Ekiti gov cautions against negative comments about Nigeria

Ekiti State Governor, Mr. Biodun Oyebanji, has urged Nigerians to refrain from making negative comments and confessions about the country.

In a statement made on Thursday during the 2025 Inter-faith Thanksgiving Service in Ado Ekiti, Oyebanji emphasised that Nigeria was on the right path to economic recovery and prosperity.

He called on Nigerians to support President Bola Tinubu in his commitment to achieving a positive turnaround for the nation and improving the standard of living for its citizens.

The governor expressed his thoughts during the event, which featured songs of praise, Bible and Qur’an readings, and sermons and prayers from Muslim and Christian clerics.

“As we enter 2025, our confessions about Nigeria should be positive. Most of us make negative comments about our country, but there is power in our tongues.

“Let us speak positively to our own Jerusalem because that is what Nigeria is to us so that all of us will find peace,” Oyebanji said.

He further urged Nigerians to be grateful for the leadership of President Tinubu, stating that the president has shown courage in making decisions that benefit the masses.

“Please, let us continue to support our President because it is in our own interest to support him. We must thank God that God made him to be President for a time like this,” he added.

Assuring the people of Ekiti, Oyebanji reiterated his commitment to serving the state with honesty and integrity.

“As the chief servant of the people, I make a promise again before God and before all of you that are here today that I will serve you with every fibre, every energy.

“I will serve you in truth and with fear of God, and 2025 will be our year of accelerated growth and development for us as a state and individually.”

He highlighted the importance of the federal government’s economic reforms, pointing out that the increase in Ekiti’s allocations at all levels was due to the removal of the fuel subsidy.

“These allocations wouldn’t have been possible if the President had not removed the fuel subsidy. These are painful decisions, but there is no country in the world that eats its yam sets and would not pay for it. What President Tinubu is telling us is that we should not eat our yam sets, but that we should invest them.”

Oyebanji also appealed to wealthy Ekiti sons and daughters, both at home and in the Diaspora, to follow the examples set by prominent figures such as Aare Afe Babalola SAN, the founder of Afe Babalola University, and Chief Wole Olanipekun SAN, former President of the Nigerian Bar Association, in supporting the state government.

“The two frontline citizens have been consistent in their support for the state,” the governor said, adding that the state would appreciate more such support from other well-endowed Ekiti people.