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Tag: Special status

  • Assembly to continue agitation for special status for Lagos

    Lagos State House of Assembly Speaker Mudashiru Obasa has assured Lagos residents that the Assembly will continue to agitate for a special status for the state.

    He also said the Assembly will make amendments that will be beneficial to the state in the current amendment of the 1999 Constitution.

    Obasa addressed reporters yesterday at the opening of a four-day retreat on the budget process and an overview of the 1999 constitutional amendment organised by the Assembly for its lawmakers and workers at the Park Inn in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital.

    The speaker expressed optimism that the agitation will pull through.

    He said: “I am sure the agitation for a special status would be achieved because we deserve it. It is not just for political reasons or any other thing but because of the status of Lagos in this country and in West Africa.

    “I am sure the current administration will see reasons behind this demand and agree with us that we deserve what we are asking for.”

    Obasa said other areas of amendment the Assembly was working on which, are crucial to the state, apart from special status and devolution of powers to states, include “motor plate numbers, issuance of licence, waterways and so many other areas that are crucial to us. These are sources of revenue for Lagos state”.

    The speaker assured Lagosians that the Assembly will next year continue to improve their standard of living through legislation, resolutions and cooperation with the executive “so as to raise the bar in Lagos state”.

    He said the retreat was meant to create a better understanding of the budget process among the lawmakers and workers, especially as the governor will soon present the 2018 budget to the Assembly.

  • ‘Lagos deserves special status’

    ‘Lagos deserves special status’

    Former Lagos State Deputy Governor Sarah Sosan, in this interview with Group Political Editor Emmanuel Oladesu and Musa Odoshimokhe, speaks on what she has been since leaving office; the alleged marginalisation of women in politics and how the Federal Government is working to reposition the country.

    What have you been doing after leaving office as deputy governor?

    I want to say that I have been having my quiet time. I have been able to do what I like doing in my private capacity. I have been doing what is relevant in the education field. I have established the Sarah Adebisi Sosan Foundation. For now, the foundation is focused on the development of youths and women in my local government area in Ojo. I have been meeting people to counsel them on issues that will promote their progress and wellbeing. Generally, I have devoted my time to human development.

    What do you consider as your legacy as former deputy governor and Commissioner for Education?

    I am happy that the legacy I left has not diminished, because the quality of education in the state has continued to improve. It is obvious that teachers are now better off, in terms their contribution to the promotion of learning and quality education. These efforts are being geared towards training and learning in schools. Our schools have improved; our students and pupils are excited because they are making progress in learning and other education curricular. Though system may not be perfect, but at least we are happy when we look back and see what is happening in view of the legacy we left behind.

    Lagos has just celebrated its 50th anniversary. What are your reflections as a Lagosian?

    I want to thank God for Lagos State, because when you look back to the 60s, 70s, 80s and 90s, and up to this moment 2017, trying to introspect to the giant stride and development Lagos has recorded, I want to say it has been tremendous. It is commendable, because Lagos has leaped forward in terms of structures and has recorded outstanding progress. Like someone who just arrived Lagos State from oversee recently alluded to it, the development witnessed in Lagos is unbelievable. That is also the testimonies of many people and we give glory to God. I have seen a lot of developments in the state. Lagos State has gathered international recognition as a state to be reckoned with and we must commend all those who have been party of the success story.

    How did you feel when you were not able to complete the second term with former Governor Babatunde Fashola?

    It is a natural thing that one will feel pained, because nature will always play its role in everybody’s life. Everybody loves success, everybody loves to be great, again lets gives thanks to God that I have the opportunity to serve the people in that capacity. It is God who makes things happened; it is not by act of man. If God says thing will happen this ways nobody can change it. As a Christian, I know everything is possible with God. If God says you will prosper, you will and if He says you are not going anywhere, you will go anywhere no matter your efforts. I was disappointed but by the same token I took everything calm and give glory to God. I felt it but I have my peace. People were coming to me, trying to say one thing or the other to urge me on. But, for it not to be seen that I did not appreciate their efforts, I made some moves, but when it was very clear that the matter was a case closed, I accepted it that way and have my peace. I was calm and have my peace.

    How did you emerge as deputy governor?

    That is a story that was all over the place. I had spoken about it on several platforms. Like the case of former Governor Babatunde Fashola, he said he never planned to be governor. In my case, I equally never planned to be Deputy Governor; it is only God who determines where people will be. I was not a politician, but again I was born into the family of politicians. And when the opportunity came, I took it calmly and when I was invited to serve in that capacity I accepted it. I later got to know about lots of things that had happened around my choice as Deputy Governor. I thank God for my choice. My father was a politician and when it came to election period; my father ensured that we all voted, he tutored us on this civic responsibility.  Nobody was exempted from participating in the voting process. I think it was another way of compensating my father for his loyalty and service to the people. My father went through a lot as a politician. Sometimes he was accused of things he never knew about but he remained dogged and emerged clean from such blackmails. So, I think it was a way of just compensating him when I was chosen.

    How were you able to cope with the home front as deputy governor?

    As you can see, I was able to cope because my domestic staff was quite supportive. My husband was very supportive and it was a balance between my office and the home front. I did not allow one to suffer for the other.

    Politics, they say, is a dirty game. What was your experience?

    I want to say that politics can be dirty and it can be is quite interesting as well; it depends on the way you take it. For me, I don’t allow it to be dirty. Politics is all about understanding what you want. It involves lots of intrigues, lot of back stabbing and other challenges. A politician once told me that if you want to destroy your opponent, we know how to package the plans. What he said it surprised me and I wondered at it, but that is how some people can go when it comes to politics. Some people don’t have conscience when it comes to politics, they can drag to any extent.

    What is your assessment of the Ambode’s administration?

    I want to look at the previous leaders of the state. So, let us start with our national leader and our father, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, and others like Baba Lateef Jakande. I was a young lady then when Jakande was governor and he did a lot to promote the development of education. Today, many that have education was because of his programme. We thank God that Jakande provided school system that helped grew the education of Lagos State. The state also made remarkable progress when our leader Asiwaju when he came on board. He did a lot of things to enhance education, many schools were built, and there were lots of appreciation by stakeholders on the model put in place by these leaders. The good platform he established was sustained by Fashola and has been further advanced by Ambode. The roads have been improved upon. The Aboru roads axis which used to be a difficult terrain has become huge success, the Ajah roads connection and other road network are testimonies that government has made progress in the past decades.

    What is your position on the clamour for special status for Lagos?

