The Nation Newspaper

Tag: lagos

  • Firm denies partnership with the Lagos govt

    A subsidiary of CFL Group, Masters Reality Int’l Concepts Ltd yesterday denied having any partnership with  the Lagos State Government on its plan to build Ikeja IT Mart.

    The company, in a letter by its counsel, Mr. Lukman Imam, demanded the retraction of offensive statements he made against it in the media.

    In a statement, the Commissioner for Physical Planning & Urban Development, Mr. Abiola Anifowose had denied partnership with the firm and enjoined residents “to alert the state government if they notice such development, so that they do not fall prey to fraudsters.”

    Anifowoshe had, also, said in his statement that the information from the company “is false. Lagos State Government did not issue any permit to him because his plans are not in sync with the state government’s regeneration plan so it is not possible for him to obtain approval from the appropriate authorities.”

    In its four-page letter with other support documents, the firm asked “to retract the offensive statement issued by you to the press and re-erect our fence unlawfully and maliciously demolished at Simbiat Abiola Road, Ikeja.

    “If you fail, refuse or neglect to comply with the above demands, we shall be constrained with no other option but to take appropriate legal actions against you, your office and the state government.”

    The letter read in part that Master reality “has never presented, claimed or made any representation that it is in partnership with any tier of government for its project on the land situated at Simbiat Abiola Road, Ikeja. The project is a private driven initiative.

    “We categorically assert that there is no where (written or unwritten, directly or indirectly) where our client claimed that there is an approval or plan for the project. We restate that your statement is a calculated attempt to misled the public and project our client in bad light.

    “It is shocking and disheartening that you expressly referred to our client as a fraudster in your ill conceived statement to the press. It is astonishing and unthinkable that a reputable conglomerate that has paid well over N11 million in respect of its various projects particularly Alade Market, Ikeja can be offhandedly referred to as a fraudster.”

    “Your libelous reference to our client as a fraudster has adversely affected its enviable reputation, good standing and meritorious rating in the business community particularly among its partners, foreign associates, bankers, investors and subscribers.”

  • Oyo, Lagos to partner on agric, Southwest integration

    Lagos State Governor Akinwumi Ambode has said the state will partner Oyo State and other Southwest states to boost agriculture and other economic activities for the region’s socio-economic integration.

    Ambode spoke on the partnership when he visited his Oyo State counterpart, Governor Abiola Ajimobi, in Ibadan, the state capital.

    With the steady progress Oyo State is making in physical and social infrastructure, as well as the establishment of a commercial hub on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway to attract investors, the Lagos governor said Ajimobi had demonstrated that he was purpose-driven.

    In the last six years of the Ajimobi administration, Ambode said Lagos State had leaned towards his exemplary leadership to drive some of its activities.

    Ambode said: “Lagos activities towards the commencement of integration of Southwest leaned towards the activities of Oyo State government in the last six years.

    “For the first time, we can see an upward progress of Oyo State. I believe strongly that the capital projects carried out by the government in this state through public-private-partnership (PPP) are just the right steps in the right direction.

    “In the last one and a half years, Lagos State has decided to join the crusade for the economic and political integration of the Yoruba dynasty. May I say that Governor Ajimobi has been an exemplary leader with the ingenuity he used in bringing the Southwest governors together.

    “Lagos is ready to partner Oyo and our sister-states in the Southwest on agriculture and other economic activities that will enhance the renewed integration agenda of our region. The Southwest, especially Oyo, has arable land capable of growing crops that will guarantee food security for the nation.”

    Ajimobi said Oyo had location advantage as the gateway between Lagos, the nation’s commercial nerve centre, and the rest of the country.

    The governor said Oyo State, being the largest producer of cassava and poultry products, would benefit immensely from the proposed partnership with Lagos State to drive its economic revival programmes.

    He said: “Lagos, being the most viable, stable and economic nerve centre of the country, can be of great help to the nation, if it consumes what other states in the Southwest produce.

    “Look at our own advantage in Oyo State as the gateway between Lagos and the rest of the country. We are the highest producer of cassava and poultry products. So, if Lagos consumes our products, it will assist our people and our economy.

    “I am of a strong conviction that we will soon put pen to papers on this partnership, especially in the area of sustainable food security where we have a comparative advantage over other states. Oyo has the largest arable landmass in the South with its vast population.”

