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Tag: Hamzat

  • Hamzat: cultural preservation crucial to self-discovery

    Hamzat: cultural preservation crucial to self-discovery

    Lagos State Deputy Governor, Obafemi Hamzat, has said understanding culture is crucial as a bridge to self-discovery and empowerment.

    Hamzat, during dedication of Egbe Chieftaincy Palace in Lagos Island, noted culture unlocks our potential and proudly embrace our identity as Africans.

    According to him, it is important we understand our culture and language so they won’t go into extinction.

    “There are certain things you can’t translate into English. We need to let our language known to our children; they need to understand who we are. We are not Western people; we are Africans and our African culture and language must be pre-eminent.”

    Read Also: Tinubu lists benefits of Lagos-Calabar coastal road

    The deputy governor noted Lagos has embarked on programmes and policies to preserve culture, language and tradition, and ensure they are passed on to coming generations.

    “We found out that most children can’t speak our language. I think if you don’t understand yourself, if you don’t know yourself, it is a loss. So, in Lagos, we are doing culture teaching so our children can know and understand our language. I also encourage others to do same…’’

    Hamzat described the new Chieftaincy Palace as ‘a regeneration and redevelopment from what it used to be’. He said the regeneration is necessary because ‘as the population increases, it is important for people to live in a proper and clean environment’.

  • Hamzat shares insights on building resilient non-profit organisations in Africa

    Hamzat shares insights on building resilient non-profit organisations in Africa

    Prominent grassroots mobiliser and activist, Hamzat Lawal, has shared insights on building resilient non-profit organisations in Africa.

    Lawal shared the insights while responding to questions from the host of a fireside chat, Kalada Belema Meshack-Hart, at the ongoing 5th African Women Summit in Nairobi, Kenya on the 8th of May, 2024.

    Speaking at a session titled “How to Build Resilient Non-Profit Organisations,” Lawal captivated the audience with his personal experiences and insights on how he started the Follow The Money movement, which is now operational in 12 African countries. 

    The Malala Fund Education campaigner who is also the Chief Executive of Connected Development (CODE), said: ”In 2010, there was lead poisoning in Zamfara state, north-west, Nigeria. And, at that time, it was reported that over 400 children had died due to artisanal mining. 

    ”In 2012, I was struggling to get information and knowledge of how the government responded, because, at that time, it was declared as a national emergency. Then, I was 24 years old. 

    ”So, I went to the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Mines, and the Ministry of Environment. And, all the officials kept asking me ‘Who are you? who sent you? Why are you asking?’  

    ”So, I took a risk, I embarked on a trip from Abuja to Gusau (capital of Zamfara), to Anka, and then to Bagega, which in total took me 18 hours. And at that time, when I got there, I found out that over 700 children actually died, so it was under-reported. No single cent of the millions of dollars that was approved, got to this community. 

    ”So, I started a campaign with a hashtag. we started the Twitter hashtag campaign. The name of the community is Bagega. So, what we did was we created a hashtag called #SaveBagega. 

    ”We started with Twitter, and from there it went to Facebook, and interestingly, in less than 48 hours, something that started on social media found its way to Al Jazeera, BBC, DW and CNN. 

    ”In 72 hours, the president at that time responded and said they had seen our campaign and they have now approved the sum of $5.3 million.”

    Lawal reiterated the significance of social media as a catalyst for advocacy and brand resilience, urging participants to be conscious of the need for consistency in messaging and strategic hashtag utilisation. 

    ”It allows you to know how many people have seen your hashtags, the impact and how many people engaging it. So when you write proposals, you can talk about your reach digitally,” he noted.

    He also stated that digital storytelling and leveraging free online platforms are important to amplify marginalised voices and hold institutions accountable.

    In addressing the pitfalls that non-profits must navigate, Lawal emphasised the importance of robust governance structures, stakeholder engagement, and succession planning. 

    ”Now, we are in a phase where we are thinking about building an endowment. The succession plan is the biggest elephant in the room. 

    ”I want to leave the organisation in such a way that they have a lot of resources,  both human capital and financial, but most importantly, something to always fall back to,” he added.

    Lawal is also attending the All Africa Media Leaders Summit 2024 while closely monitoring and engaging on a wide range of consultations on the ongoing 2024 UN Civil Society Conference ahead of the Summit of The Future in September as an SDGs Award-winning campaigner.