    I support the moves by 100 per cent. Look at Lagos State; it is one state that is so cosmopolitan in nature. It is one state you have every tribe or ethnic group in the country residing within it. Lagos is a mini-Nigerian. People are saying that if I go to Lagos, my life will change and they are actually making it in the state. That is one state that harbours all tribes. It is one state that takes a lot or burden off the federal government in term of what people gain from the state. So, why should it not be given a special status? The state deserves that special status. We are the one that generates more VAT in the country and we are not getting what is due to us. Even members of other countries prefer to come to Lagos State, given this situation, Lagos State deserves the special status and it should be accorded it as a matter of priority.

    In your view, has Buhari met the expectations of Nigerians?

    I will say yes. But, there is room for improvement. So, when you consider the kind of economy that the administration met, the kind of empty purse and treasury inherited, the administration should be commended. Looking at where the money was coming in the past and how it has dried up when we took over, I think people should appreciate that government has been trying. The oil which sold at very impressive rate before we came had fallen below expectation. But, apart from the issue of mono-economy that has been the challenge of the country; I think our government should look into agriculture in order to do better. If government does that things will improve, the confidence that people have been losing will be reposed. I think people should do their home work to get information before they should lay claims to what has not really taken place. It because of the lack of knowledge many people seem not to understand how things have been going on. They should look at the high level of terrorism that had taken place, the money that had been diverted and some have even refused to return the money they have misappropriated up till now. When you look at the whole issue, you discover that this is not the way to go. Corruption has manifested itself in many ways in the country and I think the government has been battling it to ensure that the country has a new direction.

    What is your assessment of women participation in politics?

    Women have proven that they are good managers. The few ones that had been there have shown that they can do better than men. When you look at the statistics you will see that women have not been well represented in politics. The 30 per cent women affirmation is not even enough where you have women totaling half of the population. Looking at the present composition at the National Assembly and even state assemblies, women participation in the last election has been low. We have been marginalised, I think women should be encouraged to do better. Again, women and men are partners in progress, but that is not to say we should be relegated to the background.  

    The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) won some councils in Lagos State during 2015 elections. what were the lessons?

    We all know why it happened that way. We all know that it was because of the money they stole at the national level, which they put into the election that aided their agenda. It is really unfortunate that politics has been monetised to the level it is. But, we thank God that all that is now over and it will never repeat itself again in the state. I as a leader in my council and other leaders of other councils have looked at it and maybe, we did not work hard enough in the past. That has been corrected.

    How is your party resolving the Lagos council primary crisis?

    Was there any crisis? There were no crises to the best of my knowledge. There was primary and like in other climes there were issues. And whatever it was there is a way of resolving issues. We are working hard and noting short of success is expected at the polls. So, our people should work for the success of our party as well. In the last 2015 election many intrigues played out and money was used to infiltrate us by the PDP that will never happen again in the state.

  • Lagos chiefs call for special status for Lagos

    Lagos chiefs call for special status for Lagos

    The Association of Lagos Titled Chiefs has presented a bill seeking one percent allocation to Lagos from the revenue accruable to the Federal Government.
    They presented the request to the senator representing Lagos Central District, Oluremi Tinubu, in Lagos.
    They recalled that, arising from the South west zonal public hearing on proposed amendment of the 1999 Constitution in Lagos, it was the opinion of the people of Lagos that the city-state be given a special status.
    The association, therefore seeks for a revisit of the bill on the special status of Lagos.
    In a statement, the Chiefs said: “As key stakeholders with varied interests in the cosmopolitan city of Lagos and the economic capital of Nigeria, we have continually stressed that Lagos remains the commercial and industrial capital of Nigeria with a contribution of about 60% of the nation’s GDP.
    “Lagos State is also the largest employer of Labour in Nigeria, a situation which only a special status can sustain as we are convinced that the passage of the bill would translate to economic prosperity and well-being of Nigerians. A city-state that mirrors Nigeria, it is where virtually every community in the country has considerable representation and accommodation.
    They added: “Our request for this special status is hinged on the fact that Lagos is the largest city in the country with a population of over 21million people occupying a strategic place in the individual and collective lives of Nigerians, one of the fastest growing cities in Africa with very rapid inner-cities growth and among top ten of the world’s fastest growing cities and urban areas. The resultant huge urban population continue to put enormous pressure on amenities and services and pose peculiar security challenges for the state.

  • ‘We ‘ll continue to fight for special status for Lagos’

    ‘We ‘ll continue to fight for special status for Lagos’

    Hon. Adefunmilayo Tejuoso is the Chairman, Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights, Public Petitions and Lagos State Independent Electoral Commission (LASIEC) in the Lagos State House of Assembly. In this interview with MUSA ODOSHIMOKHE, she explains how members of the public are responding to rights violation and other issues. She also speaks on the agitation for special status for Lagos State.

    How is your committee handling cases of human rights violation?

    There are quite some petitions which have been addressed by the committee of the House on rights violation. The obvious reason is that people no longer feel to express what affect them. Again, members of the public have confidence in what we do to protect them. When the petitions come, we do everything humanly possible to discharge our responsibilities properly. People are beginning to be aware of their rights, this also includes children and I thank God the child right law is equally out to support the position.  There is lot of work to be done as lawmakers; people have been urging that we help them to safeguard their rights. We will make sure that rights are not violated.

    Looking at the violation of the rights of women and children, what are you doing to protect them?

    With what is in place, people are more confident that they will get justice. We have domestic violence and child right law in place to protect the vulnerable group of the society. People now go to court to demand for their rights, they go to court to complain when they have cases of violent against them. They are more encouraged now because people have been empowered to do what is needful. The issue of stigmatization is gradually taking the back bench, those violated do go out now to report cases of abuse meted against them to the place they expect to find justice. In the past, people used to be silent about it because of the stigmatization attached. Women usually would not like to report their husbands to avoid situation where they will be labeled as those who make life unbearable for their    husbands. These are the kind of things that is prevalent in society, lot of people wants the violence against women to stop, yet they don’t want the marriage to stop. They want the law to end violence against the vulnerable.

    How best do you think those violated can get their dignity restored?

    There is a better understanding about the law and the fear of stigmatization issue presently than it used to be. The law helps to work against these things. It is better for one to open up in order to provide the way for a rapist to be prosecuted. We know that it is not their fault, if they are raped; it is a form of violent. It is not a thing done with the consent of the victim. With the law in place now, people are willing to talk about it than they used to do in the past. The sensitization has help people to open up on the various cases of rapes taking place in the country. People are been sensitized that you don’t blame yourself for the things happening to you.

    What are the collaborative efforts between the House and government to ensure rapid development in Lagos?

    We have members of the National Assembly that represent Lagos State at both chambers. Senator Oluremi Tinubu has been pushing for the welfare of Lagos; she has been a front-liner for special status for Lagos State. She and her colleagues at the Federal level have been pushing for recognition of the status. So far, so good, we have been working together, urging the Federal Government to consider the urgency in the matter we have been pushing for. We are more confident now, with the All Progressives Congress (APC) led government. It is not only Lagos State that would be taken care of, but other states. Prior to now, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) led government has been selective in its treatment of the states. So far, we have worked together as a unit.

