Ilobu leaders seek Osun takeover of Lagbaja-linked hospital
- Ilobu community leaders want Osun State to take over a hospital linked to the late Gen. Lagbaja.
- The Ilobu-Asake Development Union says the facility should become an annexe of the state teaching hospital.
- The union says it lacks the capacity to run the specialised hospital alone and has engaged the state government.
Leaders of Ilobu in Osun State say they want the state government to take over a hospital in the town linked to the late Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Taoreed Lagbaja, and run it as an annexe of the Osun State University Teaching Hospital in Osogbo.
The Ilobu-Asake Development Union (IDU), the main group for indigenes of the town, disclosed the plan on Saturday at a press conference held as part of the 34th Ilobu Day celebrations.
IDU President Prof. Olufemi Saibu said the union and the Lagbaja family had already engaged the state government on the matter. He said the community could not manage such a specialised facility on its own.
"We realised that if we should handle the medical facility by ourselves, we may not have the capacity to do that," Saibu said.
According to him, the medical centre will soon become an annexe of the teaching hospital and will serve not just Ilobu but the whole of Osun State. The Nation reported that Lagbaja built the hospital for the community before his death in 2024.
Why it matters for residents
For people in Ilobu and nearby towns in Irepodun Local Government Area, a working teaching hospital annexe would mean specialist care closer to home, instead of travelling to Osogbo or beyond.
Saibu said the state government was best placed to revamp the facility. He also thanked Governor Ademola Adeleke for responding to some of the community's requests, including land and other property for development projects.
The weeklong Ilobu Day programme includes a free medical outreach, with health workers giving talks, advice and counselling, and distributing drugs free of charge. Saibu urged residents, especially the elderly, to come early and bring any medication they take regularly.
There is also an education programme at the Ilobu House Complex, featuring a lecture and career talk, an inter-school quiz and debate, and the presentation of prizes, scholarships and educational materials.
Saibu said construction is ongoing on a College of Health and Technology in the area, and that the necessary approvals have been secured. He said the union hopes to work with universities established by the federal or state governments.
The union will honour five compounds as Special Distinguished Compounds of Honour 2026: Agbofiseti, Akeyan, Alako, Imam-Arohun and Oloso. Governor Adeleke is expected to lead other dignitaries to the grand finale.
What happens next
The sources do not give a date for when the takeover or affiliation will be completed. For now, the plan rests on the state government's decision, and residents will be watching to see whether the hospital reopens fully as a teaching hospital annexe.
