I am shocked when people say ‘what has Babajide Sanwo-Olu done’? I can recall several landmark achievements of Governor Sanwo-Olu in the blink of an eye. The Lagos State Polytechnic and Adeniran Ogunsanya College of Education were upgraded to universities to solve the age-old dichotomy between Universities and Polytechnics. While universities all over Nigeria were on strike for eight months, no Lagos state-owned institution joined them for an hour, talk less of one day. Governor Sanwo-Olu has vowed that no public institution in Lagos will go on strike under his watch. The governor has built over 1,000 new classrooms while renovating over 100 schools and equipping them with computers and new laboratories in line with his vision of transforming Lagos into Africa’s premier smart city. Sanwo-Olu never abandoned his predecessors’ projects but rather completed them to consolidate on the overall Lagos city masterplan. Example is the Pen Cinema flyover in Agege. Governor Sanwo-Olu conceptualized and embarked on the Opebi-Ojota link bridge to ease traffic along that corridor. The bridge is near completion. The Lagos Blue Line rail project designed to move millions of Lagosians from Mile 2 to Marina is now a reality, thanks to Governor Sanwo-Olu. A transformative project, the Lekki Deep Sea port, West Africa’s largest was built, commissioned and activated under Governor Sanwo-Olu who takes pride in the expected 200,000 jobs it will create for Lagosians. What about the gigantic Lagos Rice Mill at Ikorodu, Africa’s largest and the 4th largest rice Mill in the world, a brainchild of the hardworking governor of Lagos who envisioned producing 2.5 million bags of 50kg rice annually to meet Nigeria’s food needs and also export. In less than four years, Governor Sanwo-Olu’s administration has built over 70 roads from scratch and rehabilitated over 700 others. The 38 kilometer, multi billion dollar 4th Mainland bridge project has kicked off in earnest, thanks to the visionary Governor of Lagos State, Babajide Sanwo-Olu. It’s okay if you don’t like Sanwo-Olu, but stop peddling lies that he has done nothing in office.
It is a general saying that “Until you realize how easy it is for your mind to be manipulated, you remain the puppet of someone else’s game”, and nothing can be truer than that quote in the light of Nigeria’s situation at the moment. The 2023 general election was meant to usher in a new era of renewed hope in a nation that is reputed to be the giant of Africa, but has successfully awaken an evil gnome of manipulation and bigotry in our youths like never before despite our alleged collective exposure. On March 11, Lagosians will be polling to either re-elect the sitting governor or replace him with another aspirant from one of the other political parties gunning for the Alausa seat at the centre of excellence. Lagos is a state with the highest number of voters in the South Western Nigeria. It boasts of vibrant and comparatively more educated electorates, representing a wide array of the nation’s ethnic groups. Statistics from the recently concluded presidential election shows that approximately 1/4 of the total number of registered voters were accredited to vote on February 25, 2023. There was an upset in the usual results trend, where the ruling party, the All Progressive Congress, APC, was overtaken with a slight majority votes by the Labour Party that polled a total of 582,454 votes against APC’s 572,606. The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, the historic second -fiddle horse in Lagos elections was edged to a record low of 75,750 votes. I may not be interested in the analysis of what went down in the election as there is an urgent task at hand; the requisite re-election of the incumbent governor of Lagos State, Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu. For those whose sense of judgement have not been coloured by mischief makers, it is an easy affirmation that Lagos State is working by every standard. Looking around you, there is always a testament to that fact. A litmus test of the fact that Lagos State is working is the reality of a working integrated public services system: Lagos remains the ONLY state in Nigeria (roll in the FG) with a working toll-free emergency line, with chronicles of how it has saved the day in incidences of fire, security, disaster and many more across the state. Babajide Sanwo-Olu is a new convex curve in Lagos’ trajectory to regional dominance and global relevance. From the very first day, BOS has shown what he is made of as a member of a set of first-class governors that Lagos has been blessed with since 1999. He swiftly moved in to salvage the lot of Lagosians with respect to the perilous time his administration advent into. From leading the entire nation to successfully manage the COVID-19 pandemic, to rolling out his brilliant T.H.E.E.M.E.S. agenda, Sanwoolu came ready for the job from day one! Aside from working out the long-standing vision of previous administrations, anchored on the objective of making Lagos a mega city of the 21st century-kind, five months ago, Sanwo-olu’s government launched a 30 year development plan for Nigeria’s commercial capital, which is to be implemented between 2022 and 2052. It is imperative to note that the plan is necessary to achieve the goals of becoming Africa’s model mega city, while also positioning Lagos as a global, economic and financial hub that is safe, secure, functional and productive. Sanwo-Olu’s personality is cut from character traits uncommon with most Nigerian politicians, and ever since his assumption of office as the governor, he has rolled up his sleeves and got down into the trenches by ensuring that the state continues to move forward positively. I’m a serial entrepreneur, and having traveled across the nation and outside its shores, I can declare without equivocation that Lagos State, under the APC, provides the best business environment for my business concerns to flourish. You can then understand my situation when I, Adesola Fajobi, say that I refuse to be used to derail such brighter prospects for my business