    Your party, APC has been said it has not managed the success it achieved easily…

    The APC did not achieve its success on a platter of gold; it worked very hard for it. Asiwaju Bola Tinubu made huge sacrifice to ensure that we were able to win, to win the federal government to our side. We must acknowledge that some people worked very hard for it. To be able to remove a sitting People Democratic Party (PDP) Federal Government, I think the APC must be commended. It shows that they have failed as PDP led Federal Government; this is in view of the good examples set by the APC states in the country. In Lagos state for instance, you can see development in action right from Tinubu, through Babatunde Fashola and Akinwunmi Ambode Lagos State has witnessed progress.

    There is conflict in the APC, how will it get over this?

    There is no conflict in the APC. What President Muhammadu Buhari’s wife Aisha wanted was that members should be carried along to position the party for development. We are the broom; we should work together as a team. She was merely echoing the need for us to work as a team and to remember where were coming from, but I must let you know that we don’t have problem in the APC which people want to capitalise on to blackmail the party. Sometimes, we disagree to agree and where you don’t agree on certain things, understanding must be showed. With the APC at the head, we are going to make a difference in terms of governance.  I want us to commend President Buhari, our leaders who have done so well, there is wisdom in what they did and have done it well. Our national leader, Tinubu believes you must go out and work for what you believe in, things do not just happen, but the effort you put in is very important. If you are contesting election in 2019, you do not suddenly jump into the field in 2019, you ought to have started before then. I believe that in Ondo State, we have a good chance of winning the election because the people believe in us not just at Federal Government level but across the other levels.

    How is Lagos coping with economic challenges?

    Lagos prioritises its programme and plan out its budget and funding. When you take oath of office, you talk about the welfare of the people and if they don’t get paid, how are you fulfilling your obligation then? The people have to be paid; there is no special market for civil servants or other members of the community. It is the same market we all go to, so if we are being paid our salaries, they too must be paid their salaries. The Lagos State government believes in the people of the state, it is the people that constitute the state. We must ensure that peace and harmony reign by ensuring prompt payment of salaries. Government has to do everything possible to ensure it works out this way before any other thing.

    Lagos State government has been accused of arbitrariness when demolition is being carried out…   

    There is no house or any other structure that is built which if they have to demolish, adequate notice is not given. When you acquire property for public use, the law supports that government can take over property from an individual for public good. Road is public good, hospital, school, but when you do that you have to do other things to make sure that the people are ready. You have to give them some kind of compensation and notice before anything is done to such property. I believe that Lagos State government follows due process in the execution of this order. A lot of people built on drainages and land that they do not have legal ownership. The government has to give them time to relocate, but when you give them time, they do not obey the instruction given to them. That becomes their own problem because they fail to make use of the time government has given them to vacate such premises. Government has not been arbitrary in performing its constitutional responsibilities.

     

     

     

     

    What would you consider your major efforts at the present assembly?

    Let me same I am working on equal opportunity law, the gender and equal opportunity law is being discussed at the federal level. The law at the federal level was stepped down, I don’t want to use thrown out. We were working on it as well in Lagos State, but unfortunately the tenure ended before the House could look at the detail, maybe we could have passed the law at that time. We are working on it now and hoping that we get it passed it in Lagos State. The law will ensure equality in everything we do. We will have equality in employment opportunities and things like, the law will advance the cause of fairness and harmony.

  • Lagos speaker commends Ambode over call for special status 

    Lagos speaker commends Ambode over call for special status 

    Speaker of the Lagos state House of Assembly, Hon. Musadhiru Obasa, has commended Governor Akinwunmi Ambode for his determination to see that the state is accorded a special status by the federal government. According to the speaker, Ambode demonstrated this zeal during a recent visit of a senate committee led by Ahmed Yerima to the governor.

    The governor had during the visit reiterated the need for the Senate to reconsider the motion sponsored by Senator Oluremi Tinubu for Lagos to be granted a special status. The motion was, however thrown out by the senator’s colleagues when it was brought to the chamber at plenary. After listening to Ambode, Yerima  promised that the motion would be re-considered by the Senate.

    The speaker said Governor Ambode’s complaint to the senators would complement the motion passed by the state Assembly for a letter to be written to the Senate on the need to reconsider the motion to grant Lagos a special status. Obasa argued that the mega city status of Lagos state with about 26 million people  comes with many challenges including those of environmental pollution and emission of dangerous substances, housing and transportation.

    “People must move using mass transit, the railways must be opened and there must be effective water transportation and these are some of the basic needs of a mega city with a special status. Moreover, it is already known that Lagos is the commercial city of Nigeria and a former capital of the country. A chunk of the country’s GDP is got from Lagos.

    “The revenue from value added tax majorly comes from Lagos and the state is a mini-Nigeria with representatives of all ethnic. groups. Most of the federal structures in the state are still being maintained by the state government. These alone are enough reasons why Lagos should be granted a special status,” the Speaker said.

     

  • Senate and special status for Lagos

    Senators were recently engaged in fierce debates over a bill seeking for an Act to make special provision for federal grants to Lagos State in recognition of its strategic socio-economic significance and other connected purposes. The bill, sponsored by Senator Oluremi Tinubu (Lagos Central), purportedly sparked huge uproars at the upper chamber that it took the frantic intervention of Senator Ike Ekweremadu who presided to still fraying nerves.

    An earlier bill on the subject presented during the 7th Senate was turned down at the committee level on the ground that such status should be a matter of political decision, which should be kept out of the constitution. Thus, it could be said that with the 8th Senate, the bill made an appreciable progress.

    It is important to stress that in a multi-ethnic and evolving democracy like ours, several of the tendencies that frustrated the Lagos special status bill cannot be entirely wished away. Nevertheless, it should be emphasized that it is rather regrettable that the bill was majorly discarded because it was perceived by its protagonists as a Lagos bill.

    The truth, however, is that the need to accord a special status for Lagos is more of a national project. There is hardly any Nigerian that doesn’t have a stake in Lagos. A special federal grant for Lagos is, therefore, a necessary blueprint for the development of the country. Being the pane through which the whole world views the country, granting a special status to Lagos remains the best possible way to drive Nigeria’s development as Lagos is the country’s most industrialized city with needs that align with national growth and development.

    On the position that Lagos State already has sufficient resources to meet its needs, it is important to affirm that the population, cosmopolitan and commercial standing of the state put a huge pressure on both its resources and infrastructure. The present downturn in the national economy equally exerts further pressure on Lagos as many see the City State as a place that offers a glimpse of hope for economic survival. Consequently, according to a recent survey, Lagos witnesses the influx of about 25, 000 people daily from all walks of life.

