The All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate in Oyo State for the 2027 election, Senator Sharafadeen Alli, has promised to grant local government autonomy from his first day in office if elected governor.
Alli also pledged to make Oyo one of Nigeria’s top three state economies, establish a ₦10 billion youth fund and increase the state’s internally generated revenue (IGR) to ₦150 billion annually without imposing additional financial burdens on residents and businesses.
He made the promises on Tuesday while unveiling his manifesto, christened ‘My Pact’, to stakeholders in Ibadan, the state capital.
Explaining the document to representatives of community development associations, professional bodies, artisans, traders, politicians, labour leaders and other stakeholders, Alli said his pact with the people was built around seven pillars under the acronym Oyo AHEAD.
According to him, the pillars cover local government autonomy, advancement of infrastructure, health reform, education and employment, agriculture and export, digital economy and security.
He said the agenda was designed to transform the state’s economy and improve public service delivery, ensuring residents feel the impact of government across the state.
“Oyo State is the largest piece of land in southern Nigeria. We have 351 wards in 33 councils, and about eight million people.
“A state like ours should be feeding the South West and selling to the world. Last year, this State raised less than ₦100 billion as IGR. Ogun, our neighbour, raised nearly three times that figure.
“Nearly half of our people, about 3.8 million, live in poverty, by the measure of our own national statistics office. Our people work hard every day. With the right support, they can do far better,” he said.
On his economic targets, Alli said, “We will make Oyo one of the top three state economies in Nigeria. Our first target on the way is ₦150 billion a year of our own revenue, and the market woman will pay no more than she pays today.”
He added that his administration would ensure that every ward had a functional clinic, a good school and accessible roads.
“In every one of our 351 wards, there will be a clinic that works, a school that teaches, and a road that leads somewhere. The path there is simple. Power brings the factory. The factory brings the job. The job brings money into the home and the market, and that revenue builds the school and the clinic,” he said.
On infrastructure, the APC candidate promised to complete ongoing road projects and construct access roads to farmlands to ease the movement of people and agricultural produce. He added that every new road would carry a 20-year warranty.
He also promised to fully constitute the state electricity regulator to facilitate electricity generation within Oyo and provide dedicated power to industrial and agricultural corridors.
“On power, we will fully constitute the state electricity regulator, generate power here in Oyo, and send dedicated supply to our industrial and farm corridors.
“Faulty transformers will be audited and replaced every six months so that no street sits in darkness for a year,” he said.
Alli further pledged to restore potable water supply to 100 communities and connect at least 100 rural communities to electricity for the first time.
He said his administration would increase the number of state buses and modernise the Pacesetter Transport Company to improve public transportation.
On housing, he promised to work with the Federal Government and investors to provide affordable homes for working families, while reducing the time and cost of obtaining building approvals.
In the health sector, Alli pledged to build a general hospital in each of the six local government areas yet to have one, recruit more doctors and other health workers, and consistently fill vacancies in hospitals and primary healthcare centres.
He said the plan would address the shortage of medical personnel in the state, noting that 10 hospitals currently had no medical doctor.
The governorship hopeful also promised free health insurance for infants, pregnant women and residents aged 70 and above.
He said he would target increasing health insurance enrolment from the current 271,000 to 500,000 within his first two years in office.
On education, Alli promised to reduce class sizes to 30 pupils, recruit more teachers, provide additional school facilities, establish skills centres across the state’s zones and enact an apprenticeship law.
For economic growth and job creation, he pledged to establish industrial parks, revive the Oluyole Free Trade Zone and create a guarantee fund to enable small businesses access loans.
He also promised to establish the Oyo Youth Fund with an initial ₦10 billion and build a digital hub in each of the state’s five geopolitical zones.
On agriculture, Alli said he would revive farm settlements, provide insurance for 10,000 farmers and work with the Oyo Export Council to establish a produce board to support farmers.
The Oyo AHEAD agenda also includes plans to restructure the state’s security architecture to protect lives and property.
Alli further promised to ensure that civil servants receive their salaries and entitlements as and when due, while providing them with work tools and improved working environments to enhance productivity.
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