VIDEO: IIDM Outreach Starts with the rendition of Ijesa Anthem
How the First Asiwaju of Ijesaland transformed concerns over local government accountability into a community-driven institution across six LGAs
Among the 25 milestones documenting the decade of service of Asiwaju Olayinka Fasuyi, the First Asiwaju of Ijesaland, the conception and establishment of the Ijesaland Independent Development Monitors (IIDM) stands out as a landmark in community-driven governance reform.
The initiative reflects a fundamental principle of Fasuyi's leadership: sustainable development begins with identifying a problem, conceiving a workable solution and mobilising the right people and institutions to bring the idea to fruition.
The IIDM did not begin with stakeholder mobilisation or the endorsement of traditional rulers. Its foundation was an idea conceived by Fasuyi through the Ijesa Community Development Assembly (ICDA) in response to an emerging governance challenge. The mobilisation, consultations, endorsements and institutional arrangements that followed were necessary stages in translating that original vision into an operational platform.
From a National Development Challenge to a Community Solution
The immediate catalyst was the Supreme Court judgment of July 11, 2024, which affirmed the financial autonomy of Nigeria's 774 local government areas, providing for their allocations from the Federation Account to be paid directly into their respective accounts.
Although the judgment was widely welcomed as an opportunity to strengthen grassroots development, it also raised an important question: would local government chairpersons have the capacity, discipline and commitment to utilise the funds transparently, accountably and in ways that would produce sustainable benefits for their communities?
For Fasuyi, the concern demanded more than public commentary. It required a practical, preventive and community-based solution capable of promoting responsible administration while helping citizens assess the performance of their local governments.
He therefore conceived the IIDM as an independent development monitoring, evaluation and reporting platform under the ICDA, designed to focus on the performance of the six local government areas of Ijesaland: Atakumosa East, Atakumosa West, Ilesa East, Ilesa West, Obokun and Oriade.
This was the initiative's defining first phase: identifying the governance challenge, developing the concept and designing an institutional response before embarking on the wider mobilisation required to secure community acceptance.
Designing an Institution for Accountability
Fasuyi's concept went beyond the general call for transparency. It proposed a structured monitoring mechanism through which development activities and public-resource utilisation could be assessed against established indicators.
The proposed monitoring framework covered such critical areas as local government revenue and expenditure, healthcare, education, agriculture and food security, roads, potable water, employment generation, governance and transparency, and the security of lives and property.
The original framework also envisaged quarterly monitoring exercises, standard performance indicators, timely publication of findings and opportunities for local government chairpersons to respond to reports.
To safeguard the credibility of the institution, the proposed membership and code of conduct provided for asset and liability declarations, restrictions against conflicts of interest and gratification, and service without personal salaries or allowances. Although the ICDA would support operational expenses, the monitors were expected to function independently and report directly to the Ijesaland community.
These provisions demonstrated that the initiative was conceived not merely as a campaign for good governance but as a practical institutional mechanism with defined responsibilities, safeguards and reporting procedures.
From Conception to Traditional Rulers' Endorsement
Having developed the concept, Fasuyi moved to the next critical phase: mobilisation.
On Thursday, 29 August 2024, the late Owa Obokun of Ijesaland, His Imperial Majesty Oba (Dr.) Gabriel Adekunle Aromolaran II, publicly endorsed the IIDM initiative in what turned out to be his last public appearance before his passing on 11 September 2024. His presence and endorsement underscored the importance he attached to the initiative, lending it significant traditional-institutional support and strengthening its vision of promoting accountability in Ijesaland.
Fasuyi subsequently led the ICDA team on engagements across all six local government areas of Ijesaland, presenting the initiative to traditional rulers, explaining its objectives and seeking their endorsement of good governance, transparency, accountability and results-driven administration.
The outreach was a deliberate effort to build a broad community consensus around the principle that local government autonomy must translate into measurable development and responsible stewardship of public resources.
