Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State says Nigerians should be thankful to God for surviving 2020.

According to him,  though many would describe the year as a tough one, God’s grace saw them through the various challenges that characterised the year.

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The governor maintained that despite various events that set the state back economically, the state government was still able to record a huge reduction in the infrastructure deficit of the state.

Makinde, according to a statement signed by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Taiwo Adisa, stated these in a 2021 New Year Address made available to newsmen in Ibadan.

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He noted that 2020 was characterised by drop in oil prices, which led to a huge drop in revenue from federal allocations and the attendant economic meltdown, the COVID-19 pandemic and the aftermath of the #EndSARS protests, among other challenges.

According to the governor, the efforts of his administration in fixing the health, education and security sectors have yielded positive results, while the administration was also able to grow the Internally Generated Revenue, IGR, of the state.

He said: “As 2020 closes, I am reminded of the words of the very popular 1897 hymn by Johnson Oatman Jr, “Count your Blessings.” This song encourages us to take stock of the good things that happened in our lives. When we do this, we often find that we have overlooked many positives.

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“Many would describe 2020 as a tough year. At the beginning of the year, the drop in oil prices led to a huge drop in revenue from federal allocations and attendant economic meltdown. In March 2020, many states in Nigeria had cases of the coronavirus disease. This necessitated an interstate lockdown by the Federal Government. Although we did not effect a total lockdown in Oyo State, we were not spared the economic and social effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“A few months later, we faced mass protests by the youths and others who were angry about police brutality. Events after the protests also set us back economically.

“However, our 2020 is not defined by these events. As the first stanza of that song says: When you are discouraged, thinking all is lost, count your many blessings, name them one by one, and it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.

“So, let me recount some of the blessings that 2020 brought us as a people.

“We continued working with our administration’s blueprint, the Roadmap to Accelerated Development in Oyo State, 2019-2023. And I am happy to report that we have continued to reduce our infrastructural deficit, slowly but surely.

“We were able to resolve the lingering issue of the Ladoke Akintola University of Technology (LAUTECH), and Oyo State is now the sole owner of the institution.”

“And at the end of the year 2021, may we have even more reasons to look back and be surprised at the “many things that the Lord has done. May your year 2021 be better than your year 2020.”