    Lagos State government, in the last 16 years, has invested a huge amount of money on infrastructure development, especially construction of drainages, durable roads, beautification and restoration of parks to forestall the negative impact of flooding, erosion and other environmental hazards. However, these efforts are not enough for obvious reasons. Today, Lagos does about 9,000 metric tons of refuse daily, more than what the whole of Ghana is generating. The branch networks that some banks have in Lagos outstrip what they have in the whole country.  The number of heavy duty trucks and other vehicles that ply Lagos roads on a daily basis is quite alarming. Same goes for the number of pupils in its public schools as well as those that daily visit its public hospitals. Consequently, the state spends more on infrastructure upgrade and provision of other basic life necessities than any state in the country.

    Aside the pressure on its infrastructure, there is a crucial moral angle to the quest to accord Lagos a special status. When the FCT was moved from Lagos to Abuja, there was a subsisting agreement that the city would not be abandoned. Indeed, the Late General Murtala Mohammed acknowledged the onerous nature of the responsibility of leaving Lagos alone to deal with the burden of infrastructure the federal government was leaving behind then.

    No nation grows by treating the needs of its golden geese with discomfiture since the future growth of the country’s economy is tied to the development of Lagos which generates the bulk of the VAT accruable to the country, hosts over 85 per cent of Nigeria’s industrial hub, over 65 per cent of its financial nucleus and over 75 per cent of its active workforce. With each day, the population and needs of Lagos continue to increase to reflect this important role. As the economic hub and former capital of Nigeria, Lagos remains the first port of call for eager millions of youths from all parts of the country who long for means of survival from the uncertainties of a struggling economy like ours.

    It is hoped that the upper chamber and other critical stakeholders would rise above sentimental considerations and treat the issue at stake more dispassionately. In order to ensure that new windows are opened for development and growth in the national economy,  it is only rational that the federal government constructively engages Lagos for a partnership that would enhance the prosperity of not only the state but the country at large.

    • Tayo Ogunbiyi,

    Ministry of Information and Strategy, Alausa, Ikeja.

  • Why Lagos deserves special status, by Razak

    Chief Lanre Razak, a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Lagos state and former governorship candidate, spoke with EMMANUEL OLADESU on the Buhari and Ambode administrations, the agitation for special status for Lagos and other issues.

    What is your reaction to the rejection of the Lagos Status Bill by the Senate?

    I felt very bad when I heard the news. It shows that our senators are not true Nigerians. They are behaving as if they don’t have the interest of the people at heart. Those who come from the north see themselves as northerners; as people who have nothing to do with Lagos. Those who come from the east and opposed the bill, see themselves as easterners; forgetting that Lagos occupies a very sensitive position in the economy of this country. Look at the contribution of Lagos to the Value Added Tax (VAT). What does the state get back in return from the Federal Government for that? The Ministry of Niger Delta was established to give back to the communities where we produce oil. Thirteen per cent of our earnings are assigned to give back to people in those communities. Lagos State alone produces about 70 per cent of the total VAT generated in this country. What do we get for? Lagos consumes about 60 per cent of our fuel. That means the Federal Government is earning a lot of money from the fuel consumed in Lagos, but what do we get back to improve and sustain infrastructure in Lagos? What they forget is that any status granted to Lagos is not for indigenes of Lagos alone; it is for all Nigerians in the state. Any status granted to Lagos is to strengthen the economic base of the country in general. So, they are playing dirty politics with lives of Nigerians from the four corners of the country. The denial they gave to Lagos is very saddening and I believe God will touch their mind; they still need to change their mind and reconsider their stand. They should know that for every action there is a reaction; equal and opposite. Lagosians need not behave as if we are militants; we don’t need to do that. I believe that people in Lagos are civilized, but I still believe that those senators who shot down the bill have done terrible things to themselves and to those of us who live in Lagos, because all of us stand to benefit from the rejected bill. I want to appeal to them to have a rethink.

    What is your position on the debate to grant full autonomy to local governments?

    That is the way it should be; in a true federal set up, local governments should have full autonomy. But, when you look at the attitude of Nigerians to governance, local governments should be one of the strongest tiers of government in the country, because they are the closest to the people. So, they need more money to meet the needs of Nigerians at that level. The Federal Government does not need as much as 56 per cent revenue from the Federation Account. That is why corruption is pervasive at the national level. They should increase the amount of money that is allocated to the states and local governments. We need more service delivery at that level, so we also need key professionals to be in charge, render quality service to the people. Again, the political heads, a lot of them are there for economic reasons, not because they are matured enough to handle the duties of head of government at the local government level. They are not matured, but that is not the reason we should not give the councils autonomy. I am an advocate of economic autonomy, as well as political autonomy to local governments at the level they are operating.

    What is your take on the renewed clamour for restructuring?

    It is not strange to hear that. I congratulate the politicians and Nigerians. We have been under military rule for too long and at the time the military were leaving office, a lot of things were not tidied up. We were in a hurry to push the military away. But now that they are gone, like minds ought to regroup, to come up with political parties with ideology. If that is what you mean by restructuring, let it be; yes we know the party that cares. We know the party that truly wants to serve the people; we know the party that acquires power merely to milk the nation to death. During the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) era we didn’t see serious impact of political parties in governance. In the same vein, I am yet to see the cohesiveness, the bond in the All Progressives Congress (APC), to give support to their government to deliver its campaign promises to the people. As long as this situation remains like this, people will always ask for political restructuring.

    What can President Muhammadu Buhari do to alleviate the suffering in the land?

    People are clamouring for the devaluation of the naira, but since our economy is not export driven, such a policy will not help. How many companies are engaged in full production of goods at the moment? So, if we devalue we cannot exploit the opportunity to produce more for export. If you devalue and you only import, it will make the cost of the products very expensive and it will hurt Nigerians more. My advice is for Mr. President to look at the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). Are we getting it right at the CBN? He should look at his Economic Management Team; are we getting the best advice at that level? Let there be a serious pathological examination of all structures of government. We said the PDP mismanaged the nation for 16 years and most of the people in key positions and parastatals now are those appointed politically by the PDP. In one and half years plus they have not deemed it fit to remove some of the elements of the PDP in government. Do you think these elements will wish the APC government well? They may have their reasons for keeping them in government, but I don’t think that is the right thing to do. You have been given the position of President of Nigeria to manage effectively the values, the resources both animate and inanimate objects that are available for you to meet the needs of Nigerians. That is what I think he should do.

    In your view, did the President appoint the right persons to run the economy, particularly in view of the recession?

    Loyalty is key in whatever you want to do. If you want to run a media house, for example, the first set of staff you look for first are those who would be committed to the set goal; who would be loyal to your mission. How can I honestly work for you?  I agree that there are some appointments that should be made without partisan considerations and they will deliver. But, there are some that got their appointment on the ticket of a political party and the party in government didn’t appoint them; such people can never wish you well; they can never wish you success and those are the things I think the President should look at and be properly advised.

