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Tag: Lagos

  • Sanwo-Olu promises to subsidise cost of drugs

    Sanwo-Olu promises to subsidise cost of drugs

    Gov. Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State says his administration will provide health palliatives for the residents, by subsidising drugs to improve their well-being.

    Sanwo-Olu made the promise at Ikeja, during the 2023 Community Day Celebration, with the theme: ”Community Engagement, A Veritable Tool For Infrastructural Development In Rural Communities,” on Thursday.

    He said the health palliatives, which would soon be rolled out by his administration, would cushion the effects of high prices of drugs, as a result of the economic challenges in the country.

    The governor said the government was aware of the growing cost of pharmaceutical drugs in the country.

    Sanwo-Olu said the state government would provide subvention to citizens on medical products; as it was done in the transportation sector; as well as food distributions.

    ”We are not going to leave you in various communities; we will continue to provide amenities for all of you in the rural areas. We are going to reach out to all the nooks and crannies of the state.

    ”Today, we are here to appreciate you and thank you for your efforts aimed at developing the grassroots.

    ”As you know, we have slashed the transport fare. We have provided palliatives of foodstuff. We are going to do more.

    ”The cost of drugs is also rising. As a responsive and responsible government, we will also provide palliatives on medicines,” he said.

    The governor also appreciated the various Community Development Associations (CDAs) in the state for their support during the last general elections and for re-electing him and his deputy, Dr Obafemi Hamzat.

    Sanwo-Olu said more projects would be executed at the grassroots, adding that his administration had created the Office of Rural Development; and appointed a Special Adviser; to ensure speedy implementation of community based programmes.

    He said the Office of Rural Development was dedicated to taking complaints and addressing the needs of Lagos residents, particularly those in the state’s suburbs and rural areas.

    Speaking earlier, the Special Adviser to the Governor of Rural Development, Dr Nurudeen Agbaje, said the theme of the event resonated with the state’s developmental agenda.

    Agbaje appreciated the CDAs in the state for their support, through self-help projects, which according to him had complemented government’s efforts at delivering dividends of democracy to residents.

    He also commended the winning CDAs for their self-help projects to develop their communities, with a call on other CDAs to support the government in infrastructural development.

    Also speaking, the Chairman of the Community Development Advisory Council, Alhaji Azeez Amusat, called for the review of the state’s CDA constitution, with an appeal to Gov. Sanwo-Olu to construct a Community House as state secretariat for all the CDAs activities in the state.

    Amusat, who thanked Sanwo-Olu for his support and commitment to the welfare of residents in the state, appreciated him for the confidence reposed in the CDAs, particularly the distribution of palliatives to residents across the state, through the CDAs.

    During the event, four 18-seater buses were presented to the first, second, and third CDAs, namely Greenland Estate CDA in Eti-Osa East LCDA.

    Others are Royal Estate CDA in Egbe Idimu LCDA and Elepe Royal Estate in Ikorodu Council Area, while the best Rural Community Award went to Araromi CDA in Ibeji Lekki LCDA.

    Consolation prices of N500,000 each was also given to the fifth to 10 CDAs respectively.

  • JUST IN: Sanwo-Olu presents N2.2tr ‘budget of renewal’ for 2024

    JUST IN: Sanwo-Olu presents N2.2tr ‘budget of renewal’ for 2024

    Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu on Wednesday presented a budget estimate of N2.2 trillion for the 2024 fiscal year to the state House of Assembly.

    The state has once again burst the budget chart, way beyond what other state governors are projecting for the 2024 fiscal year.

    The Appropriation Bill, titled, ‘Budget of Renewal’ comprises recurrent expenditure of N1.02 trillion (45 percent) and capital expenditure of N1.224 trillion (55 percent).

    The Economic Affairs takes a chunk of the budget proposal with N539 billion.

    The governor noted that the 2024 budget proposal will further cushion the effects of the fuel subsidy removal and other economic hardships on the people.

    He added that the budget, in building on the 2023 ‘Budget of Continuity’, will focus on the provision of very important infrastructure such as Fourth Mainland Bridge, Food and Logistics Hub, Lagos/Epe International Airport, among others, for the people’s benefit.

