2023: Why Lagosians’ll vote Sanwo-Olu for second term, by Omotoso, Commissioner for Information

 

As the campaigns for the 2023 general elections begin, all eyes will be on Lagos State, the commercial nerve centre of the country where two Jides, the incumbent governor, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, Olajide Adediran, will battle for the Lagos House, Alausa.

While the incumbent will be vying for a second term in office, the PDP candidate is contesting for the first time.

In this interview with AYODELE OLALERE, Mr Gbenga Omotoso, the Lagos State Commissioner for Information and Strategy, expressed confidence Lagosians will vote Governor Sanwo-Olu for a second term in office.

He based his conviction on some projects the governor has completed in his first term as well as some he will also complete and inaugurate before the election.

 

Sir, can you confidently say we making progress in Lagos in terms of development?

What is currently happening in Lagos today goes beyond progress.

Let me take you back about two days now, Mr. Governor said considering the situation of things all over the world; inflation rate, rise in prices of goods and services, and disruption in supply chains, everything is tight all over the world such as shortage of gas supply occasioned by Russia-Ukraine war among others, he felt it was time for us to raise the salary of civil servants so that one will not wait for them till they start to complain by threatening to go on strike before doing so. He said we are doing this because this is Lagos and we are Lagosians.

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That shows that Lagos is making progress, while others are saying that there is a downcast and that they are not feeling fine about what is going on about the economy all over the world.

And he is saying people should be excited because the gesture will put more money in their pockets and this will have an effect on those offering goods and services and the general economy of Lagos.

Considering the welfare of workers and infrastructural projects done in Lagos, I think Lagos is making steady progress.

But some people think the salary increment is political…

First, let us say that no matter what percentage we are talking about, even if it’s 0.5%, I think anyone that is putting more money into your pocket now is doing you good.

He is saying that we appreciate the service you’re providing and even though things are so hard for you, the civil servants are still carrying on and they are putting smiles on the faces of Lagosians who are coming to government offices.

No matter how low or high the percentage may be, I think the symbolism is that at this particular time, Mr Governor feels that workers deserve a raise and he has pronounced it.

And if you listen to him very well, he said he has instructed the office of the Head of Service, Establishment, State Treasury Office to come together to look at these and see what the numbers are and see how we can go about it but that workers are now going to enjoy a pay rise is a forgone conclusion.

I think the whole world is hailing him for doing that but if people are now saying it is for political reasons, let so many people in positions of authority also do so for political reasons and raise salary.

What people are looking for is someone who recognises the fact that they are toiling and that they deserve what they are getting. So,

whether it is politics or not, they don’t care and I feel that is the spirit that we all have to see in the gesture that Mr Governor has made.

On the issue of transportation and the Okada ban, do you think it was the best decision by the governor?

The Okada matter is emotional and troubling because considering the progress we have made in Lagos we are still talking about the ban on Okada, but that is the situation in which we have found ourselves. The Okada ban, when it was first pronounced, Mr Governor said it was going to be a phased ban because we do not want people to start complaining that we are taking their means of livelihood without giving them something in replacement, or that their means of transportation is taken away from them or an action that is targeted at a group of people.

We want people to see it as an action targeted at making Lagos safe and good for all of us.

It is not that we are saying those areas that the ban has not covered, that it will not get there, it’s a question of time because we have stated that Okada is not on the transportation plan that we have for Lagos, but because people are saying that it is a means of livelihood for some people and we are also trying to convince them that when you have a clash of a livelihood and lives,  that you have to choose lives.

And most Lagosians have chosen lives because so many have been coming that they don’t want Okada in their areas.

It is not the government alone that is seeing this big picture that we are talking about; the danger to lives, safety, and security concerns that Okada constitutes.

Okada cannot be allowed free reign in Lagos for them to think that they can ride anywhere they like. Where they have been asked not to go, they shouldn’t go there, and at a point in time, all of us should have it in mind that a decision will be made about other routes.

We are happy that the rate of accidents has slowed down and the number of crimes that people are committing through Okada has reduced.

The result of the ban on Okada in 10 local government areas has been yielding fruits and the compliance level has been encouraging.

Enforcement is not easy, but the police and community leaders have also helped to improve the situation.

