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Tag: Segun Olulade

  • Lagos Assembly tasks Ambode on menace of drug abuse

    calls for aggressive campaign

    Lagos State House of Assembly at plenary on Monday passed a resolution calling on Governor Akinwunmi Ambode and relevant stakeholders to embark on aggressive campaigns against the menace of drug abuse.

    The resolution was sequel to a motion moved by Hon. Desmond Elliot who represents Surulere constituency 1.

    In the motion titled ‘Need to Curb the Menace of Drug Abuse Among Youths in Lagos State’ Elliot said the adverse effectsl of hard drugs on youths and the society is huge and that there is need to check the trend.

    According to him, youths have formed the habit of using drugs  to get high, perform better in certain situation and to change their perception of reality or for other purposes.

    The drugs, he said includes cocaine, heroin, cannabis, India hemp and seemingly harmless drugs over the counter like cough syrups with codeine, rubber, gum, septic tank fumes, urine concentrates, Colorado, skushi, loud and kerosene gas.

    The motion reads in part, “The House is aware that youths now abuse a combination of these substances with two popular drugs; tramadol and codeine which are commonly used for the treatment of cough and severe pains.

    “The House is concerned that those mostly involved in this practice are unqualified pharmacists, nurses and road side hawkers selling to these young people who consequently commit sexual crimes and other violent acts.

    “This House is worried that this abuse has damning and adverse health effects, which include mental disorder, liver cirrhosis and many socioeconomic consequences like school dropout cultism, armed robbery and other related crimes in the state.

    “The House called on the Chairman, Task Force on Environment and Special Offences (Enforcement) Unit to carry out strick enforcement against sale of drugs by road side hawkers,” he said.

    Read Also: Ambode urges association to support govt’s programme

    “The House called on the Pharmaceutical Board to direct its members to restrained from selling drugs particularly those that required prescription over the counter without prescription from qualified physicians.”

    The lawmakers also called on other relevant authorities to wake up to their responsibilities and address issues relating to the sales, distribution circulation of the said drugs and other ones.

    Attributing lack of good parenting as responsible for aggravation and proliferation  of hard drugs among youths, Hon. Bisi Yusuf, (Alimosho 1 constituency) said many had been sent to their early graves because of drugs.

    Hon.Segun Olulade (Epe constituency  2) who seconded the motion, commended the prime mover and urged the House to call on Ambode to expedite action in signing the Mental Health bill into law and ensure the implementation to curb the effect of hard drugs.

    Hon.Adefunmilayo Tejuoso (Mushin constituency I), said the issue should not be taken with levity, saying that the government needed to look into the activities of chemists (licence and unlicensed).

    The Majority Leader,  Hon. Sanai Agunbiade described  drug abuse among youths as “a big threat to the nation”, calling for apprehension of drug addicts and engaging them in Community Service.

    While Speaker, Hon. Mudashiru Obasa,  called on artistes to collaborate with the government in the campaign against drugs, urging legislators to embark on advocacy in their respectively constituencies.

    While supporting aggressive campaign and sensitization on the ills of taking hard drugs, Obasa however warned against indiscriminate closure of shops.

  • Lagos Assembly decries traffic jam, urges Ambode to intervene

    The Lagos State House of Assembly on Thursday decried the congestion of Sekunmade Road in Ikorodu area of Lagos by heavy duty trucks, urging Gov. Akinwunmi Ambode to intervene.

    The House called on Ambode to direct the Commissioner for Transport, officials of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA), management of Ipakodo Lighter Terminal to eliminate indiscriminate parking of long vehicles on the road.

    The Assembly also called on the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) to provide where long vehicles would park before they load goods from the terminal.

    The resolution followed a matter raised by the Majority Leader of the House, Mr Sanai Agunbiade (Ikorodu Constituency 1) and supported by Mr Segun Olulade (Epe Constituency 2) under Matter of Urgent Public Importance on Thursday.

    Agunbiade had condemned the indiscriminate parking of heavy duty trucks on Sekunmade Road, Ikorodu, which he said was one of the two roads leading to Ikorodu area of Lagos State.

    “The road is an important access road to Imota, Ijede and others. The roads around the lighter terminal in Ipakodo have become an eyesore.

    “The long vehicles always block the road and they would be there for days. They don’t even have security light that would prevent accident.

