South West Agenda: Osun Speaker Calls For Legislative Collaboration As Panacea For Rapid Development
The Speaker of the Osun State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Adewale Egbedun, has called for greater legislative collaboration in the South West region, saying it is the key to rapid development in the region.
This was the statement by the speaker, while playing host to the duo of the Ekiti State House of Assembly Speaker, Rt. Hon. Adeoye Aribasoye and the Ondo State House of Assembly Speaker, Rt. Hon. Olamide Oladiji, who were on a courtesy visit to Osogbo said, the cooperation of the region’s legislative bodies is crucial to a greater development in the state.
According to him, South West has a proud history of democracy, and it is the collective responsibility to ensure that this tradition is upheld, adding that through legislative collaboration, the challenges of insecurity, economic stagnation, and social inequality that are currently plaguing the country, can be tackled.
“By working together as legislative arms of government, we can make a real difference in the lives of our people,” the speaker reiterated.
Egbedun further stressed the importance of a unified front in addressing these issues, saying that the synergy will yield a greater development for the region and be of good impact in the lives of the people”
“We must not allow ourselves as legislators to be divided along party lines or other lines of division. It is only by working together that we can truly advance the interests of our people,” Egbedun averred.
In his remark, the Speaker of the Ekiti State House of Assembly, who doubles as the Chairman, Conference of Speakers for the South West, Rt. Hon. Adeoye Aribasoye, noted that the challenges facing the region are numerous and complex, and require a concerted and coordinated effort from all stakeholders, hence the need for legislative collaboration.
He added that there are so much to gain by the states if there is collaboration, adding: “There is nothing that stops us from having a rail line that will connect the South Western states. There is also a lot to be done in the DAWN Commission.”
He said that the Speakers of the various South West states have been working together on how the region can have regional Legislative Agenda and have made significant progress in recent months, adding that there is still much work to be done.
On his own part, the Speaker of the Ondo State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Olamide Oladiji, expressed the importance of legislative synergy to the development of the region.
He also spoke about the importance of legislative autonomy and how it can benefit the people of the state, noting that when the legislature can operate independently, it can be more effective in representing the interests of the people hence the need to speak in one voice.
In the entourage of the Ekiti and Ondo Speakers are the Majority leaders of the two assemblies and other honourable members from the two states. The Deputy Speaker of the Osun State Assembly, the majority leader and other honourable members joined the Osun Speaker to receive the guests.
Signed:
Olamide Tiamiyu,
Chief Press Secretary to the Speaker, OSHA.