Work seems to have slowed down on road construction and rehabilitation. A section of Lagosians believes that governance has been abandoned for politics. What’s your take?

If anybody thinks things have slowed down in the area of road maintenance, the person is not right. Public Works Corporation works 24 hours, day and night, and people attest to this through the feedback that we are getting.

If you get on social media, you will see where they are working and how they are swiftly intervening in potholes across the state. If anybody says they are doing that because political campaigns have started, the person may be a politician.

Last year, Lagos and Ogun states signed an MoU on the rehabilitation of border towns. What is the latest on the implementation of the MOU?

It is not everything that the government does that is put on the pages of the newspaper or television. When we had a crisis on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Lagos was there to clear the blockage that we have on our roads. On security matters too, when they said people were being threatened on that road, Lagos and Ogun security officers joined hands to ensure that the place is safe to date. Also in the area of traffic, we are doing a lot together to ensure it was clear, we have a smooth ride on that road now.

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The Adiyan waterworks is also there, they have an agreement that Ogun will support Lagos to complete the project, and some Ogun communities that are supposed to get money from Lagos State because of their property that will be affected by the construction along that corridor saying they should be given water and not money.

Don’t forget the road from Ijebu-Ode to Epe has been completed and we are doing our own too from the Lekki-Epe Expressway. We also have another link road in Ota, Ogun State.

You will see that the commission is working, especially in the security aspect.

The first and last-mile buses the state provided are not enough making people stand in long queues at bus stops…

When you think about getting somewhere fast, and you later end up with your legs hung somewhere in the hospital, that is not good. The government wants Lagosians to commute in decent buses that make them leave their cars at home to go and ride buses. The first and last miles buses, by the last count, we have pushed out 400, though the government promised 500

Any moment from now, the remaining 100 buses will be released into the system. In terms of security, you have to put the necessary gadgets in it, that is what caused the delay.

Concerning the traffic situation; there are over 9,000 roads in Lagos, there is no way the government can fix all roads in three years. We will continue to fix all of the roads through Public Works, but the most critical thing about traffic is the human element. People don’t obey the rules.

If we can obey the rules, there is no way we will have traffic. People don’t want to use the layby to drop off passengers but once we remove the human element, the traffic will reduce drastically.

Recently, the BRT buses increased their fares. Also, the buses are no longer air-conditioned…

The government gave enough notice and we had to do that because most of the buses run on diesel and the prices just went over the roof and there was no way they could cope. BRT services are not for profit making, because if you’re talking about profit and you give it to private sector people who want to charge appropriate rates, many Lagosians will not be able to afford them.

What is the government doing about providing alternative means of transportation?

We are building the infrastructure for the Blue Line rail system that will take passengers from Marina to Mile 2. We  also have the Red Line that will convey passengers from Oyingbo to Agbado, both of them will be ready at the end of this year

A few days ago we saw the trains for the Red Line arrive at the port. That shows that the rail project that we are working on is an alternative that we are talking about and it’s a linkage among all models of transportation. If you check the records you will see that more people are now using our waterways because they have seen that it’s safe and faster and we now have more routes and we are also building more water jetties in Badagry, Ikorodu and other divisions of the state.

What are some of the projects waiting for inauguration?

We have over 30 schools to be inaugurated. We also have housing projects to be inaugurated before the end of the year, and jetties are also included.

In the past, the government used to organise town hall meetings for the governor to interact with the people. But we have not witnessed such a thing recently?

It is not that the town hall meetings are dead, it’s seasonal. It’s just that its season hasn’t come.

Remember, immediately after the slowdown of COVID-19, Mr Governor was in Ikorodu and Ajeromi and this kind of interaction took place and was supposed to continue but other things crept in. The interaction between the government and people is still on, but not in its usual format.

The PDP candidate, Jandor had been accusing the governor of preventing him from using billboards to advertise his campaign. He also said the state has not been paying pensioners. What’s your reaction?

My response to such an allegation is to laugh. Everybody knows that Lagos is the only state that is not owing pensioners. Up till date, Lagos is paying pensioners every month.

Regarding the backlog that we have, Mr Sanwo-Olu has been clearing it, and over N1billion was allocated to that and he has cleared it till 2021. It is not that the backlog came during his administration, it’s been there since.