  • Sanwo-Olu, Hamzat get kudos for win

    Sanwo-Olu, Hamzat get kudos for win

    Lagos State Chairman of All Progressives Congress (APC), Cornelius Ojelabi, has congratulated Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, and Deputy Governor, Obafemi Hamzat, on their victory at the Supreme Court.

    He described the judgment  as ‘a further testimony of the court’s belief in employing credible pronouncements and judgments to strengthen and entrench democracy in the country’.

    Ojelabi hailed APC family and Lagosians, and thanked them for their support for APC and the government of Sanwo-Olu. 

    Read Also: Cold war brewing between Wasiu Ayinde and Emmanuella?

    The chairman added that the victory reinforces that the votes of Lagosians were not a waste, ‘but for the progress and development of the state’.

    He assured Lagosians the  administration would deliver on its promises to usher in more dividends of democracy.

    Ojelabi said Lagos APC celebrates Sanwo-Olu’s victory, and described it as ‘a final settlement to the long judicial process’.

    “I congratulate Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu and Deputy Governor, Obafemi  Hamzat, for this final victory. APC in Lagos State accepts the final judgment and appreciate the due diligence and the process of rule of law.”

  • Hamzat: equity, justice,fairness, key to nation-building

    Hamzat: equity, justice,fairness, key to nation-building

    Lagos State Deputy Governor Obafemi Hamzat has described equity, justice and fairness as key elements of democratic governance- a tripod upon which a nation is built.

    The deputy governor spoke at the annual General Assembly of Muslim Ummah of Southwest Nigeria (MUSWEN), at the J.F Ajayi Main Auditorium, University of Lagos (UNILAG).

    According to Hamzat, ‘equity, justice and fairness are critical elements we all must focus on if the citizens would feel comfortable enough to tolerate each other and foster unity’.

    The deputy governor described the theme, ‘Rebuilding National Unity and Understanding: The Quest for Equity, Justice and Fairness in a Multi-Religious Society’, as one of ‘national importance that demonstrates their commitment to continuously engage national challenges and chart better course for the future’.

    He said: “This continuous engagement with our national challenges will invariably result in paradigm shifts that will be of immense benefit to the country. It is faith-based organizations like this that are best placed to proffer solutions to seemingly intractable issues that we sometimes face. As you engage, it is my hope that you will explore and action the outcomes of the meeting.

    Read Also: Hamzat, Prof. Olayinka, others for UIAA Lagos 65th anniversary

    “Religion is also a potent force for unity if properly managed. We must however ask if it has been a bane or a benefit to us as a multi-religious society whose people are deeply religious.”

    Hamzat noted that despite the various challenges and sentiments, religious leaders have pivotal role they can play, using the pulpit as a launching pad in dousing tension. “Not only do they have the clout to influence, but they must utilise various opportunities to address national malaise,” he added.

    Ogun State Deputy Governor, Mrs. Noimot Salako-Oyedele, who commended the association’s efforts at propagating the ideals of Islam, urged Muslim faithful to get involved in political activities in the country. According to her, it’s only through power that Muslims can influence things to their advantage.

    She said: “However, we need to realise that power is not served a la carte. Muslims must actively participate in politics or else we will be lagging behind.”

    President of MUSWEN, Alhaji Rasaq Oladejo, hailed the commitment of members to its lofty goals, especially the executives for their ‘unalloyed and total commitment’. He was confident the group would achieve its set goals as envisaged by the founding fathers.

  • Hamzat urges informal organisations on service delivery

    Hamzat urges informal organisations on service delivery

    Lagos State Deputy Governor, Dr. Kadri Obafemi Hamzat has urged religious bodies, social and other non-governmental organisations to collaborate with the government in its quest in ameliorating the plights of citizens and bringing services closer to them.

    He made this call at the opening of Ultra-Modern Hospital built by the Ansar-ud-Deen Society of Nigeria (ADSN) Akoka Branch.

    Hamzat noted that no nation develops just by the activities of government alone.

    He emphasized that everyone and organizations must play their roles for the growth of the nation and urged other religious bodies and organizations to emulate the Ansar-ud-Deen society in building infrastructures that will help to develop the country, “as the government will continue to do its own part and a lot of the people will be lifted which is the only way we can build a suitable nation”.

