Gov. Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos
State, says governing the state is not an easy task, as he has lost weight in
just one week of assuming office.
Sanwo-Olu spoke with State House
correspondents after a private meeting with Vice President Yemi Osinbajo,
shortly after the expanded security council meeting on Friday, at the
Presidential Villa, Abuja.
According to him, governing Lagos
is not a tea party, as the experience and challenges are real.
“It is not a tea party; you don’t
sleep and wake up and the traffic has gone down; you don’t sleep and wake up
and there is no rain or say that you have resolved Apapa gridlock; it’s real.
“So, it is something that one has
psychologically prepared for; the best thing you can do, is to make sure that
you are not about looking for what the other person did.
“It is for Lagosians to see you
do what you promised to do for them.
“And if you don’t do it from your
office; you have to do it on the road; you have to do it where the issues are,
so that people will truly know that you mean business.
“In one week, I will say I have
lost weight; I will probably still lose a bit more, but I think it is worth the
job.
“It is also important to ensure
that you have the right team; people that will also support you; so, when as a
leader you can show that leadership support, then the message itself trickles
down and trickles very well,” he said.
He said that clearing of the
Apapa gridlock was work in progress, as efforts were being made to solve the
problem.
Sanwo-Olu said that the concern
of his government was to ensure that, what was done concerning the gridlock was
sustained as sustainability was critical.
He further said that his
administration was engaging all the stakeholders in the conversation around
port utility –Shippers’ Council, shipping lines and Nigerian Ports
Authority(NPA) and others, in order to achieve a sustained resolution.
On security in Lagos State, the
governor said it was something he attached much importance.
He said that security was
everybody’s business but as a governor, he had a major responsibility of
protecting lives and property of Lagosians.
“So, it is a work in progress and
for me in particular, it is something that I take so seriously.
“We are not just mouthing it; we
will ensure that we put resources and strategies that can help in place,
“We have been talking about
domesticating; the security trust fund that we have done is part of the
initiative
“We will continue to engage and
identify what are the sources; what are the underlying issues that bring about
insecurity.
“Are they economic or more than
that? So, we can also attack the root cause.
“For us, as a government that is
looking for investors. We certainly must continue to be in a position where we
can give confidence to all our investors that Lagos State is a safe haven to
come,” he said.
He said that the security council
meeting was paramount and thanked President Muhammadu Buhari for convening it.
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