    What are your expectations from the Senator Ken Nnamani-led committee on electoral reforms?

    There is no way you can stop war without removing the cause of war. What are the factors responsible for monetization of the electoral process by Nigerians? Eradicate poverty and a lot of things will change for the better.

    How would you rate Governor Akinwunmi Ambode’s administration so far?

    We are lucky to have Mr. Ambode as governor of Lagos State. Also, I use this opportunity to thank the APC National Leader and former governor of Lagos State, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, for his choice of people managing Lagos. Look at the achievements of former Governor Babatunde Fashola and look at what Mr. Ambode is doing in Lagos. He is simply fantastic. He is fantastically doing good things in Lagos and he is a fair-minded person. He is spreading development to the nooks and crannies of the state. Recently, he took members of his cabinet to Badagry for two weeks, to hold executive council meetings and go round on projects inspection, to ascertain where there is need to provide the right infrastructure to boost tourism in the area. He is working in Alimosho and Abule Egba, providing fly-overs; providing overhead bridges in Ajah and other amenities. He is also in Epe, upgrading existing roads and providing new ones. But, there is one critical thing he should do for us in Epe: We appreciate all that he has done so far, but we may not be able to maximize the benefits if we don’t have our road from Ibeju dualized to Epe.

    Again, Ambode has a special way he studies the infrastructural facilities and needs of people, regarding traffic management in Lagos. Look at the Third Mainland Bridge. Before now, if you leave Lagos Island around three o’clock on work days, you’ll find traffic hold-ups from Lagos until you get to the old toll gate on Lagos-Ibadan expressway. But, he deployed experts to study that area and they discovered that the need was not as much as envisaged. After a scientific study, the bus-stop at Oworoshoki, on both sides was improved tremendously and today the traffic congestion there has fizzled out. They also moved to Alapere. There, the government created a road from the Oando Petrol Station to link Alapere straight and that showed that it is people that are turning to Alapere from Ogudu that were causing the traffic bottlenecks and once that was done the problem was solved. He has saved not only man-hours which in terms of monetary value you cannot quantify, but it also has a lot of ripple effects on our economy. For instance, the transporters, it has improved tremendously their turn around. Instead of doing two or three trips daily, they can now do more than 20 and earn more money from their business. So, even as a businessman who will be thinking how he will go to Lagos once a day and that is the end of the day’s work, you can now go as many times as possible, because the traffic situation has improved tremendously.

    The Light Up Lagos Project is another worthy initiative of commendation. Even with the high cost of diesel, N210 per litre, Ambode is still getting money to buy diesel to light up Lagos. This is happening at a time some states cannot pay their teachers. If you get to most parts of Lagos at 2am, Lagos is awake; if you get to Lagos at 3 am, Lagos is still awake. That is fantastic and that is Ambode for you. The salaries of civil servants and teachers as well as pensions are being paid as at when due. We need to encourage and support Governor Ambode and that is why I felt terribly bad when I heard of the decision of the Senate to reject the Lagos Status Bill sponsored by distinguished Senator Oluremi Tinubu, who represents Lagos Central Senatorial District. This is a bill that ought to be considered, because Lagos needs special attention. Ambode is working and Lagos is working and Nigerians should pray for him for God to give him good health, long life, wisdom to continue with this good job he is doing in Lagos. We are very proud of him, especially those of us from Epe, where the governor hails from.

  • Will Lagos ever get special status?

    Will Lagos ever get special status?

    FOR decades, the agitation a special status for Lagos, the former federal capital and Nigeria’s commercial nerve centre, has been on. The mega city shoulders enormous national and regional responsibilities. There is much pressure on the social amenities provided by the state government. Many Nigerians thought that the city state would achieve the dream under the Buhari administration. Their hopes were rekindled when Senator Oluremi Tinubu (Lagos Central) sponsored “A Bill for an Act to make provision for federal grants to Lagos State in recognition of its strategic socio-economic significance and other connected purposes” in the Senate. However, the hope was dimmed, as majority of the senators shot the bill down at its Second Reading. Group Political Editor EMMANUEL OLADESU revisits the endless clamour for a special status for Lagos, the prospects and the constraints. 

    THE bustling nature of the populous city is discernable in the morning when the traffic snarl and sheer movement of people create a pilgrimage scenario. Thousands of vehicles enter the city from sunrise. Few of them would leave before sunset.

    The population of Lagos soars geometrically everyday as people from all over the federation flock to it in search of greener pastures.

    Lagos is prided as a prosperous city, owing to the fact that it hosts the headquarters of multi-national companies playing leading roles in the economy. But, the pressure on its social amenities makes any robust investment in social infrastructure like a drop in the ocean. Schools are congested. Health centres appear grossly inadequate. Some federal roads are an eyesore, although Governor Akinwumi Ambode is vigorously fighting the infrastructure battle. Thousands are jobless and homeless, making violent crimes an option for frustrated and idle hands. The state government, which has been elevated by circumstances into a mini-Federal Government, carries the burden.

    Senator Oluremi Tinubu’s bill was meant to address some of these problems in the national interest. Noting that Lagos is under strains, she said: “It is obvious that Lagos State has been left to deal with these pressures on its own at a huge cost.”

    The senator from Lagos Central District believed that appropriating an amount not less than one per cent of the total revenue accruing to the Federal Government to Lagos as a first line charge from the Federation Account would be a right step in the right direction. She said the economic assistance or grants will be utilised in meeting the infrastructural needs of millions of Nigerians who have made Lagos their home. The allocation would also be invested in improving on railway infrastructure to decongest the roads, and to make the socio-economic environment friendly.

    But, the “Bill for an Act to make provision for federal grants to Lagos State in recognition of its strategic socio-economic significance and other connected purposes” was rejected by the majority of the legislators.

    Senator Aliyu Wamakko (Sokoto North), who opposed the bill, said it was untimely, adding that it could not scale through because many states cannot pay salaries. Senator Gershom Bassey (Cross River South) and Senator Philip Adua (FCT) said they would only support the bill, if Calabar and Abuja would receive the same consideration.

    Since the relocation of the seat of power from Lagos to Abuja, the city has been denied the status of a former national political and administrative headquarters. Nigeria has refused to follow the paths of other countries, such as like the United States and Brazil, which accorded their former capitals special status when they moved them to new cities.

    Commending Mrs Tinubu for pushing the need for Lagos State to be recognised and rewarded with a special status and grant into the forefront of national discourse,  Ambode said that history would remember the senator for her thoughtfulness and courage.