During the engagement in Oriade Local Government, traditional rulers endorsed the initiative's objectives, while discussions in Atakumosa West brought attention to persistent community needs, including roads, primary education and public health facilities. Similar engagements extended the mobilisation to other parts of Ijesaland, including Atakumosa East and Obokun.
The consultations were significant because they connected the abstract question of financial accountability to the everyday needs of communities. They also gave traditional rulers and other stakeholders an opportunity to express their expectations of elected local government administrations.
The endorsement campaign thus became an important bridge between Fasuyi's original concept and the collective acceptance needed to establish a credible community monitoring institution.
Building a Professional Monitoring Team
The next phase was institutionalisation.
A seven-member monitoring team was assembled, drawing from the six local government areas and bringing together professionals with expertise in statistics, management, accounting, law, banking, information technology and other relevant fields.
Dr. George Adigun Adewoye emerged as chairman, while the team included Sir Ademola Aladekomo as vice-chairman and Dr. Olusanya Olajide as general secretary, alongside other professional members.
The Owa Obokun endorsed the team's composition and prayed for the success of the initiative. The formal inauguration and public presentation of the IIDM subsequently provided an institutional structure through which the monitoring mandate could be pursued.
The professional composition of the team was intended to support objective assessment, credible documentation and responsible reporting of local government performance.
A Win-Win Approach to Local Government Administration
An important feature of Fasuyi's concept was its emphasis on prevention rather than confrontation.
The IIDM was envisaged as a mechanism that could help communities identify development gaps, encourage improvements in public administration and give local government chairpersons an opportunity to address shortcomings before they escalated into more serious governance problems.
The framework was designed to serve the interests of citizens, traditional institutions, elected officials, community associations, women, youths and vulnerable groups alike.
By encouraging evidence-based monitoring and constructive engagement, the initiative sought to make accountability a shared community responsibility rather than an exercise undertaken only after public resources had been mismanaged.
Its effectiveness, ultimately, would depend on the independence of its operations, the credibility of its findings and the consistency with which its monitoring responsibilities were discharged.
Leadership by Example, Vision, Integrity, Transparency and Accountability
The IIDM milestone illustrates the five leadership principles that underpin Fasuyi's decade-long stewardship in Ijesaland.
Leadership by example was demonstrated by his willingness to champion a mechanism that would subject public administration to greater scrutiny.
Vision enabled him to anticipate the accountability challenges associated with local government financial autonomy and conceive a practical response.
Integrity informed the emphasis on independent monitoring, professional competence, conflict-of-interest safeguards and responsible reporting.
Transparency shaped the framework for citizen participation, performance documentation and public dissemination of findings.
Accountability defined the institution's central purpose: helping the people of Ijesaland assess how public resources are utilised and whether development interventions are producing the intended benefits.
A Milestone Beyond Physical Projects
The establishment of the IIDM represents a distinctive achievement among the 25 milestones of Asiwaju Olayinka Fasuyi's decade of service.
While several of the ICDA's development initiatives focus on delivering tangible infrastructure, education, healthcare and empowerment opportunities, the IIDM addresses the equally important question of how public development programmes should be monitored and accounted for.
Its significance therefore lies not only in the inauguration of a monitoring team but also in the originating idea, the institutional design and the mobilisation that brought traditional rulers and other stakeholders behind a common governance objective.
From identifying the problem and conceiving a feasible solution to securing traditional endorsement, mobilising stakeholders across six local government areas and establishing a professional monitoring structure, Fasuyi's role encompassed the full development cycle of the initiative.
The IIDM consequently stands as a milestone in which the First Asiwaju of Ijesaland sought to move community development beyond the delivery of projects to the promotion of responsible governance and measurable public accountability.
It is a record of leadership that began with an idea, advanced through purposeful mobilisation and sought to establish an institution capable of serving Ijesaland beyond the tenure of any individual leader.
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