    “That was how it started in Apapa area of Lagos before it became an eyesore,” Agunbiade said.

    The lawmaker said that it was important for the Commissioner for Transport to review the law on movement of vehicles, while also calling on leaders of LASTMA to rise to the occasion on the matter.

    He said that Public Works should be called upon to repair the roads, which had become dilapidated.

    Also speaking, Mr Rotimi Olowo (APC- Somolu I),  noted that Ipakodo Sekumade Road was very strategic to Ikorodu.

    Read Also: Ambode hails union leaders for industrial harmony

    He said that it would not be fair to allow vehicles to block the road.

    Olowo said that companies should be cautioned with the way their vehicles were parked in the area.

    In his contribution, Mr Segun Olulade (APC- Epe II), said that the area was strategic to Epe.

    Mr Nurudeen Saka-Solaja (APC- Ikorodu II) said the road had become waterlogged.

    He said that trailers and containers parked indiscriminately were also causing a lot of problems for the people.

    “What is happening in Sekunmade is not right. There are traffic control officers in Ikorodu West Local Government that can do the job.

    “We should fine anyone that parks vehicles there indiscriminately,”Mr Tobun Abiodun (APC-Epe I) added.

    The Speaker, Mr Mudashiru Obasa,  directed the Clerk of the House, Mr Azeez Sanni, to communicate the resolution of the House on the matter to Ambode.

  • Lagos Assembly urges Ambode to clamp down on fake job advertisers

    Lagos Assembly urges Ambode to clamp down on fake job advertisers

    The Lagos State House of Assembly on Tuesday urged Gov. Akinwunmi Ambode to work with security agencies to check the spate of fake job advertisements in the state.

    The call followed a motion moved by Mr Abiodun Tobun (APC-Epe I) at the Assembly on the security challenges emanating from such fake adverts that were pasted on street walls in the state.

    Tobun prayed the House to call on Ambode to direct the Commissioner of Police, Department of State Security ( DSS ) and the State Neighborhood Safety Corps to curb the activities of scammers who defraud job seekers.

    “This motion is borne out of conviction. If you go around Lagos, you will be amazed seeing the number of adverts of jobs that are non-existent with a view to luring unsuspected youth into their dens,” he said.

    According to him, some victims are kidnapped, raped or even die in the process.

    “Ritual killers also use that as a strategy. It is time to track down this and ensure that it is nipped in the bud,“ Tobun, Acting Chairman, House Committee on Works and Infrastructure said.

    Contributing, the Acting Chairman, House Committee on Budget and Economic Planning, Mr Rotimi Olowo said: “When population is moving geometrically and job is growing arithmetically, there is going to be vacuum.

    “They come up with strategy to recruit and maim and kill. I am worried as a politician because 2019 is around the corner, people will believe the politicians are the ones who need human parts.’’

    Olowo said that the Lagos State Signage and Advertisements Agency ( LASAA ) must ensure scammers are detected.

    Also speaking, Mr Segun Olulade (APC-Epe II) called on the newly established Lagos State Neighbourhood Safety Corps to do more in terms of intelligence gathering.

    “We have seen a lot of advertisements on walls in the streets claiming what they are not,’’ he said.

    Mr Yinka Ogundimu, on his part, said that emphasis should be laid on publicity and enlightenment.

    Ogundimu called for the sustenance of the state’s Employment Trust Fund, aimed at providing loans for small scale businesses.

    Mr Rasheed Makinde (APC-Ifako-Ijaiye II) in the House, who noted that he had once been a victim of such sharp practices, said that Lagos State was working assiduously to provide jobs.

    He urged the Federal Government to do the same to curb influx of unemployed youth into the state.

    In his remarks, the Speaker of the House, Mr Mudashiru Obasa said: “it is not out of place to seek for jobs but the situation has turned upside down.

    “I strongly believe that the neighborhood safety corps is not doing enough in this aspect.’’

    Obasa called on the corps to verify claims on adverts placed on walls and liaise with the police in intelligence gathering to address the trend.

    NAN

  • Youths told to join politics

    A lawmaker and member Lagos State House of Assembly, Segun Olulade, has challenged youths to take advantage of the ‘not-too-young-to-run’ bill to prepare themselves for leadership positions in Nigeria.

    Olulade said it was about time the nation experiences a paradigm shift by passing the baton to younger generations.