    In a statement by his Information and Strategy Commissioner Steve Ayorinde, the governor said that without prejudice to the decision of the Senate to stand down the bill, Senator Tinubu’s informed position and push will remain an important contribution as well as a reference point in the national economic discourse.

    His words: “At a time that our country needs courageous voices that seek solutions that can benefit millions of Nigerians irrespective of where they are from, what the distinguished Senator Oluremi Tinubu has done is to draw attention to how Lagos State can provide more succour to Nigerians being the home to the largest assemblage of Nigerians.

    “She has drawn attention to how Lagos deserves to be assisted so that the state can further provide assistance to millions of Nigerians. It is a pity that this import was not seen from that perspective by the majority of her colleagues.”

    “The truth of the matter is that as the most populous Nigerian state and the commercial heart-beat of the entire West Africa; a state that would have been the fifth largest economy in Africa if it were an independent country, Nigeria needs Lagos in order for other parts of the country to continue to benefit from Lagos.

    “A special status and a special grant are fair requests that would have encouraged and rewarded Lagos State for what it contributes to the federal purse. A yes for the bill would have provided an opportunity to truly reflate the economy and empower Lagos State in serving as home to more than 21 million Nigerians and as hub to the largest volume of businesses and foreign direct investments in Nigeria. But clearly, a spectacular opportunity has been missed by ignoring this important bill.”

    Former House of Representatives member Opeyemi Bamidele, who served in Lagos as Commissioner for Information and Strategy, pointed out that, despite the relocation of the federal capital from Lagos to Abuja, the city has continued to parade a whole lot of economic peculiarities and opportunities that have strategically positioned her as the centre of all visible economic planning and policy processes in Nigeria.

    This is the premise for the renewed agitation for special status championed by the state government and some leaders of the state. Indeed, many Nigerians also want the former federal capital to be accorded a special status, both as the commercial capital and the mega-city shouldering enormous national and sub-regional responsibilities.

    Piqued by the neglect by the Federal Government, former Kaduna State Governor Balarabe Musa said Lagos deserved “special federal attention” as home to all Nigerians. “There is no politician and businessman of note who does not have anything to do with Lagos. It is the commercial capital of Nigeria,” he added.

    It is an understatement. Across the pre-existing 20 local governments and additional 57 Local Council Development Authorities (LCDAs) in the five political divisions of Ikeja, Lagos, Epe, Ikorodu and Badagry, there is a thin line of difference between the indigenes and non-indigenes. Unlike in other states, the doors of political and elective offices, and the civil service are not shut against non-indigenes, who now appear to be in the majority in the urban areas, to the exclusive advantage of the sons of the soil.

    Echoing Musa, former Federal Commissioner for Works and Housing, Alhaji Femi Okunnu (SAN), a Lagosian, said successive Federal Governments have not acted in good faith by refusing to accord Lagos its pride of place, contrary to early assurances. He recalled that, before the relocation of the capital to Abuja, the Gowon administration had set up the Federal Government/Lagos Committee to recommend certain special considerations for the city. The committee, he said, was chaired by his counterpart in the Ministry of Finance, Alhaji Shehu Shagari, who later became the President of Nigeria. But, the recommendations did not see the light of the day.

    The late military Head of State, Gen. Murtala Muhammed, whose administration approved the relocation of the capital from Lagos to Abuja, following the late Justice Akinola Aguda-panel report, had promised that the city would not be abandoned because of its position as the economic nerve centre of the country.

    Former Lagos House of Assembly Speaker, Senator Olorunnimbe Mamora, said the decision was captured by the minutes of the defunct Supreme Military Council (SMC).

    The relocation of the federal capital was a phased programme. The former military President, Gen. Ibrahim Babangida, who completed the exercise, also assured that Lagos would not be neglected as the former chief city. When Babangida moved the Presidency to Abuja, prominent women leader, the late Alhaja Abibat Mogaji, reminded him during the inauguration of Third Mainland Bridge, to redeem his promise to Lagos. “As you relocate to Abuja, keep your promise to Lagos,” she told Gen. Babangida.

    When the late Head of State, Gen. Sani Abacha, mooted the creation of zonal centres of excellence, he accorded Lagos a priority, along with Port-Harcourt, Kaduna, Kano and Enugu. However, it did not become a reality.

    Successors to the military hegemony systematically wreaked havoc to Lagos. Apart from frustrating the metro-line project conceived by the administration of former Governor Lateef Jakande, they also short-changed the state during the creation of additional council areas. Kano and Jigawa, which were one state before, now have almost 80 councils, Lagos have to contend with the 20 local governments listed in the constitution. When former Governor Bola Tinubu decided to create additional 37 councils, the Federal Government under former President Olusegun Obasanjo erected roadblocks.

    Flaying the retired General for his opposition to the popular move, House of Representatives member Rotimi Agunsoye said it underscored his insensitivity to the plight of Lagos. “For 14 months, the allocations to these councils were illegally seized by the Federal Government, which could not even make any impact on the state for eight years,” added the former Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs commissioner.

    In 2004, there was a row between the federal and Lagos governments over the national census. The Tinubu administration had rejected the census figures of nine million for the state, insisting that the figure of the state-sponsored head count, which was 18 million, captured the population of the metropolis.

    When Gen. Obasanjo left office, prominent Lagos leaders, including Okunnu and Oba Rilwanu Akiolu, took on the battle of reclaiming Lagos lands and other property illegally acquired by the Federal Government. Also, many Lagosians have picked holes in the non-payment of revenue to Lagos State by the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), which makes billions of naira daily in the city. Irked by the denial of a portion of the earnings, former Lagos State Transport Commissioner Bosun Jeje said: “We need to gain this fresh understanding that, in many coastal countries, the host state or region, by regulations, deserves a fraction of the revenue accruable from port activities.”

    “The Federal Government controls the ports, no doubt. But, the host state should not be neglected by the port authorities and multi-nationals transacting businesses there, which must not shrink in their corporate responsibility to the state.”

    Prof. Sola Adeyeye, one of the senators who supported the special status bill, said if the oil-producing states could receive 13 per cent derivation, Lagos, which generates the highest Value Added Tax (TAX) deserved special funding.

    “In Lagos, all of us pay tax. All of these VAT is taken to Abuja. What we need to do is to say whatever is good for the goose is good for the gander. If it’s 13 per cent for Delta, Bayelsa, Rivers for oil, let it also be 13 per cent to Lagos for the VAT paid there,” he stressed.

    Even, foreign officials acknowledge the importance of Lagos to the country. World Bank officials, who visited the late President Umaru Yar’Adua in Abuja were taken aback when no representative of Lagos State government was in the team that first accompanied the President. Taking a cue from that omission, the former President later had to give the then governor Babatunde Fashola (SAN) a special seat in his Economic Team.

