‘Ambode executing projects to transfer ownership to residents’

Projects in Lagos State are being conceptualised and executed by Governor Akinwunmi Ambode to make the residents take over their ownership.

The state Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr. Kehinde Bamigbetan, disclosed this yesterday.

Bamigbetan, who led management staff of the information ministry on a visit to The Guardian, said Ambode is committed to executing projects with some level of graciousness.

He explained that his administration is driven by the vision of harnessing the people’s energy for development, which it has the capacity and resources to tackle.

According to the commissioner, the government has recorded significant progress, because the media had put it on its toes by being watchful and responsive.

Bamigbetan disclosed that following his appointment as the commissioner for information and strategy, interacting with the different media platforms was adopted as a top priority, especially as a former newsroom man.

He said his job is to ensure cordial and mutual relationship between the state government and its internal and external publics, of which media is a critical element of the external public.

According to him, the way the media interpret the messages that the state government wishes to convey to the other publics would greatly affect the extent of the delivery of such messages.

He maintained that his visit is to build friendship and understanding, adding that like the governor, he is ready to listen, explain and take feedbacks about the activities of the state government.

Bamigbetan pleaded with the residents to give the government more time to rid the state of wastes, having already taken steps to clear the heaps of wastes from the streets.

He described The Guardian as the foremost liberal democratic platform that provided career growth directly and indirectly for many young journalists.
He said: “The words we string together today were got from The Guardian’s Literary Series and interestingly, the medium is still maintaining that tradition.”

He added that the government also seeks public understanding in the execution of its programmes and projects.

Acknowledging the governor as a listening leader, he cited his recent visit to Ladipo Market, where he solicited the traders’ co-operation in a project planned for the area.

The Editor of The Guardian, Abraham Ogbodo, commended the commissioner for visiting, describing him and the Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Idowu Ajanaku, who had had stint with The Guardian, as ambassadors of the flagship.

He noted that the state is too complex for any mediocre performer to fit in. He added that the government is a winning team because development drives politics and not the reverse.

This, he added, is why the state is making remarkable difference from others across the country.

Also, a former Editor of the paper, Martins Oloja, charged the Ambode-led administration to empower local councils to pay more attention to the construction of inner roads across the state.

This position was supported by the Editor, The Guardian on Sunday, Alabi Williams, who implored the government to be more transparent in its dealings, by making details of its contract and budget available to the residents.