    The lawmaker, who was one of the speakers that addressed youths at the  Lagos State University Students Union (LASUSU) National Parliamentary Summit, is optimistic that if youths are getting it right in entertainment and sports, they can do better in governance.

    “I want you all to know that the ‘not-too-young-to-run’ bill is for you,’ said the lawmaker.

    “And who says you cannot be a local government councillor, chairman or even a senator of the Federal Republic?  I believe Nigeria can produce great champions for good governance, if they can do so in sports, entertainment and others, “he said at the summit themed: ‘Restructuring Nigeria; The role of youths in National rebirth.’

    “Nigeria can produce great champions for good governance, if they can do so in sports, entertainment and the like,” he added

    Olulade picked holes in the political system, which keeps recycling the old at the expense of youths, who should be empowered for future tasks.

    He urged youths to play more active roles in politics by obtaining voters’ card, aligning with political parties, and attending ward meetings.

    “All you need is to have the right concept and ideology, and be positive in your thinking.

    “Nobody wants hoodlums as leaders, so to be given a shot at leadership you must comport yourself and portray leadership traits,” he said.

    Corroborating Olulade, CEO Global Infoswift Limited, Mr Afolabi Oke, and ace broadcaster Lagos Television, Miss Adetola Kayode, counseled the students to develop themselves by placing value on education and skill acquisition.

    “Youths are the greatest asset Nigeria can ever have and they must rise up to make a change in the current social-political problem inflicted on us by our leaders,” Oke noted.

    Miss Kayode said there was urgent need for relevant stakeholders including youths to discuss the nation’s future.

    Speaking on the theme: ‘The media and restructuring agenda’, she urged the youth to consolidate on the social media phenomenon to further push for their rights.

    “The internet and the world wide web cannot set the agenda for restructuring because the audience is primarily small and that is why both the traditional and the new media must come together and clamour for true restructuring,” she said.

  • Melaye is a big shame to legislature – Lawmaker

    Melaye is a big shame to legislature – Lawmaker

    Member of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Hon. Segun Olulade has described the Senator representing Kogi West Senatorial District, Dino Melaye, as a big shame to the legislature.

    Olulade who represents Epe 2 constituency stated this through a statement issued in Lagos Wednesday, while reacting to threat by Melaye on Tuesday to beat Senator Oluremi Tinubu during a closed-door session of the Senate over the forgery case against principal officers of the Senate.

    The lawmaker who noted that Melaye only displayed how hollow he is by threatening to beat another man’s wife, added that the Kogi Senator has verbal diarrhoea and has displayed his unworthiness to be part of the distinguished Senators to sit in the hallowed chamber.

    Speaking further, Olulade, who is the Chairman, House Committee on Health Services, pointed out that “no responsible and sane man will threaten to beat a woman, another man’s wife for that matter. Melaye’s action has shown that most of the things said about him are nothing but the truth.

    “Any responsible individual that is truly worthy to be called a Senator, a position that convokes respect, decorum and decent public conduct, should be able to manage his temper and anger. The fact that one is a Senator does not impose lunacy on the fellow to disparage others.

    “Dino has exposed himself as a simpleton and a court jester whose words and tactlessness cannot be taken seriously by matured people. If at all he has anything to offer, he should concentrate on making good laws for the people of Nigeria rather than looking for cheap and undeserved publicity by threatening to beat a fellow Senator.

    “With this recent action by Senator Melaye, he has so descended to a ridiculous level, thus displaying to the whole world his unworthiness to sit in the hallowed chambers of the Nigerian Senate,” the statement read in part.

    Olulade, however, cautioned the Senator to start behaving with decorum, noting that as a legislator, “he should be an advocate of maintenance of law and order, how will he take if someone threatens to beat his wife,” he queried.

  • Lawmakers, others condemn police attack on Abe

    Lawmakers, others condemn police attack on Abe

    Some lawmakers, including the House of Representatives Minority Whip Samson Osagie and the Chairman of the Lagos State House Committee on Information, Strategy, Security and Publicity, Segun Olulade, yesterday condemned the Sunday attack on Senator Magnus Abe in Obio/Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State.

    Also, rights activist, Comrade Femi Aborisade, berated the police for its action.

    Osagie told reporters in Benin, the Edo State capital, that the police action was the result of the desperation of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to cling to power at all costs.

