The Ekiti State Government, has assured the residents of its avowed commitment to the doctrines of neutrality and strict adherence to due process of the law in the selection of traditional rulers to inject peace and stability into the system.
The Ekiti State Deputy Governor, Chief (Mrs) Monisade Afuye, gave the assurance on Thursday, while playing host to a delegation from Araromi Ekiti, Ijero Local Government Area, led by the newly installed Alararomi, Oba Adebomi Babalola, who paid a visit to her office in Ado Ekiti, the Ekiti State Capital.
The stakeholders paid a visit to the Deputy Governor to thank the Governor Biodun Oyebanji-led administration over the peaceful installation of a new Alararomi in spite of the initial dingdongs that dogged the installation process.
To fast track development into the community, Mrs Afuye, in a statement by her Special Assistant on Media, Victor Ogunje, urged the new monarch to put the fierce tussle experienced with other contestants behind, and unite the residents for him to have a memorable and glorious reign.
The Deputy Governor was emphatic that what the government did during the installation process aligned fully with the Ekiti State Chiefs Law, saying the government was neutral and unbiased in the whole saga.
Mrs Afuye described Governor Oyebanji as an avid lover of peace and due process, saying nothing will neither make him waver nor compromise the process for the selection of a traditional ruler in any town.
“We were not biased in the selection of your monarch. We worked based on what the kingmakers did and brought to us. Governor Oyebanji had always been saying it that the government will not impose traditional rulers on the people. Whoever we are going to put there must enjoy the approval of his subjects”, she stated.
Mrs Afuye promised that the government will extend to the town basic infrastructural facilities that can boost development in Araromi Ekiti to complement the efforts being intensified by the monarch to attract development to the town.
In his submission, Oba Babalola, applauded the government for being insistent on due process in his emergence, describing this as largely responsible for the relative peace being enjoyed in the town after the installation.
Meanwhile, the monarch was impassionate about the allotment of political appointments to his subjects by the current administration to give them a sense of belonging, stating that the community has quality products who can make the state proud if considered.
The monarch called for the restoration of electricity to the town and neighbouring communities after 10 years of power outage, while appealing for expeditious action on the reconstruction of Iropora-Araromi-Epe road to ease transportation along that axis.
The monarch said: “I am here to say thank you to Governor Biodun Oyebanji for restoring peace and install a monarch in the community. We know the value of your action, because any town without a traditional ruler will a suffer serious setback in terms of development.
“Within this short time we ascended the throne, I want to appreciate the government for sinking two boreholes in Araromi community. I am also making passionate appeal for the construction of security post, provision of pipe borne water and reconstruction of Iropora-Araromi-Epe road”.
