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Osun’s debt not as big as rumoured, Aregbesola says, vows repayment by 2019

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Osun State Governor, Mr. Rauf Aregbesola, has said that the state’s debt profile is not as huge as the “opposition parties” claim.

The governor maintains that the state currently owes N143.6bn debt, and not N300bn or N500bn “which some of the members of the opposition parties are claiming the state owes.”

Aregbesola also vowed that the government would clear the entire debts by 2019.

His tenure expires on November 26, 2018.

The governor, according to a statement made available to our correspondent in Osogbo on Monday by the Commissioner for Information, Mr. Adelani Baderinwa, disclosed this during an all-night interactive programme with the people of the state.

Baderinwa reiterated that the debt profile of the state was not as huge as the various figures the opposition parties were dishing out; saying that the Aregbesola administration borrowed to “positively develop the state.”

Earlier, when asked to confirm the exact amount the state owed, Aregbesola directed the question to the Accountant-General of the State, Mr. Kolawole Akintayo, and asked him to respond.

Akintayo said that Osun State’s total indebtedness was N143.6bn — and not N300bn or N500bn as claimed by some members of the opposition parties.

Akintayo said, “Total debt of the State of Osun was N171.4bn in the last seven years. A sum of N28bn has been paid, leaving a balance of N143.6bn debt.”

Aregbesola, who corroborated the accountant-general’s figure, said the state would repay the debt fully by 2019.

“Osun will settle all the debts in 2019. There will be no kobo left of the N30bn conventional loan in 2019; and by September 2020, N11.4bn Sukuk would have been settled,” the governor said.

But the Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party in the state, Mr. Soji Adagunodo, disagreed with the debt figure given by the governor and the accountant-general, saying there were some funds borrowed by the administration which were not added to the debt profile.

Adagunodo said that Osun State would continue to repay some of the funds borrowed for the next 23 years.

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Update : Road Crash: Anthony Joshua Hospitalised, Two Confirmed Dead — Ogun Police Spokesperson

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Former heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua has been hospitalised after a road accident in the Makun area of the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Ogun State.

Ogun State Police Public Relations Officer, Babaseyi Oluseyi, confirmed this in a statement.

The incident occurred shortly after 11 am on Monday.

Our reporter, who was at the scene, said the crash happened just before the Danco Filling Station in Makun, ahead of the Sagamu Interchange on the Ibadan-bound axis.

Adeniyi Orojo stated that the Lexus Jeep carrying Joshua, with number plate KRD 850 HN, collided with a stationary truck.

The eyewitness revealed that Joshua sustained minor injuries, while two others died at the scene.

“It was a two-vehicle convoy: a Lexus SUV and a Pajero SUV. Joshua was seated behind the driver, with another person beside him. A passenger sat beside the driver, making four occupants in the Lexus that crashed.
His security detail followed in the vehicle behind.

“Other eyewitnesses and I began the rescue and flagged down oncoming vehicles for help. Minutes after the crash, Federal Road Safety Corps officials arrived. The passenger beside the driver and the person beside Joshua died on the spot,” he said.

In a statement sent to Newsthumb on Monday, Oluseyi confirmed that Joshua and other injured persons were involved in a car accident and rushed to an undisclosed hospital.

He said, “The Ogun State Police Command confirms a road accident today in front of Sinoma, before Danco, along the Lagos–Ibadan Expressway. Anthony Joshua and other injured persons have been rushed to the hospital.

“Further updates will be communicated.”

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Tinubu Leaves Nigeria for Europe, UAE to Attend ADSW 2026 Summit, Says Onanuga

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President Bola Ahmed Tinubu departed Lagos on Sunday, December 28, for Europe, continuing his end-of-year break and ahead of his official trip to Abu Dhabi, in the United Arab Emirates.

His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed AlNahyan, President of the United Arab Emirates, has invited President Tinubu to participate in the 2026 edition of Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week (ADSW 2026) Summit, which will take place in the emirate early in January.

The weeklong summit is an annual event that mobilises leaders from government, business, and society to chart the next era of sustainable development.

With the theme “The Nexus of Next: All Systems Go”, ADSW will connect ambition with action across innovation, finance, and people, showcasing how the world can move forward with confidence.’

The President will return to the country after the Summit.

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BREAKING: Fayose Alleges N45.5bn from N50bn Ibadan Explosion Fund Diverted by Makinde for Political Ambitions

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Former Ekiti State Governor, Ayo Fayose, has released what he described as documentary evidence to support his claim that Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, received N50 billion from the Federal Government as a special intervention fund following the January 2024 explosion in Ibadan.

Fayose made the documents public on Sunday in a statement accompanied by a memo from the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation.

He said the disclosure followed a challenge by Makinde to substantiate his earlier claim that the Oyo State Government received the funds.

“Two days ago, I stated on national television that Oyo State under Governor Seyi Makinde received N50bn from the Federal Government as intervention for the Ibadan explosion. Yesterday, the governor asked me to provide evidence, and here is the evidence he requested,” Fayose said.

The former governor further alleged that only N4.5 billion was disbursed to victims of the explosion, accusing Makinde of diverting the remaining funds for personal political ambitions.

“Only N4.5bn was paid to victims of the Ibadan explosion. The rest, alongside other intervention funds, was diverted to fund his presidential ambition. This, in part, explains the crisis in the PDP and his frequent attacks on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and his administration,” he alleged.

Fayose further said he was compelled to release official documents, despite his reluctance to do so, in the interest of transparency and public accountability.

“Even though it is not in my character to go public with official government documents, I had to do this so Nigerians will know who is saying the truth and who has not been sincere with the people of Oyo State,” he said.

The former governor said that Makinde’s alleged disclosure of detail from private meeting with President Tinubu made fuller public disclosure necessary.

He challenged the governor to take legal action if he believed the allegations were false, insisting that he had sufficient proof to defend his claims.

“I challenge Governor Seyi Makinde to sue me on this. There are also proofs of other intervention funds received from Tinubu’s administration by the Oyo State Government which the governor refused to disclose to the people,” he said.

He further claimed to have documentary evidence of Oyo State’s actual Internally Generated Revenue, contrary to figures publicly stated by Makinde, noting that he would release the details at a later time.

“There are documentary evidences on the actual Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) of Oyo State, as against Governor Makinde’s claim, but we will keep our gunpowder dry for now.

“My name is still Ayo Fayose. I don’t say what I can’t prove,” he said.

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