Ondo govt dissociates self from planned Sango festival

THE Ondo State government has dissociated itself from the planned World Sango Festival 2013, currently being publicised in some national newspapers.

Organisers of the festival  had,  in the programme of events, published  in a national newspaper on Thursday,  allocated the eighth day of the 10-day event to Ondo State with the state governor, Dr Olusegun Mimiko, announced as the guest of honour.

Distancing the state government from the festival, the state’s Commissioner for Information, Mr Kayode Akinmade, said neither the state government nor Dr Olusegun Mimiko, are part of the event.

“The attention of the state government  has been drawn to an advertorial in a national daily linking the state and Dr Mimiko to a planned  Sango festival. Neither the state nor Governor Mimiko has anything to do with the festival. The organisers of the event are advised to stop forthwith further mention of the state and Governor Mimiko in any publicity material relating to the said event,” Akinmade said.

Further, he said: “The organisers of the event never at anytime approached the state to collaborate with it on the said festival.” 

He said, even as he concluded that “the public should disregard any impression of involvement the organisers of the event may have given regarding the state’s government role in the festival.”