    Also, Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola yesterday described his Lagos State counterpart, Akinwunmi Ambode, as the Governor-General of Nigeria.

    The Osun governor noted that the position of Lagos as the nation’s economic nerve centre and Ambode’s brilliant performance could not be downplayed.

    Aregbesola spoke at the Government House in Osogbo, the state capital, when he hosted the Lagos governor.

    The Osun governor noted that the Lagos economy is about the summation of the economies of 30 other states in the country.

    He said one would be denying the obvious not to recognise the vantage position of Lagos State and its governor in the affairs of the country.

    Aregbesola said: “I recognise the Governor of Lagos State who, by my own assessment, is the Governor-General of Nigeria. I say so for a very good reason. It is not a question of age of the occupant of that office or his tenure. It is simply an attestation to the fact that the economy of Lagos is about the summation of the economies of 30 states in Nigeria. One will be deceiving himself not to recognise that fact.”

    The Osun governor recalled similar visits to former Osun State Governor Bisi Akande by former Lagos State Governor, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu.

    He described Ambode’s visit as historic and apt coming at a time the state lost some illustrious indigenes and in the wake of democratic assault he suffered recently.

    Aregbesola said the visit encouraged, motivated and cooled him down.

    Ambode said he was amazed at the pace of development in Osun State, despite its meagre resources.

    The governor said his administration would support Aregbesola to record further successes in his efforts to take the state to greater heights.

    Both governors renewed calls for and reaffirmed their commitments towards the actualisation of Southwest’s integration.

    A statement by the Director of the Bureau of Communication and Strategy, Semiu Okanlawon, said the two governors spoke when Ambode visited Aregbesola at the Government House in Osogbo.

    Ambode said the time had come for the region to exploit its potential and stand by what Aregbesola had championed since the beginning of his administration.

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  • Lagos denies pact with IT Mart developer

    The Lagos State government has denied  any deal with an Infrastructural firm development firm, Master Realty International Concept Limited, over its claims that it has government’s approval to build an ICT specialised mall beside the proposed Ikeja Bus Terminal.

    Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development, Mr. Wasiu Anifowoshe, issued the rebuttal in a statement in Ikeja, the state capital.

    He said the state government had not given a Planning Permit for such development.

    Anifowoshe said: “This information is false. The Lagos State government did not issue any permit to him because his plans are not in sync with the state government’s regeneration plan. So, it is not possible for him to obtain approval from the appropriate authorities.”

    The commissioner said the state government remained committed to the actualisation of the relocation of Computer Village from Ikeja to Katangowa.

    He stressed that the government was committed to the continuous implementation of the provisions in the Ikeja Model City Plan, which designated Computer Village for residential use.

    This, he noted, was meant to achieve urban regeneration and increase housing stock.

    Anifowose said the take-off of the Katangowa project was at its final stage, even as he said the government would ensure its completion as scheduled.

  • ‘Lagos to join Odu’a Group’

    ‘Lagos to join Odu’a Group’

    Lagos State will formally join Odu’a Group of Companies as its sixth owner-state in the next three months, The Nation has learnt.

    The Group Managing Director (GMD) of the regional investments conglomerate, Mr Adewale Raji, announced this in Ibadan, Oyo State capital.

    Raji said the process of admitting Lagos as the sixth Southwest owner-state, which started last year, would be completed in the next three months.

    The conglomerate is currently owned by five Southwest states of Oyo, Osun, Ondo, Ekiti and Ogun.

    According to him, the current owners engaged the services of PricewaterHouse Cooper (PwC) for due diligence and valuation of the assets of the business group to enable all parties determine the amount Lagos State would pay as its share capital.

    Lagos State also engaged its commercial consultant for the same purpose.

    Raji said the need to be painstaking in determining this made the process look slow, adding that Odu’a considers due diligence, transparency and professionalism in the valuation really important.

    The group managing director said the process was at an advanced state and would be completed in the next three months to clear the way for Lagos State to be formally admitted as the sixth shareholder.

    He said: “Governor Akinwumi Ambode is committed to the integration of the Southwest. He believes that social and economic development must go across the six states of the Southwest. He believes there are comparative and competitive advantages every state within the region has and that by having a complementary relationship, we will be better off as a whole. So, we continue to receive great enthusiasm from His Excellency along this line.