    As far back as 2001, the World Bank had rated Lagos as the regional economic capital of West African States. Also, the Vision 2020 and the National Financial Sector Strategy document have emphasised that Lagos was crucial to any economic calculation and reform process contemplated by the Federal Government.

    Bamidele adduced other reasons the state should be accorded a special status within the federation. He said as the commercial hub, Lagos contributes 31.98 per cent to the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

    He said: “Lagos is the nation’s lead contributor in the non-oil sector, with the 19 per cent attainment, which is equivalent to the contribution of 13 Nigerian states.

    “The city of Lagos alone accounts for over 70 per cent of national industrial investment, 65 per cent of total cargo freight, over 50 per cent of Nigeria’s communication subscribers and over 70.16 per cent of international and 58.30 per cent of domestic aviation traffic.

    “With three lighter terminals and two ports, Lagos generates 50 per cent of Nigeria’s port revenue and the Murtala  Muhammed Airport, located in the heart of Lagos, is the major hub for aviation within West Africa, as well as between the regions and Europe.”

    Many experts believe that the economic potentialities of Lagos even make the special status consideration more compelling. Apart from the fact that, historically, it had served as the seat of government from the colonial days, Lagos is a huge city, with sprawling population thirsty for sophisticated infrastructure. Covering an area of 3,600 square kilometres, the port city offers easy access to the rich natural resources, including natural gas and oil. In the Lagos hinterland of Epe, Apa-Kingdom in Badagry, Eti-Osa, Ikeja and Ikorodu, are found crude oil and bitumen, silica sands, clays and woods.

     

  • Special status for Lagos

    Special status for Lagos

    But for dirty politicking, this is obvious

    But for our kind of politics, there is no reason why people making a case for special status for Lagos should sweat before their prayer is answered. Unfortunately, our society has not yet developed to the point where superior arguments would trounce mundane and partisan considerations. Senator Oluremi Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) representing Lagos Central Senatorial District brought the matter to the front burner of national discourse again on Wednesday at the senate through a bill, titled “A bill for an act to make provisions for Federal Grants to Lagos State in recognition of its strategic socio-economic significance and other connected purposes”. The bill was read for the second time when other senators, particularly those from the north, south-south and south east overwhelmingly voted against it”.

    The bill sought one per cent of federally generated revenue as special grant for Lagos State because of the state’s former capital’s socio-economic significance. According to Senator Tinubu, “Lagos is of a strategic, social, economic significance as the commercial nerve-centre of Nigeria. Today, Lagos serves as the commercial capital of Nigeria and its major nerve-centre. The strategic importance of Lagos is inherent in several sectors of the economy. Available statistics indicate that six out of 10 international passengers arrive in Lagos, while eight out of 10 depart from Lagos. This shows that Lagos is the window through which visitors travel in and out of Nigeria.”

    The case could not have been better or more passionately argued. According to her, the state is beset by a number of socio-economic challenges due to its being the country’s former federal capital.  The percentage quoted by Senator Tinubu is for international passengers alone; the statistics of other Nigerians travelling into Lagos, with many of them not returning to wherever they came from, is equally astounding.

    Incidentally, Senator Tinubu’s bill would be the second such attempt at seeking special attention for Lagos, at least in this dispensation. Regrettably, both attempts failed. The bill was first presented to the upper chamber in the 7th Senate, but the lawmakers rejected it at the committee stage. The then Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu-led Senate Ad-hoc Committee on Constitution Review on June 5, 2013, ruled out special status for Lagos. It said in its report: “On special status for Lagos, while the committee appreciates the peculiar needs and challenges of Lagos, it is our considered opinion that according such special status should be a matter of political decision, which should be kept out of the Constitution.”

    One wonders what this is supposed to mean. If you agree that Lagos has “peculiar needs and challenges”, why leave the matter to the whims and caprices of political leaders in the country, most of whom lack the maturity for the high offices they occupy? They reduce everything to politics and see issues from narrow parochial perspective. We can see evidence of this from the statement of Senator Gershom Bassey, Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Cross River South, who said he would only support the bill if such attention is granted Calabar, the first capital of Nigeria.

    I have nothing against lawmakers making passionate case for their constituencies. But when we begin to consider apple with oranges, we run into problems.  I won’t be categorical or committal on whether the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) be given the same status as Lagos as Senator Philip Tanimu Aduda, PDP, FCT, wants before supporting Senator Tinubu’s bill. “I will support it (bill) on one condition, that what will be given to Lagos State should be given to other states like the FCT. Some special allocations should be given to FCT. The FCT is over-stretched and government needs to intervene. In the FCT, we have riverine areas.” We need to look at the record, what was the situation like when Lagos was federal capital?

    But it would appear that Senator Bassey feels those making a case for special status for Lagos are doing so simply because it is the former federal capital. I am sure he knows better; that that is not the plank of their argument. The main plank of their argument is the pressure that Lagos is bearing as a result of its being the former federal capital.

    The point is; the population of Lagos keeps increasing daily, with many of those coming into the place not returning. Even if only for those transiting, the figure is huge. The population of Calabar is put at about 371,022 (2006 census). The population of the whole Cross River State is 3.738million (also 2006 census). On the other hand, the population of Lagos, even at the contentious 2006 estimate, is about eight million; the state government argues that it is more than 16 million, which is more like it, given the number of people the government provides for by way of infrastructure, which is overstretched. Some people may dispute this for whatever reason, but it cannot be denied that the state caters for the teeming number of people leaving various parts of the country for the ‘city’. This imposes a lot of strain on infrastructural facilities in Lagos.  Even many of our representatives and senators find Lagos irresistible as they abandon their dull life in Abuja for the alluring Lagos city life at weekends and during major public holidays.

    This is why one finds the reason adduced by Senator Aliyu Wamakko, APC, Sokoto North, who also kicked against the bill, curious. He said the timing was wrong and that we cannot be asking that Lagos be given more cash at a time other states are struggling to pay salaries, especially as Lagos is the richest state in the country. By his logic (or illogic), that would make other states poorer and Lagos richer. Need the senator be reminded that the huge population of Lagos is a function of many factors? One of these is that it is the failure of most other states to govern responsibly that has necessitated the rush to Lagos en masse from most other parts of the country in search of greener pasture. Lagos does not have to be this congested if most other states had done the rightful.

