Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, has invited representatives of civil society groups and student bodies for a dialogue session.
A statement by the spokesperson to the governor, Olawale Rasheed, in Osogbo on Sunday, described the meeting as a “comprehensive dialogue with organisers of upcoming national protests alongside stakeholders from the security and civil societies,” and it has been slated for Monday.
Rasheed explained that the governor has instructed his team members to reach out to representatives of various civil society groups and student bodies for a dialogue session on the state of the economy.
Stressing the importance of dialogue in state governance, Adeleke further requested key commanders of the Police and other security services to attend the session, where stakeholders would be free to make recommendations on grievances and expected responses from the government at all levels.
“I have instructed my team to organise a dialogue session on Monday where stakeholders can engage in discussions as part of peacemaking in the exercise of constitutional rights. The session will afford parties the opportunity to list grievances and what they expect the government at all levels to do.
“We will convey the outcomes of the session to government leaders, from myself to Mr President in Abuja. It will also be an opportunity to inform stakeholders of what we are doing as a government to resolve the economic hardship facing our people,” Adeleke was quoted as saying.
Reaffirming his belief in the rights and liberties enshrined in the Constitution, the governor emphasised the need for peace and non-violent actions, including the dialogue session slated for Monday.
He said, “Osun is a peaceful state where proactive steps are ongoing regarding food security, economic revival, and state-building to deliver good governance and the dividends of democracy.
“We have to sustain the peace even as we express our feelings about the state of the nation to the leadership. We will listen and we will act in the best interest of the citizenry.
“In the midst of the positive transformation ongoing in our dear state, we cannot afford any criminal hijacking of peaceful processions. That is why the Monday dialogue promises to achieve a lot.”