The pensioners are happy with him. Anytime that he has the opportunity to meet with the pensioners, you see the excitement on their faces, that inner joy that makes them feel you’re not neglected. I don’t think for political convenience anybody should come up and say Lagos is owing pensioners.

Can you confidently say Lagosians will vote for Governor Sanwo-Olu for a second term?

Considering the way Lagosians view all that he has done, over 1,049 school projects, 635 roads fixed, thousands of teachers who have been trained in Lagos through Eko Excel, and if you go to our hospitals now, they have been upgraded. For the first time, we are building a new General Hospital in the Ojo Local Government Area, we have Oba Sekunmade Road in Ikorodu, Buba Marwa Road, a Food Hub in Ketu Ejinrin, a Mental Health Centre, that we will be inaugurating before the end of the year. Lagosians are people who appreciate good jobs.

If you go and ask about the street credibility of Babajide Sanwo-Olu, they will tell you it’s very solid. I believe Lagosians will tell Mr Sanwo-Olu that you have done well.

Whatbout the housing rent scheme?

If you look at the way things work here, everything is like building a house, it is a process. For every project that we are doing, we are putting in all the processes.

If Mr Governor says very soon he doesn’t mean it would be delayed. He is someone that stands on his promise.

When he made the pronouncement, he was talking based on the information that he had, there may be other things that may slow down the plans, but once he makes a policy pronouncement it is something we will follow up till it will be done. Another thing is that we are working with the private sector on that, and once you are working with external people, they are those who will probe so many things before putting pen to paper. Maybe that was what caused the delay.

The streetlights project seems not to be working and Lagosians are not happy about it.

What we are doing about the streetlight is retrofitting. Some of the street lamps we were used to are not sustainable economically.

It’s not sustainable to spend millions of naira on diesel. It’s not progress, and it doesn’t show a sign of creativity to be spending millions on streetlights. We are trying to connect everything.

The government knows the importance in terms of security, beauty, and safety. We will all love all the street lamps to be on every time.

By the time we finish the retrofitting, the whole state will be better lit than it is at the moment.

There are so many beggars in the state. Also, the body cameras government launched for some security agencies are not being used by them?

On the body cameras, the security agencies are supposed to be trained and because of the numbers involved, not many of them are using them at the moment, but we have deployed the ones available to the officers and they are using them for the purpose it was meant for.

But the move is a bold attempt to make technology work. By the time we finish the laying of cable around the state (the fibre optic ducts) and there is faster internet, mobile companies will key into this, and activities around the city will be seamless.

On street begging, Lagos is a victim of its success, people are coming in droves into Lagos and many of them come, intending to beg.

The government is doing a lot to ensure we clear Lagos of beggars but it is a herculean job because we are prohibited by the law from sending people back to where they are coming from. The constitution allows for freedom of movement, and because things are happening in other parts of the country, Lagos is seen as a haven away from the states with banditry, terrorism, and others.

For us to tackle this problem we are going to continue to increase our advocacy and at the same time enforcement.

On payment of taxes, many Lagosians do not know how they can key into the tax policy of the state.

Let me just thank Lagosians that are paying their taxes. People always talk about Lagos being very rich and they question what we are doing with the money.

Lagos has about six million taxpayers out of about 25 million population. And out of this six million, only 4.2 million are active taxpayers.

And most of them are from what you get from LIRS and people who are working for companies and their taxes are being deducted from their pay, we call them pay-as-you-earn. That is where the bulk of the tax is coming from.

There are still so many big people who don’t pay taxes in Lagos and there are so many companies that try to dodge taxes, but LIRS is working to see that their tax net is expanded to see that those that are supposed to pay are paying.

It will be nice to know that many Lagosians are coming up by themselves to seek information on how to pay taxes because they have seen the projects that the government is doing with the taxes collected. I feel a lot can still be done to bring more people into the tax net.

What is your message to Lagosians?

Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu is quite appreciative of their support and he is never going to take it for granted they should continue to support him.

He has the interest of people at heart and his own is that Lagosians must be happy and Lagos must be put in the right place as the pride of the Black man and that Lagos will continue to succeed so that all of us all over the world can be proud that we have an economically stable state with true leadership; a leadership that loves the people, and anytime he calls on them to do one thing or the other for him they are going to back him.