Oyo State governor, ‘Seyi Makinde, has promised better welfare for legionnaires in the state.
The governor, who made this promise on Monday at the 2025 Armed Forces Remembrance Day Emblem and Appeal Fund held at the Executive Chamber, Office of the Governor, Secretariat, Agodi, Ibadan, also donated seven operational security vehicles to the Nigerian Legion Offices across the geopolitical zones of Oyo State.
This was as the state donated the sum of N25 million to the Appeal Fund.
The governor said his administration would remain committed to the welfare of legionnaires and the dependants of fallen heroes in the state.
He lauded the sacrifices made by fallen heroes and members of the Nigerian Legion to the country.
Responding to the appeal by the chairman of the Oyo State Command of the Nigerian Legion, DCG Julius Ogunkojo, Governor Makinde promised to renovate the Legion Oyo State headquarters and extend the payment of N80,000 minimum wage to serving legionnaires, among others.
He said: “We will continue to appreciate what our fallen heroes have done for us as a country and be thankful for those of you that are still alive.
“We are here as a country because some people fought to keep this country together.
“You touched on a few things, including asking for official vehicles.
We will start somewhere this year. We will look at each of our zones and provide one vehicle of your choice in each zone.
“On the minimum wage, I believe that we should, by the end of this month, 25th of January to be precise, start the implementation and I don’t expect the legions working actively with us to be left out.
“I believe we also said that for the school crime prevention, it is not just the physical bodies we are talking about. We kept pushing our team to utilise technology.
I know that they have installed some CCTV cameras in some of the vulnerable schools that were identified.
“We will extend that. We are talking to Man O’ War. This is a wake-up call for us. We will activate that to see what both the legion and Man O’ War can do together to support us.
“On the renovation of the Oyo State Headquarters of Nigerian Legion, consider it done.
“I will launch this Appeal Fund with a donation of N25m. I gave you N10m last year and because of the inflationary trend, I am giving this amount for this year.”
Earlier in his address, Ogunkojo said that the main focus of the programme was to raise fund in order to cater for veterans who are still alive but incapacitated and living in despair as well as the children and widows of the departed heroes.
He appreciated Governor Makinde for his support and payment of monthly subvention across the 33 local government areas in the state, assuring that the Legion would continue to support the government to secure the lives and properties of the citizens and residents of the state.
He appealed to members of the public to donate generously towards the launch of the emblem to assist the widows, dependants of the fallen heroes and the maimed soldiers.
The event had in attendance the Deputy Governor of Oyo State, Barr. Abdulraheem Bayo Lawal; PDP Deputy National Chairman (South), Ambassador Taofeek Arapaja; former deputy governors of Oyo State, Engr Hamid Gbadamosi and Barr. Hazeem Gbolarumi; Speaker of the Oyo State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Adebo Ogundoyin, Chief Judge of Oyo State, Justice Iyabo Yerima; and a former Speaker of the Oyo State House of Assembly, Senator Monsurat Sunmonu.
Government functionaries in attendance included the Secretary to the State Government, Prof. Olanike Adeyemo; Chief of Staff to the Governor, Otunba Segun Ogunwuyi; Head of Service, Mrs Olubunmi Oni, mni; Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Inclusion, Mrs Toyin Balogun; other Commissioners and the Chairman of Local Government Chairmen in Oyo State, Hon Sikiru Sanda.
Highlights of the event included the decoration of the governor and some members of the State Executive Council and heads of security agencies in the state with the 2025 Armed Forces Remembrance Day Emblem.
Signed
Sulaimon Olanrewaju
Special Adviser (Media) to Oyo State Governor
January 13, 2025.
