Friday, 29th March 2024
To guardian.ng
Search

Jimi Agbaje restates determination to liberate Lagos, Etsako coalition backs Agbomhere for Rep

By Omiko Awa
12 December 2018   |   4:15 am
The gubernatorial candidate of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the 2019 election in Lagos State, Mr. Jimi Agbaje, has promised to bring back the glory of Lagos...

[FILE] Lagos PDP Gubernatorial candidate, Agbaje

The gubernatorial candidate of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the 2019 election in Lagos State, Mr. Jimi Agbaje, has promised to bring back the glory of Lagos and reposition the state as to the true megacity status that it deserves.

Also, a coalition of youths in Etsako, Edo State, but who reside in Lagos and environs, has endorsed the aspiration of Hon. Blessing Agbomhere for the House of Representatives’ election in next year’s election. The groups, which met in Lagos at the weekend, resolved to mobilise support for Agbomhere to win the seat.

According to the group’s Coordinator, Dr. Bello Itse David, the current representative, Hon Johnson Oghumah, has not attracted anything to the constituency, even as he is disconnected from the people who elected him to serve them.

He urged Agbomhere, who is contesting on the platform of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), to use the unity forum planned for Sunday in Lagos to unveil his manifestoes to the people.

Agbaje spoke at ‘Experience 13,’ organised by House on the Rock Metropolitan Church in Lagos, where he reiterated his mission to govern the state, saying it is to liberate the state and bring true freedom and democracy to the people. He noted that 20 years after the inception of democracy, Lagos yearns for freedom from godfatherism, dilapidated schools, hopelessness, poverty, and terrible traffic. He posited that a situation where a state is under the control of one man, things could never go well and charged Lagosians to use their votes to free themselves.

The PDP standard-bearer insisted that as a megacity, Lagos must rightly be compared with other cities around the world, regretting that the comparisons show Lagos to be one of the worst cities to live in the world as it is presently ranked 138 of 140 global cities.

According to him, “Twelve years after promising and commencing the construction of light rail system in Lagos, the project remains uncompleted. The example of the Addis Ababa Light Rail is instructive of what diligent governance can deliver. They commenced construction of the Addis Ababa Light Rail in 2011 – half-a-decade after Lagos.”

He stated that over the past two decades, the government of Lagos, managed by the same core of people, has collected a lot of money, adding, “An important question to ask is whether the outcomes generated by this level of expenditure has sustainably improved our state.”

Agbaje also promised to harness the entrepreneurial capacity of Lagosians to ensure that the economy grows rapidly and competitively to ensure that sustainable businesses are built to create and support employment. Without this, he noted, the further descent of Lagos into one huge urban slum would continue.

“We must rebuild the industrial capacity that in recent years has been lost to our neighbouring states,” he declared. “Improving the quality of life of our citizens will remain unattained if their access, irrespective of their socio-economic status, to adequate healthcare continues to be unmet.”

The Universal Basic Health coverage, according to him, to be run through a well- structured and financed health insurance scheme is a key priority for a PDP administration under his leadership, he assured.

On waste management problem currently facing Lagos, Agbaje maintained that it remains a matter of great shame that after 20 years of governance, the ruling party and its various re-incarnations are still unable to provide and implement a framework that ensures the continuous cleanliness of our state.

According to him, the failure of the state, despite huge resources, to discharge a responsibility as basic as waste management “belittles us at the same time as it endangers our collective health.”

Agbaje charged that Lagos State must work for all her citizens, as a place where they can live, thrive and have a future, noting, “This campaign is about a new future for Lagos built by the entire community of Lagosians. I am clear about the key imperatives towards a brighter future for Lagos and the role of government therein. The government must serve the safety and security of residents and visitors alike as they pursue their legitimate ambitions.”

0 Comments