    “Let me also admit that his brother governors from the other five states have been very supportive of Odu’a aspirations, along with the other platform, the Development Agenda for Western Nigeria (DAWN) Commission. The progress we are making is such that because we are talking about two different entities, we have decided that we are going to be very transparent and accountable through that process, that due diligence must just be followed in that process.

    “This required us to assemble the two partners that want to merge. That is, Lagos State as one entity, and the other five states already in Odu’a, to appoint different professional transactional advisers to look through the due diligence and valuation of the current entity called Odu’a. This means they have to scrutinise the real estate property we have across board. They have got to scrutinise all the investments we have, either as associates or subsidiaries.

    “That due diligence is going on. Odu’a transactional advisers are led by PricewaterHouse Coppers (PwC) and that due diligence has been going on in a painstaking manner. Lagos State is led by BDO, a company it appointed, and along with all other legal advisers and real estate advisers. They are painstakingly going through the assets and liabilities of Odu’a. “With this, a valuation can be put to it, a valuation standard that can be met everywhere, can be put in place so that we can then know the fees that Lagos State is going to pay for becoming an equal member of Odu’a…”

     

     

     

  • Lagos denies approving ICT mall

    Lagos denies approving ICT mall

    The Lagos State government yesterday denied involvement with a construction firm, Master Realty International Concept Limited, allegedly said to be parading itself as having approval to build an ICT specialised mall beside the new Ikeja Bus Terminal.

    In a statement yesterday in Ikeja, the state capital, Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development Wasiu Anifowoshe said the state government had not given planning permit for such development.

    He said: “This information is false. The Lagos State government did not issue any permit to him because his plans are not in sync with the government’s regeneration plan. So, it is not possible for him to obtain approval from appropriate authorities.”

    The commissioner restated government’s commitment to actualise the relocation of Computer Village from Ikeja to Katangowa.

    Anifowoshe assured residents of the continuous implementation of the provisions in the Ikeja Model City Plan, which designated Computer Village for residential use.

    According to him, the purpose is to achieve urban regeneration and increase housing stock.

    The commissioner said the take-off of the Katangowa project was at its final stage, adding that the government will ensure that the project is concluded as scheduled.

    He said: “Therefore, government will not take it lightly with anyone caught attempting to disrupt the relocation plans of moving Computer Village from Ikeja to Katangowa. The Lagos State government met with the executive members of Computer and Allied Products Dealers Association of Nigeria (CAPDAN) of Computer Village and assured them that government is committed to its relocation plans…”

     

     

     

     

     

     

  • Lagos assures local contractors of patronage

    Lagos assures local contractors of patronage

    •Govt targets 3000mw in four years

    INDEGENOUS contractors and artisans are be patronised by the Lagos State Government, the Commissioner for Budget & Economic Planning, Akinyemi Ashade, has said.

    Ashade, who is overseeing the Finance Ministry, gave the assurance during the mid-year appraisal of the 2017 Appropriation Act and the 2018 Budget Consultative Forum at Lagos West Senatorial District.

    The local artisans had complained to the commissioner at the Cubic Events Centre, venue of the zonal forum of low patronage by the government, only to be asked to perform their civic duty in tax payment.

    They specifically frowned at preference of their counterparts from neighbouring West Africa countries of Republic of Benin, Ghana and Togo at their own detriment.

    According to them, the cash being repatriated by the foreign artisans was contributing to capital flights as the beneficiaries do not pay taxes. They described it as injustice to compel them to fulfil their tax obligations.

    But Ashade assured them of government patronage, identifying three reasons that could have accounted for job exportation

    The reasons are: lack of the required skill; high contract costs and insincerity.

    According to the commissioner, the government has a plan to recertify the local artisans after sharpening their skills at series of workshops to be oragnised for them soon.

    The commissioner also said that the government would tackle electricity problems to make the Centre of Excellence live up to its bidding as the nation’s industrial hub.

    He described the 1000 megawatts daily supply to the state from the national grid as a far cry from the 10000 megatts need of industrial and residential power consumers in the state.

    Ashade hinted that the executive was already working on the legal framework on power reform, adding that bill on the reform would soon be forwarded to the State Assembly for consideration.

    The government, he explained, has a plan to take the state off the national grid by generating 3,000 megawatts of electricity in the next four years.

    The commissioner said: “Our plan is to take Lagos off the national grid and to be self-sustained in regular power supply. What we need to drive the Lagos economy is 10,000 megawatts but what the state gets is 1000 megawatts.”

