Ahead of next year’s governorship election, Lagos State Governor,
Babatunde Fashola yesterday warned that the state was too big for
beginners to experiment with, stressing that “The state needed someone
who already understands the system of governance in Lagos.”
Speaking
at the public presentation of Lagos State Development Plan, LSDP
2012-2025 in Alausa Secretariat, Ikeja, which was attended by the
governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Akinwunmi
Ambode, Fashola disclosed that he was able to improve on the legacy left
by the former governor, Bola Tinubu because “I was already part of the
government.”
In the words of the Governor, “I can reveal to you
today that one of the things that helped me the first day I resumed
office was that the day I arrived, I knew the Head of Service, HoS and
Permanent Secretary, PS by name and face. And I knew how the government
worked because I was part of the team that made it work.” Fashola
added that the state had commenced construction of several projects
which could only be completed by someone who understands the mode of
governance in the state since the tenure of the present administration
will end on May 29th, 2015.
He identified the 70 million gallon
per day Adiyan Phase II Waterways, the ongoing light rail among others
as projects which constitute the developmental plans for the state,
positing that “he (Ambode) was part of this development plan in the
state. He helped to commence the plan because the plan started in his
office when he was the Accountant-General of the state between 2007 and
2012.
With this plan, it shows that this state is too important to be
left in the hands of those who want to experiment with it. We must keep
it in very safe hands.” The
Governor went on to allay the fears of residents on the impact of
declining oil price on Lagos economy, saying: “the dwindling oil price
will not affect the state economy.” He assured that the state
economy was not built on extractive (oil) resources, “but on very strong
immigrant capital that makes up the human resources of the state. Our
development partners feel at home because they bring value to our table.
“Our
megacity status indicates the reality of today that we are a large
population. And we have turned the burden of large population to asset.
And that was why we can say that whatever happens to oil today, we will
survive.” He called on residents to adopt the plan as their own and work with the government to guarantee its successful implementation.
Speaking
earlier, the Commissioner for Budget and Economic Planning, Ben
Akabueze explained that the LSDP was borne out of the need to harness
the various documents articulating the vision of Lagos as Africa‘s
megacity. Noting that the plan provided the framework to guide
private and public investments in government programmes, he said, “The
purpose of the Development Plan is to provide overall direction for the
growth and development of the state.
“It will provide a framework
by which all sectors of the economy can direct their energies and
contribute to the improvement of the quality of life people in the
state. It will set the overarching long term framework for government`s
planning and budget system”, Akabueze said. While assuring that the
successful implementation of the plan would make the state a model city
by 2025, the Commissioner disclosed that it would focus on developing
the key areas of the economy, environment infrastructure and security.
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