    He said the hospital will bring health care closer to the people and relieve other general hospitals as well as reduce the workload on the government. 

    ADSN Akoka Branch Chairman, Alhaji Bashir Lawal, stated that the hospital is to connect medical care and the general wellbeing of the people noting that “the general well-being of the people is inextricably related.”

    Read Also: Support Tinubu’s administration – Ekpo urges politicians

    He noted that the facility underpins the Akoka Branch’s vision of building a good medical facility aimed at improving the health of the people, meet the particular needs of patients, family and communities.

    While thanking all that contributed towards the completion of the hospital, he solicited for additional support from other members and well-wishers towards equipping the hospital with more facilities for effective utilization.

    ADSN President of Nigeria and Overseas, Aare Abdul-Rafiu Sanni commended the Akoka Branch of the society for this laudable project and appealed to the state government to hasten the on-going construction of the road leading to the healthcare facility to ease movement to the hospital.

    Aare Sanni’s immediate predecessor, Alhaji Abdul-Lateef Okunnu who spoke through the State Council Chairman, Alhaji Rahman Salaudeen, admonished the members of the society to take ownership of the hospital by ensuring that adequate maintenance is given to the facility.

    Alhaji Okunnu urged the society to patronize the hospital for their personal use and ensure that the purpose it was made for is sustained.

  • BREAKING: Appeal Court dismisses LP, Gbadebo’s appeals, affirms Sanwo-Olu, Hamzat’s victory

    BREAKING: Appeal Court dismisses LP, Gbadebo’s appeals, affirms Sanwo-Olu, Hamzat’s victory

    The State and National Assembly Appeal Court sitting in Lagos has dismissed the appeal of the Labour Party (LP) and its candidate, Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour against the victory of Babajide Sanwo-Olu as the validly elected winner of the March 18 election for the Office of the Governor of Lagos State.

    The court held: “The decision of the lower court is affirmed and the appeal is dismissed.”

    It held unanimously that the lower tribunal was correct to hold that Sanwo-Olu and his deputy, Obafemi Hamzat were qualified to contest, contrary to the claims of the LP and Gbadebo.

    Read Also: Ex-militant leaders blame Sylva/Tompolo alliance for APC’s defeat in Bayelsa

    The justices held: “No case of renunciation of citizenship has been established by the LP and Gbadebo against the 3rd respondent (Hamzat) in accordance with the constitution.

    “No evidence of oath of allegiance to the United States and renunciation of Nigerian citizenship was placed before the tribunal (by the LP and Gbadebo) –

    “No document to prove that 3rd respondent (Hamzat) was no longer a citizen of Nigeria. It is incumbent on the appellants (LP, Gbadebo) to prove their claim.”

    Details shortly…

  • VIDEO: Lagos Deputy Gov Hamzat visits MohBad’s mother

    VIDEO: Lagos Deputy Gov Hamzat visits MohBad’s mother

    Lagos Deputy Gov Hamzat visits MohBad’s mother

    Read Also: BREAKING: #JusticeforMohBad protest hits Abeokuta

  • Hamzat, our leader and my shoe fan, exits the political arena

    One of my political leaders and personal shoes fan, Oba Mufutau Olatunji Hamzat, has paid his dues and gone to join his ancestors. He was 87, short by some weeks, having been born on June 7, :932.

    I first knew Baba Hamzat as a newly retired bank official who just returned to Lagos from Kano and was one of the friends and loyalists of Alhaji R. I. Solomon, then chairman of the Committee of Friends in Mushin Local Government Area.

    He was a quiet and easy going member of the Committee of Friends from Mushin who were meeting nocturnally (because the ban on partisan politics was on) at the Popo Street home of the then Lagos State Chairman of the committee, Chief Samuel Akanbi Onitiri, father of Estate management guru, Architect Sunmbo Onitiri, until the man fell out of favour with his colleagues in the Awo Movement and the Committee leadership in the state devolved to Alhaji Lateef Jakande.

    From that time till the Unity Party of Nigeria was formed in 1978 and we all went together into government (he as commissioner and I as the governor’s spokesman, being the press secretary) in 1979, Alhaji Hamzat impressed me as a diligent loyalist and party leader. He impressed me from that time as a principled and decent person in any assignment that he was given.