    He listed the environment, transport and power sectors as areas of priorities in next year’s budget, urging Lagosians to always pay their taxes.

    Other priority areas according to him, include: security; education; job creation; healthy; tourism; social welfare; economy and justice among others.

     

  • Lagos neighbourhood corps: A working communalism model

    One major challenge that confronts security operatives all over the world is the issue of intelligence gathering of relevant information that would aid the process of apprehending criminally-minded individuals. This remains a problem on one hand because the confidence reposed in the security operatives by the society overtime has not been convincingly proven beyond reasonable doubts. On the other hand, when informants provides security information, information provided usually lacks needed details that would assist in arresting supposed criminal suspects.

    The popular slogan usually attributed to the Nigeria Police Force is; ‘Police is your Friend’ whether or not the officers of the Force have been acting as friends which they claimed to be is evident to all. Often time, the ‘friends` of the police have had reasons to spend days and even months behind bars for giving the police privileged information.

    Drawing from the above foregoing issues bothering on protection of information sources and inaccuracies in the information provided in some other cases, in our clime here in Nigeria, the issue of inadequate law enforcement officers is another issue that has made crime rate grown far above the capacity that they can be curtailed and contained.

    In Nigeria, the total number of police officers according to a past Minister of Police Affairs, Chief Caleb Olubolade, is 370,000 to about 170 million Nigerians, this grossly shows that the current workforce of the Police did not meet the United Nations recommendation of 222 police officers per 100,000 persons.   By implication, the relative law and order in parts of the country is absolutely by God’s grace and mercy. Statistically, one police officer is attached to over 400 Nigerians.

    Among this inadequate number also are some officers serving as personal Aids to political office holders as well as traditional rulers, captains of industries and many more thereby reducing the numbers of these officers far below one police officer per 400 Citizens. Also of note is the high concentration of these officers in the cities which in the effect has grossly made the hinterlands minimally protected.

    There had been several agitations for the decentralization of the police force in Nigeria such that each state would be given the power to control its own security operatives and would exercise jurisdiction over their affairs but this proposal had over the years not received the needed attention for so many reasons partly because of political undertone and affiliations.

    Lagos State being one of the States that are badly hit by the centralized police force arrangement had over the years devised peculiar ways of meeting the increasing security challenges of its citizenry some of which included the establishment of the Lagos State Security Trust Fund (LSSTF), Lagos State Task Force (LSTF), Rapid Respond Squad (RRS), Neighbourhood Watch for securing the State hinterlands among several others.

    Governor Akinwunmi Ambode upon assumption of office realized the need to deter criminal activities, increase vigilance, creates a greater sense of security and reduces fear of crime, addresses quality of life issues, enhances homeland security presence at the community level and thus approved the rebranding and modernization of the existing Neighborhood Watch into what is now known as Lagos State Neighbourhood Safety Corps, LNSC.

    That rationale behind the establishment of this agency was premised on the belief that Lagos communities especially the suburbs can be better protected by those living within the community themselves through the promotion of community communalism. The inauguration of the corps was a follow-up to the passage of an executive bill for its establishment in June 2016.

    Specifically, LNSC was a response to what Governor Akinwunmi Ambode described as diverse security challenges demanding the intervention of a supportive Safety Agency. As indicated in the law, the corps was established to assist the Nigeria Police and other security agencies in the maintenance of law and order across all communities in Lagos State, register all private home guards, provide useful intelligence for crime prevention to the police, facilitate the arrest of perpetrators of criminal activities across all communities, and the balancing of communal interests in resolving disputes.

    An integral part of the recruitment process of the 5,700 corps to enforce the law, was the fact that the officers were recruited from within their residual localities where they already have a grasp understanding of the terrain and some other necessary security information as it affects the residents of these areas.

    Governor Ambode had always hinged the prosperity of Lagos on a tripod of security, job creation and infrastructural development. It is the conviction of the state government that a safer Lagos will attract more investments from local and foreign investors believing that when investments are domiciled in the State, definitely, more job opportunities will surface.

    Every resident owes it a duty to preserve and protect the place that provides the beneficial opportunities for all. The approach in use in Lagos to address security issues is also an indicator that some tough challenges may not necessarily need a ‘military-like’ approach, but rather a deliberate and purely systematic approach peculiar to that challenge and the environment especially when such challenge borders on security\safety.

    In other words, government can creatively design peculiar ways of addressing some societal vices without necessarily altering the provisions of the constitution.