    He said: “The PDP has become desperate. Only on Friday, they went to court to stop the All Progressives Congress (APC) from effecting a change of leadership in the House, as dictated by law. Even in the Senate, the PDP has been fighting defection threats by some members.

    “This has made the PDP to become more desperate so much that a leading senator was shot (on Sunday night) in Rivers State and is critically ill. This is part of the impunity and reign of terror that the Goodluck Jonathan administration has imposed on the Nigerians.”

    Olulade noted that security had taken a flight from Rivers State with the continued stay of Mr Joseph Mbu as the police commissioner.

    He said what it appeared the police chief was acting to a political script sent to him from Abuja.

    “The incident, which has been confirmed by the Personal Assistant to the Senator, Siranwo, said Senator Abe had led members of Save Rivers Movement to a venue where they were to hold an inauguration and thanksgiving programme for the Obio-Akpor chapter of the group. He said the senator was shot directly by the police with a rubber bullet while policemen were preventing the group from going ahead with the peaceful event,” Olulade said.

    The lawmaker said he was surprised that security men, who are supposed to protect the people from harm, were firing bullets at unarmed people, including a serving senator.

    He added: “The office of the senator of the country is bigger than what Mbu and his principals understand it to be. The attack was simply politically motivated and no alibi can be accepted from the Commissioner of Police to exonerate himself from deplorable state of security and threats to the lives of Rivers State people.

    “The President cannot claim to enjoin people to live together in peace and at the same time continue to overlook acts threatening Nigeria’s unity, such as the situation that has persisted in Rivers State. That is cynical and unfaithful to Nigerians.

    “Whatever the case, I believe the progressive class will continue to remain undaunted, even in the face of threats and assaults on democracy, as being perpetrated by the ruling party. The progressives will continue to work hard until democracy is truly entrenched.”

    Aborisade said the Sunday attack by the Rivers State Police Command on Senator Magnus Abe during a peaceful rally by the Save Rivers Movement was an act of barbarism that should be probed.

    In a statement yesterday in Lagos, Aborisade said the police suppression of a peaceful rally was unconstitutional.

    He said: “The unjustified suppression of the Save Rivers Movement, involving the reported death of unknown number of children, teargas suffocation of several others and shooting of rubber bullets at participant is condemnable.

    “This also includes the shooting of Senator Abe. This is not just an attack on the organisers of the All Progressives Congress (APC); it should be seen as an attack on those who cherish the values of democratic society and the fundamental right to peaceful protest.”

    Aborisade called on organised labour, human right orbanisations in conjunction with the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) to investigate the matter and all the culprits made to face the law.

    Also, thousands of armed policemen were yesterday deployed in Eleme Refinery Road in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, to thwart a planned peaceful demonstration by Ogoni youths over the shooting of Senator Magnus Abe by Rivers State police.

    The angry protesters, at 6.20am yesterday, blocked the Elelewo Junction, Eleme Petrochemical and Refinery Road. This caused a serious traffic jam in the area.

    But by 7.45am, policemen were deployed in the area to disperse the protesters.

    A leader of the protesters Comrade Friday Needam said: “The police have been chasing us since morning; we will continue to run for safety and regroup in other areas where police have not mobilised their men. The police in Rivers State are on a dangerous mission.

    “We want the people of this country to pray that nothing happens to Magnus Abe because Ogoni people will not allow any Ogoni man to be killed again like Saro-Wiwa and others were killed by the Federal Government and its agents.

    “We are warning the politicians not to use the blood of an Ogoni man to cleanse the Rivers State or Nigeria. This country cannot continue to use the blood of an Ogoni man as a sacrifice in the political temple to redeem the past. It can no longer happen.”

     

    Another protester Joseph Barinedam said the police arrested eight Ogoni protesters and injured several others as they ran for safety.

    He said the youths were praying for Abe to recover from the police attack.

    Barinedam said: “They (police) should be ready to shoot us the way they did to Senator Abe, if anything happens to him. Abe is human and cannot be killed like an animal. The Federal Government is looking for trouble in Rivers State. It is now that the trouble has begun. Let’s watch out on Abe’s health.”

  • Lagos community protests demolition of 10,500 houses

    Lagos community protests demolition of 10,500 houses

    A group of protesters from Olorunda Local Council Development Area (LCDA) in Badagry yesterday stormed the Lagos State House of Assembly to protest the demolition of not less than 10,500 houses.