    I respected him so much, and although I pitched my political tent in a caucus different from his, he also had a special liking for me and he, along with Prince Taju Olusi, His Lordship Olorunfunmi Basorun, Otunba Bushura Alebiosu and Senator Anthony Adefuye, were always too willing to put in a word or two for me when it came to issues of ability, humility, respect and diligence in any given assignment. I cannot forget that in a hurry.

    Just as well, the man always betrayed his love for sartorial elegance each time he saw me in his lifetime, paying compliment to the quality of my shoes, a trait also exhibited by my own aburo and now incoming member of the House of Representatives, Hon Yemi Ali, who also does not fail to pay compliment to me each time we met, for the quality of the shoes I wear.

    Two weeks ago when I visited him in his Ogba, Lagos home, just as one of his top aides, Mr Gbolahan Salvador was taking his leave of the grand old man, Kabiyesi and I spoke on a range of political issues before our discussion dovetailed to the matter of shoes of which he had passion. He told me he was now more at home with slip-on shoes, as against the full ones he had several of, in diverse colours and quality, in his collections.

    I never knew that would be my last meeting with him on earth.

    It was not in sartorial elegance alone that he was outstanding; he was a political tactician and strategist of the first order and a great teacher and mentor of many. He was also an author, as it were, whose views in his last book were as controversial as they were factual. As to be expected, that book threw barbs here and there, as to cause discomfiture in some homes.

    It is a matter of gratitude to God that he has bequeathed a diligent and silent achiever of a son to Lagos State as deputy governor. Dr Obafemi Hamzat is indeed a chip off the good, old block.

    Baba Hamzat’s place in Mushin and Lagos State politics leaves a void that cannot be that easy to fill. He was indeed a political historian and a titan.

  • Sanwo-Olu,  Hamzat to unveil key roadmap

    LAGOS State Governor-elect Babajide Sanwo-Olu and his deputy,  Dr. Obafemi Hamzat, will on April 27 unveil key roadmap to adopt in actualising the vision for a greater Lagos.

    The unveiling will take place at a special dinner to appreciate Lagosians for voting for them at the governorship election.

    Sanwo-Olu and Hamzat of the All Progressives Congress (APC) polled a total of 739,445 votes to defeat their closest challenger and candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Mr. Jimi Agbaje, who got 206,141votes.

    The appreciation dinner, according to its organisers, Vision LOUD, is designed for the governor-elect and his deputy to thank Lagos residents for the overwhelming support they received at the poll.

    The event is also to unveil the strategies to be adopted in achieving the set objectives for the state.

    Vision LOUD, a socio-political group championing the Lagos of higher dreams, in a statement yesterday by its National Coordinator, Owoseni Olukotun, said aside Sanwo-Olu and Hamzat, the event, which is billed to hold at Civic Centre, Victoria Island, by 6pm prompt, would also be attended by APC National Leader, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu. He will serve as father of the day.

    Other eminent Nigerians that will attend the event, according to Owoseni, include APC chieftain, Chief Pius Akinyelure (chairman of the day); former Inspector General of Police Alhaji Musiliu Smith (co-chairman); former Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola and Majority Leader of House of Representatives Femi Gbajabiamila.

  • Tricycle owners hail Tinubu, Sanwo-Olu, Hamzat

    The Tricycle Owners Association of Nigeria (TOAN) has congratulated the National Leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, on his 67th birthday.

    The group, in a statement in Lagos yesterday by its acting Lagos State Chairman, Chief Tunji Oyeniyi, described Tinubu as the “father of our modern democracy.”

    He said: “Asiwaju Tinubu is a patriot, a visionary leader of no comparison, a pace-setter, dynamic, well focused, courageous, a mentor with a Lion’s heart and an apostle of one Nigeria.”

    Oyeniyi said the history of the nation’s democracy can never be told anywhere in the world without Tinubu’s name being mentioned.

    “Asiwaju remains the father of our modern democracy. On behalf of my members, I join millions of Nigerians to celebrate you and wish you more fruitful years ahead in good health,” he added.

    The association also hailed Lagos State Governor-elect Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu and his deputy, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat, for their victory at the polls.

    According to Oyeniyi , the  victory of Sanwo-Olu, Hamzat and all APC lawmakers-elect will further develop Lagos State.

    He rejoiced with other APC federal lawmakers-elect and appealed to those that lost to accept defeat and support the ruling party to move the country  forward.