    The cooperation of Lagosians for the crystallization of the noble intention behind the establishment of LNSC is of uttermost importance as these officers cannot make appreciable progress without the support of members of the society.

    Also, officers of the LNSC should learn to jealously guide the confidence repose in them by Lagosians, by protecting the sources of security information that would aid in the apprehension of criminally minded individuals and generally assist in maintaining peace and tranquility across the length and breadth of the State.

     

    • Afolabi is the Public Affairs Officer for Lagos State Neighbourhood Safety Agency (LNSA).

  • Council poll: Lagos restricts vehicular movement

    •Ashafa seeks victory for APC

    The Lagos State Government has announced restriction of vehicular movement on Saturday between 8am and 2pm due to elections scheduled for the 20 Local Government and 37 Local Council Development Areas (LCDAs).

    A statement by the Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Steve Ayorinde, said the action was to allow for a smooth conduct of the poll and unhindered participation.

    He urged residents to be peaceful and orderly while casting their votes.

    The election, he said, will bring on board a new set of public officers for the next four years at the council level.

    “The police and other security agencies are ready to ensure that the electioneering campaign and the voting on Saturday are conducted smoothly without public disturbance. Every political party, candidates and their supporters and the general public are hereby assured of safety throughout the period of voting and collation.

    “However, the government solicits the cooperation of voters and the general public by obeying the restriction order and the general electoral rules in order to ensure a peaceful conduct before, during and after the elections,” Ayorinde said.

    The release also quoted Governor Akinwunmi Ambode as urging Lagosians to perform their civic obligations by trooping out with their Permanent Voters Card (PVC) “to once again demonstrate their belief in the tenets of participatory democracy and the importance of development at the local government level.”

    Senator ‘Gbenga Ashafa has urged Lagosinas to cast their votes for the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidates.

    At the 18th edition of his Town Hall meeting with the constituents of Lagos East Senatorial District held at CMD Road, Ikosi-Ketu, Ashafa said: “I urge you all to troop out en masse to support the candidates of our party. By doing this, we would be able to replicate the development we are witnessing in state at the grassroots through the synchronised efforts of the state and local government areas.”

    According to him, the success at the election would prepare the groundwork for APC’s win at the general elections in 2019.

    Victory of his party, he said, would ensure the success of Governor Akinwunmi Ambode in his relentless effort to promoting the state to loftier heights.

    APC chieftains in Lagos East, Alhaji Sakiru Seriki and Princess Aderenle Adeniran-Ogunsanya, who were at the meeting, urged party supporters to ensure victory for the party on Saturday.

    They hailed Ashafa for regular interactions with his constituent.

    The event, attended by over 1,500 people, featured medical outreach.

    The medical services ranged from blood pressure, body mass, blood glucose, cholesterol, diabetes, hearing and dental check-ups and medical advice.

    Ashafa also initiated an empowerment programme for 500 widows.

  • Hajj: Lagos begins medical screening for pilgrims

    The Lagos State Muslim Pilgrims Welfare Board (LSMWB) has begun medical screening for intending pilgrims on Saturday at the Old Secretariat Central Mosque, GRA, Ikeja.

    The exercise will end on Wednesday.

    A statement by LSMPWB Public Affairs Unit Head Jamiu Dosunmu said it was to ensure that all intending pilgrims are vaccinated before the final departure to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

    Dosunmu quoted the board’s Executive Secretary Mr. Muftau Okoya as saying that intending pilgrims from Agege, Alimosho, Lagos Island are scheduled for screning yesterday, while those from Ajeromi, Ikorodu, Epe, Eti- Osa, Mainland and Somolu are slated for today.

    Others  from Apapa, Amuwo-Odofin, Oshodi-Isolo, Ifako- Ijaiye, Surulere, Badagry/ Ojo, Mushin and Kosofe are expected to be vaccinated on tomorrow.

    Okoya said the spills over of all the local governments are booked for inoculation on Wednesday in order to make allowance for those who miss their dates.

    He, however, warned that the arrangement should be taken seriously by the pilgrims, as anyone who misses this inoculation exercise will not travel with the contingent.

    He also urged them to be honest with their hospital reports as this will help the state medical team to be able to manage their health effectively and efficiently, adding that any attempt to falsify the reports from the General Hospital will put their lives in danger.

    He enjoined all intending pilgrims to be prepared for the inaugural flight on July 30.