.

The vision ahead is not of scattered estates or ornamental projects. It is of intentional clusters: where women weld solar panels in Ogbomoso; where youth design mobile payment tools in Saki; where artisans sell indigo-dyed cloths from Oyo Town to tourists and digital markets abroad; where factories rise in Igbooara beside farms that feed them. Where culture is not frozen in museums but monetised through strategy. A child born in Fiditi should be able to grow up within ten kilometers of education, work, power, and housing. This is not a dream. It is a system.

Legislation, often ignored, becomes the nervous system—enabling land acquisition, fast-tracking permits, offering tax holidays, and de-risking public–private investments. In this system, the Assembly is not just a chamber—it is a control tower. Every delay in lawmaking is a factory unbuilt. Every ambiguity is a job lost.

We do not lack resources. We lack connection. We do not lack brilliance. We lack scaffolding. Yet the scaffolding is coming into view. Already, we see the early sketch of a state becoming a machine—ethical, youthful, heritage-powered, data-informed, and export-oriented. The seeds have been sown through thirteen chapters—each offering a principle, a model, a warning, or a flame. What we now need is combustion.

This is perhaps another reason why conversations around succession and sustainability of innovation, creation and longevity of institutional constructs that sustain the legacy of the Governor Seyi Makinde Administration, who has been ingenious in creating economic architecture, and engineering a new future which have long plagued Africa in other places, must be built on Competence, Chemistry and Character. In the case of Oyo State. The exemplary foundation laid by the government of the day would only support such an edifice. Any other superstructure will fail no matter what political structure supports it, potentially resetting our people to ground zero.

Accordingly, let us as a people no longer speak in fragments. Let us begin to move as a single ecosystem—each road, each dam, each woman, each artisan, each house, each law—moving in rhythm toward a singular outcome: industrial prosperity, homegrown and human-shaped. Shaped in the form of one united State of Oyo. This is how a vision becomes a system. And how a system becomes the future.

Amofin Beulah Adeoye, July 2025

Amofin Beulah Adeoye, the president of the Beulah Adeoye Foundation has extended his heartfelt felicitations to Governor Seyi Makinde and his wife, Engr (Mrs) Tamunominini Makinde on their conferment with traditional chieftaincy titles as Aare Omoluabi and Yeye Omoluabi of Akure Kingdom.

The titles; Aare Omoluabi and Yeye Omoluabi of Akure Kingdom which symbolise consistent display of exceptional leadership and exemplary character were conferred on the governor, Engr Makinde and his amiable wife by Deji of Akure, Oba Aladetoyinbo Ogunlade Aladelusi.

Amofin Adeoye lauded the remarkable achievements of Governor Makinde in governance. The legal icon stressed further that Governor Makinde’s achievements — marked by visionary leadership, infrastructural transformation across the geo-political zones in the State and people-centred policies.

The legal icon said that Governor Makinde’s transformational leadership, accessibility, humility and passion for public service has endeared him to the citizens and traditional institutions within and outside Oyo State.

Amofin Adeoye added that Her Excellency, the First Lady, Mrs Makinde has been a symbol of grace, compassion and strength to the traditional institutions in the State. Mrs Makinde’s various humanitarian initiatives and advocacy for women, children and vulnerable groups have continued to inspire citizens beyond Oyo State.

Amofin Adeoye submitted that the recognition of Governor Makinde and his wife by Akure Traditional Council is a befitting honour that acknowledges Gov Makinde’s public service and respect for tradition, values and culture.

In a bold effort to bring tax education closer to everyday Nigerians, the Presidential Community Engagement Office (South West), in partnership with the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), has launched a grassroots tax reform sensitisation campaign in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.

The engagement, held at the Ojo Bus Terminal and Ojo Market, brought together hundreds of traders, artisans, and market women. The focus was to demystify the newly introduced Tax Reform Bills, educate citizens on their rights and obligations, and highlight the benefits of a simplified, people-focused tax system.

With placards bearing messages such as “Zero tax on food and medical supplies,” “Easy and faster payment of taxes,” “More jobs, stronger economy,” and “Tax is now easier,” the campaign sought to simplify government fiscal policy and rebuild public trust in taxation.

Moremi Ojudu, the Special Assistant to the President on Community Engagement for the South-West, led the charge and delivered key messages on the reforms directly to the people in local languages.

“We are here to sensitise the people of Ibadan on how the new tax reform bill has made things easier,” she said.