    The point is; Lagos deserves more than its current federal allocation. Look at the Value Added Tax (VAT), for instance. The bulk of the tax comes from Lagos. Yet, Lagos does not have the benefit of equivalent returns. Senator Olusola Adeyeye, APC, Osun Central made a good point that Lagos deserves commensurate returns from the VAT proceeds. If 13 per cent is good for oil-producing communities, why not same for VAT? “By the same token, whatever you get from VAT, a certain percentage should belong to that community. We have among us a governor, who made a law that banned the consumption of alcohol. That’s what the people want. I supported it. He has the right to make the law. However, if my own people consume alcohol and pay VAT on it, he should not take a penny of what my people have for VAT on alcohol. “In Lagos, all of us are paying tax. And all of these VAT is taken to Abuja. What we need to do is to say whatever is good for the goose is good for the gander. If it is 13 percent for Delta, Bayelsa, Rivers for oil, let it also be 13 percent to Lagos for the VAT paid there’’, Senator Adeyeye said. This makes eminent sense. Indeed, if we go by the elementary principle of taxation, 13 per cent may even be small in this instance, given that a cardinal principle of taxation is that a reasonable part of the tax must be enjoyed by people in the area from where it came.

     All said, Senator Tinubu might have lost the case for now, but we should not be deterred. Mercifully, the loss was not due to superior argument but to the usual primordial sentiments. Whoever thought Senator Adeyeye’s reference to the FCT as “a pampered and spoilt child” was the reason why the bill failed does not know the undercurrents in this matter; the high-wire politics involved. That could have angered some senators; but it is not enough to make the senate reject an otherwise good bill. Our senate should not be throwing the baby away with the bath water over flimsy excuses. They did so the other time when the then President Olusegun Obasanjo was seeking ‘third term’: they threw away constitution amendment because of their aversion to ‘third term’. They have done it again with Senator Tinubu’s bill. A mature senate would always know how to separate Genesis from Exodus, (apologies to one of my former lecturers).

  •  Lagos’ security, state police and special status

    Public security is the function of governments which ensures the protection of citizens, organizations and institutions against threats to their well-being and to the prosperity of their communities. Of late, there has been pervasive concern over the state of security in Lagos. Pockets of incidents of traffic and robbery cases across the state have heightened fears over security in the state. Unfortunately, it will be an arduous task to extricate the insecurity in the land from the socio-economic challenges that we currently face as a nation. Nigeria’s growing unemployment rate is of major concern. Official figures from the Bureau of Statistics put this figure at about 20% (about 30million). But this does not actually include about 40million other Nigerian youths captured in World Bank statistics in 2009.By implication, it means that 50% of Nigerians are unemployed.

    It is, therefore, imperative that concerted efforts be made by the federal government to fix the economy. A cursory look at apprehended criminals, of late, will reveal that most of them are unemployed people, especially artisans whose businesses have been crippled by the energy crises in the country. The most systematic approach to reducing crime in any society is through the provision of an enabling environment for entrepreneurship to thrive and catalyze employment generation.

    The current security situation in Lagos has connection with present economic downturn in the country. By 2016, unless a miracle occurs, a greater percentage of the states in the country might not be able to pay workers wages, not to talk of embarking on development projects. Few self-sustaining states like Lagos might have to really brace up as more pressure would be exerted on their socio-economic potentials. This is exactly what Lagos is currently experiencing. A recent data reveals that over 25,000 people move into Lagos on a daily basis from several parts of the country for various reasons. This is aside hundreds of others that daily troop into the state from neighbouring West African countries. Sadly, when their aspiration for economic salvation becomes a mirage, most of them readily take to crime.

    Despite the fact that security remains the exclusive preserve of the federal government, as it controls all security agencies, the Lagos State government has continued to invest heavily in security. In the last 15 years, for example, the state has invested billions of naira on the state police command as well as other security organs in the state. One of the earliest tasks of Governor Akinwunmi Ambode was to meet with individuals and corporate organisations that made commitments of over N1billion in cash and kind towards advancing the course of a safer Lagos. Consequently, 10 brand new Hilux vehicles and 15 motorbikes were handed over to the Lagos State Police Command as part of the state government’s commitment to ensure a secured and investors’ friendly state. Likewise, 100 new power bikes, 10 armoured tanks and a helicopter have been acquired by the state government to reinforce the security of the state. This is in addition to the purchase of 100 new squad cars for a new initiative tagged Special Operation Service (SOS), which will harmonize community policing in partnership with the Rapid Response Squad (RRS).

    To properly address the security question in the state, we need to   tackle the contentious issue of state police. No matter how much a state government spends on security, the reality is that it has no direct control over any of the national security organs. The current centralized police structure in the country will continue to limit the capacity of states to effectively address security issues. Nigeria is too large and complex to be policed centrally. In an ideal federal system, the issue of state police should not be a contentious matter. In order to enhance security in the country, the issue of state police must be urgently addressed.

    Equally related to this is the issue of according Lagos a special status. The special position of Lagos as the commercial nerve centre of Nigeria, and indeed West Africa, has its peculiar infrastructure and security challenges. Its sheer human density driven by an increasing population due to endless survival and economic driven immigration, its ports and waterways, its border with Benin Republic, its high concentration of banks, industries, companies, and other commercial enterprises makes it a very complex state to govern.

    When the federal capital was moved from Lagos to Abuja, there was a subsisting agreement that Lagos would not be abandoned. However, successive federal administrations have refused to take a cue from countries which relocated their national capitals without abandoning infrastructure development of the former capitals. It is now time for Nigeria to imitate Germany, Brazil, Malaysia, Australia and Tanzania, which, after relocating their capitals, did not hold back developmental programmes in the former capitals. From 1954 to 1994, the capital of Germany was Bonn. It was moved to Berlin, following the endorsement of the ‘agreement of movement’ which spelt out the responsibilities of German government for the maintenance of the old capital and which it has been meeting conscientiously.

    Also, Brazil moved its capital from Rio-de Janeiro to Brasilia. To date, all federal roads, buildings and other infrastructure in both cities are maintained simultaneously by the central government. Malaysia has also maintained two capitals. Its old capital, Kuala-Lumpur, has been retained as the legislative capital, where the National Assembly operates. Its new capital, Putrajaya, which is the most computerized city in the world, is the administrative capital. In Australia, the old capital, Sydney, still enjoys special recognition. Although Canberra is the new capital, most activities of government, international conferences, party conventions and meetings still hold in the former capital city. The former capital of Tanzania is Dar-es-Salam. When Dodoma became the new capital, the old capital did not suffer neglect.

    The federal government should take a cue from these examples by according Lagos a deserving special status. There is hardly any Nigerian that doesn’t have a stake in Lagos. According Lagos a special status remains a necessary blueprint for addressing the state’s security and infrastructure concerns. It should, however, be noted that an effective public security cannot be obtained without the active involvement, participation and support of every segment of the society because public security is the responsibility of all individuals, groups, communities, organizations and other units  that constitute the state. In as much as everyone in a state pursues varied interests, the pursuit of public security should, nevertheless, be the common goal of all. The involvement and participation of individuals and non-governmental actors in the issues of public security is, therefore, a necessity for the actualization of a secured society.

     

    • Ogunbiyi is of the Features Unit, Lagos State Ministry of Information & Strategy, Alausa, Ikeja.