and that of many other hardworking Lagosians like me. Returning Sanwo-Olu as governor should be the most important task of every single Lagosian in this coking election. I refuse to be brainwashed to go against all the years of great works put into developing Lagos to make it the 5th largest economy in Africa. The Ehingbeti Lagos Economic Summit has provided a platform for the articulation of Lagos economic and developmental agenda and progress, which Sanwo-Olu continually showcases with incontrovertible developmental strides. He has commenced the construction of a new airport on the Lekki axis of the state after his government obtained approval from the federal government for the construction of the new airport in Lagos, and also completed the Lagos Blue Line rail project designed to move millions of Lagosians across the state. Other laudable projects include the completion of the Pen Cinema flyover in Agege, the Opebi-Ojota link bridge, which is nearing completion, the largest rice mill in Africa, the Lekki Deep Sea port, upgrading of four higher institutions to universities and so many more. Why change a winning and working formula? Why allow a newbie to turn a functioning society into a leadership testing ground? Sanwo-Olu is sellable, tested and trusted. Why would I allow myself to be used as an agent of destruction to give greedy politicians tickets to return Lagos to ground zero? Mr. Governor always provides robust responses, demonstrating a deep understanding of the economy, governance, the people’s expectations and desires. This is something I wouldn’t want to stop benefiting from. If his administration would be evaluated only by the COVID-19 pandemic, there is no gainsaying that Sanwo-Olu performed excellently. Instead of throwing up his hands in defeat, Mr. Governor became the incident commander, and immediately went to work as he locked down the state, activated all the state apparatus – media, security, public health, emergency management, etc., thereby saving millions of Nigerians lives. He duly earned the country the fourth position in the list of the countries in the world that handled the pandemic well. This is a verifiable fact. With his years of experience in the private sector, he quickly worked with major players to set up isolation centres, infectious diseases centres, amongst other steps. It goes without saying that if Sanwo-Olu had failed as a leader during this dark period in our life, we may not be here now talking about 2023 election at all. Today under Sanwo-Olu, the Lagos Health Insurance Scheme costs only N40,000 a year for a family to enjoy from primary to tertiary health care. I refuse to be cowered by a mob that sees nothing good in Lagos, and are hell bent on fostering other candidates with no track records of performance. Governance is not a matter for experimentation I’m a father, a businessman, an entrepreneur, a brother and so much more like you; living in Lagos and flourishing under the present APC-led government. Come March 11, 2023, I have chosen to cast my vote for Babajide Sanwo-Olu to continue leading and serving Lagos with great achievements. You should do the same too. Follow person wey know road
High Chief Abiola Ogundokun, the Obanla of Iwoland, has hailed the victory of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) at the just-concluded presidential election.
While congratulating the President-Elect in a letter made available to newsmen on Wednesday, the Iwo high chief described Tinubu as a political enigma whose political experience, sagacity and know-how is worth studying.
He maintained that Asiwaju’s presidency will usher in an era of prosperity and unprecedented development for the country. He added that the victory of the former governor in the keenly-contested election is a victory for the generality of Nigerians, particularly the common man.
The letter reads: ‘’Your Excellency, accept my warm congratulations on your victory. I extend my best wishes for your success as you prepare to take up the responsibilities and challenges of leading our beloved country into an era of prosperity and high hope.
“Your victory at the polls is no doubt a victory for all Nigerians. It is now very clear that you’re a man destined for this challenge of leading at this particular period.
“The victory is reward for hard work and doggedness both of which you exemplify. While others busied themselves with frivolities, you strategized. You worked for this victory and you earned the reward.
Mr. President-Elect, once again I congratulate you. ’’ The elder statesman wrote.
It would recalled that the publisher had about five years ago predicted that the former Lagos governor would one day hold the highest position in Nigeria.
‘’I said this long time ago that Asiwaju would one day become Nigeria’s President and it has finally come to past’’
Chief Ogundokun also urged Asiwaju to extend an olive branch to the candidates that lost at the polls and to use his leadership quality to build a government of National unity.
Group Chief Executive, Oando PLC, Wale Tinubu, has joined other notable Nigerians to congratulate Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu over his election as the 16th President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. In a statement issued, he wrote ‘’ I congratulate Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu on his victory in the 2023 Presidential elections this is a testament to his stature as a visionary, iconic and resilient leader. Under his leadership of the Federal Republic of Nigeria the President-elect will deliver on his promise of “Renewed hope”, …poverty alleviation, economic prosperity all underpinned by justice, peace and national unity’’
Stating further, Mr. Tinubu said ‘’I wish him all the best and I look forward in particular, to the youth and the private sector playing a central role in support of his efforts to build a progressive, safe and secure future for our great nation.
I pray that Allah Subhanahu wa ta’ala grants him the wisdom, courage, strength, and decisiveness to deliver the Nigeria we all desire’’ He added.