“Traders who make ₦1 million or less in a year will no longer be required to pay income tax. This reform is targeted at helping the middle class and the less privileged.”

Reassuring the crowd, she added:

“This is part of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda. He wants people at the grassroots to know that this government means well and is working to improve infrastructure, education, the economy, and your daily lives.”

According to Ojudu, the initiative is part of a nationwide campaign, with Senior Special Assistants to the President on Community Engagement from all six geopolitical zones expected to replicate similar outreach programmes in their regions.

“The sensitisation drive is a national programme,” she noted.

“From North to South, East to West, we are engaging the people directly in their communities. No one will be left behind in understanding how tax reforms impact their families and futures.”

In addition to education, the programme also prioritises grassroots dialogue and feedback.

“We are not just here to talk. We are also here to listen,” Ojudu emphasised.

“That’s why we’re working with the National Orientation Agency (NOA) and the Federal Ministry of Information to ensure this message spreads far and wide.”

“We are building a system that listens, that adapts, and that puts citizens first,” she declared.

“Tax no longer needs to be a source of fear. It is now a tool for empowerment and development.

The Oyo State Government has received another set of 10 Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) powered buses from the Federal Government of Nigeria, strengthening its position as the leading CNG partner in the country.

This was disclosed by the Chairman and Sole Administrator of the Pacesetter Transport Service (PTS), Hon. Ibraheem Salami (Dikko), during a media briefing.

According to Hon. Salami, the new buses are a recognition of Oyo State’s commitment to sustainable transportation and its successful management of an earlier batch of CNG vehicles.

“Existing CNG routes include Ibadan to Abuja, Abuja to Ibadan, Lagos to Ibadan, and Ibadan to Lagos. We already had 20, and now the Federal Government has given us 10 more because of our commitment to the first batch,” he said.

“This makes us the highest CNG partner with the Federal Government in Nigeria.”

He explained that the newly delivered buses would be strategically deployed and efficiently managed within the state to boost commercial mass transit operations and provide commuters with cost-effective alternatives.

The initiative is part of the Federal Government’s nationwide CNG programme, which began its first phase in 2024. The programme includes free conversion of petrol-powered vehicles to CNG and aims to promote cleaner, more affordable energy use in Nigeria’s transport sector.

It would be recalled that in September 2024, the Federal Government handed over 20 CNG buses to the Oyo State Government as part of the first phase of the programme. With the latest addition, the total number of CNG buses in the PTS fleet now stands at 30.

The People’s Democratic Party (PDP) candidate for the upcoming House of Representatives bye-election in Ibadan North Federal Constituency, Hon. Fólajimi Oyekunle, popularly known as “DON,” has addressed criticisms questioning his Ibadan indigenous status, stating emphatically that his roots are firmly planted in both the town and village of Ibadan.

Hon. Oyekunle made the clarification while speaking with journalists on Sunday in Ibadan, as critics continue to form false debates around his ancestral origin in the lead-up to the August 16th bye-election.

According to the PDP candidate, the controversy surrounding his Ibadan heritage is being deliberately fuelled by opposition elements, who, he claims, are desperate to derail his political momentum.

“I don’t understand why they are spreading rumours that I am not an Ibadan indigene,” Oyekunle said. “At first, I considered it a typical political tactic to discredit me, but it has now become necessary to set the record straight.”

He emphasized that his family lineage is rooted in Ibadan, both in the rural and urban settings, dismissing the allegations as unfounded and politically motivated.

“We all know that ancestry and lineage primarily determine indigeneity in Ibadan,” he said. “I can boldly say that my grandparents were from Ibadan. For anyone in doubt, I encourage them to visit Jagun Village in Olorunda, Lagelu Local Government Area, as well as Agbo Ile Jagun in Labiran, Ibadan North East Local Government. These are verifiable locations that confirm my claims.”

Oyekunle said it was laughable to hear some minority set of people to say he is not an Ibadan indigene, noting that his root as an Ibadan man is undebatable.

The one-time Oyo assembly lawmaker and immediate past Deputy Chief of Staff to Oyo state governor, Engineer Seyi Makinde explained that he had deliberately refrained from responding to the controversy until now, to allow his critics the opportunity to investigate his background.

He called on the people of Ibadan North, his supporters, and the general public to remain focused and not be distracted by what he described as diversionary tactics.

“This is the time to rally together and focus on the task ahead. Our collective goal is victory on August 16, and we must not allow baseless distractions to derail our efforts,” he stated.