    The residents, who were chanting anti-government songs, stated they had resolved to go on hunger strike and stay at the Assembly until their demands were met.

    They came bearing placards with different inscriptions like, “Our governor is a SAN but he is taking laws into his hand”; “We are paying our annual due\levy to the state government”; “Is this the dividend of democracy?; “Why do we have to suffer in our dear  fatherland” and “Common man has no right to co-exist in Nigeria”.

    Their spokesman, who is the chairman of one of the communities, Adu Charles, disclosed that the letter sent to the residents notifying them of the demolition exercise affected Agemuwo and Agalato communities.

    They wondered why Muwo Phase II, Araromi Ale and Atiporomeh communities, which were not part of the listed communities in the notice sent to the area, were affected.

    Charles, who was lamenting the debris their houses have turned to, noted that they have been subjected to homeless people as the displaced now stay in churches and mosques.

    He alleged that the matter, which has been in court since 2008, has been hijacked by the police, adding that 250 policemen invaded the community in December 14 to pull down their houses.

    The Chairman, House Committee on Information, Strategy, Publicity and Security, Segun Olulade, who represented the Speaker, Adeyemi Ikuforiji, commended the protesters for being peaceful.

    He said: “l want to assure you that this House will swing into action and investigate the matter to a logical conclusion by the grace of God. We are not a government that desires joy in inflicting pains on those we serve.”

  • Lawmaker lauds Aregbesola over creation of new LGs

    Lawmaker lauds Aregbesola over creation of new LGs

    THE Osun State Governor, Rauf Aregbesola, has been commended for creating 27 additional local governments in the state.

    Spokesperson of the Lagos State House of Assembly and Chairman, House Committee on Information, Strategy, Security and Publicity, Segun Olulade, who gave the commendation, said the creation of additional local government areas in Osun State is a welcome development that was long overdue.

    According to him, more local governments will bring development to the grassroots, as the people of the state, particularly those in the rural communities, will adequately feel the presence of government more.

    Olulade stressed, “I commend the Osun State government for taking such initiative; I also congratulate the people of the state who are the larger beneficiaries of the good things that would come with this initiative.”

    Olulade stressed that the achievements recorded by Lagos State in the creation of new local government areas ten years ago has encouraged other states in the country to replicate the initiative.

  • ‘FG must resolve issues with NMA to avoid strike’

    CHAIRMAN, Committee on Information, Strategy, Security and Publicity of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Hon. Segun Olulade has warned that the federal government through the ministry of Health should not wait until medical and dental practitioners embark on strike before resolving the issues at stake.

    Olulade was reacting in a press release to the ultimatum given by the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) to commence a nationwide strike on December 14 if certain issues are not resolved before then.

    According to reports, NMA alleged that efforts made by the association to engage the leadership of the federal ministry of health in peaceful resolutions collapsed due to what NMA described as the “unserious approach and attitude of the leadership of ministry of health which seems to be less bothered about the potential crisis which may erupt in Nigeria’s health sector from Saturday, December 14th 2013.”

    While alerting the federal government of the imminent collapse of health services across the country if the NMA makes good its threat, Olulade appealed to the NMA to reconsider its deadline and reach a meaningful conclusion with the federal government in order to avoid loss of innocent lives.

  • Lawmaker condemns new UK Visa policy

    CHAIRMAN, House Committee on Information, Strategy, Security and Publicity of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Hon. Segun Olulade, has condemned the newly introduced VISA application payment system of the British Embassy in Nigeria.

    Olulade, while reacting to the new payment system which accepts payment for VISA fees to be deposited only in dollars, criticised the method, stressing that the British Government has been forcing insensitive policies down the throat of Nigerians who travel to the UK for various reasons.

    He lamented that Nigeria does not introduce such harsh policies on British citizens visiting Nigeria and does not compel them to only Naira payment options while applying for Nigerian Visa in the UK.

    Olulade was reacting to the new VISA application payment method which only accepts dollars via a Verve debit card, Visa or Master Card (credit or debit card) or three-wallet PAGA.

    He said, “While the new payment system is good for streamlining VISA application system, option of payment via Naira Master Card should have been included since not all applicants are expected to possess a domiciliary account or Dollar Master Cards”.

    The lawmaker also opined that inclusion of naira payment system will accord respect and dignity to diplomatic and trade partnership between Nigeria and the United Kingdom.