     

     

     

     

  • Police IG deploys CP Adegoke to Lagos

    Police IG deploys CP Adegoke to Lagos

    The Inspector-General of Police, Mr Kayode Egbetokun, has deployed Commissioner of Police, (CP) Fayoade Adegoke to take over as new CP,  Police Command in Lagos.

    The redeployment is contained in a signal signed by the Force Secretary, AIG Olanrewaju Oladimeji.

    Recall that before his new posting,  Adegoke was in charge of Armament at the Force Headquarters, Abuja.

    While serving in that capacity, he was sent for a  course at the Nigerian Institute of Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS) in Kuru-Jos, Plateau, where he graduated among 96 distinguished Nigerians as Executive Course 45.

    Adegoke will take over from Mr Idowu Owohunwa, who had been promoted to the rank of Assistant Inspector-General of Police, in charge of the Federal Criminal Investigation Department, Alagbon Ikoyi, Lagos.

  • Ohanaeze slams Bode George over anti-Igbo comments

    Ohanaeze slams Bode George over anti-Igbo comments

    The apex Igbo socio-cultural organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo has maintained that many houses built in Lagos were erected on a swampy area.

    The body made the remark while berating Chief Bode George over his criticisms that Igbos built houses and developed Lagos State.

    Ohanaeze added that the PDP chieftain’s position was riddled with “unstatesmanly and bigoted lines.”

    Recall that George  posited that  it was disheartening and unpatriotic that despite the challenges facing the country, it was ‘who owns Lagos’ that some people were preoccupied with.

    He said: “Why couldn’t the Igbos focus on developing their own states instead of Lagos? What stops Iwuanyanwu from developing the Igbo land instead of developing Lagos?”

    Reacting, Ohanaeze in a statement by its spokesman, Dr Alex Ogbonnia said: “Any person who knows Lagos will agree with the Igbo leader that some of the Igbo properties are standing on what used to be swamps.

    “The George theory will also query why other Nigerians are obligated to the development of Abuja to give it the required international status.

    “For Bode George to suggest that the Igbo erred by contributing to the development of Lagos is not only un-statesmanly, bigoted, narrow-thinking and self-serving but stands at variance with the ethics and decorum of a man who has benefited immensely from the corporate existence of Nigeria.

    “George alluded to the prevailing pervasive poverty in the country and in his judgment, believes that destruction of peoples’ property in Lagos is an antidote to poverty.

    “Ohanaeze has watched with dismay, the selective vocality of Chief Bode George; when many parts of the Alaba International Market were destroyed, George was mute. When there was intimidation of voters in Lagos State, George was mute, among several others.”

  • Para-Soccer: Kano whitewash Lagos 9-1 in quarter final

    Para-Soccer: Kano whitewash Lagos 9-1 in quarter final

    Kano pillars  para-soccer  team on Sunday defeated their Lagos counterparts 9-1 to qualify  for the semifinal of the ongoing para-soccer at the ongoing Para-Sports Games in Abuja

    The match was played at the Moshood Abiola National Stadium.

    Ibrahim Hashim of Kano pillars scored the first goal in the fifth minute, 13th minute and 34th minute.

    Abubakar Abdullahi of Lagos team scored in the 40th minute from a close range following a brilliant cross.

    Kano pillars` Umar Dahiru scored the third goal in the 30th minute while Hashim scored the fifth goal in the 44th minute.

    The Lagos team fought hard but was unable to add to their goal tally. The first half of the match ended 5-1.On the resumption of the second half,

    On resumption for the second half, pillars continued from where they stopped, Abba Jamil recorded the sixth and seventh goals in the 50th minute and 65th minute.

    Speaking after the match, Ibrahim Musa, Pillars coach said his team was winning because of the good players in the team.

    “I commend my players they fought well in the game. My next game is 4pm on Monday against the best losers.

    “It could be Plateau, Bauchi or Lagos I will also beat them with the same margin that I beat both Sokoto and Lagos.

    “My confidence is in my team winning all subsequent matches to lift the trophy, ” he said.

    In another quarter-final match, Kaduna defeated Bauchi 6-2  and FCT beat Plateau 2-0 to qualify for the seminal final.

    Nine states are participating in the Para-soccer competition. They are Kwara, Lagos, FCT, Bauchi, Kano, Sokoto, kaduna, Jigawa and Plateau.

    A total of 15 sporting events are featuring in the second edition of the Para-Sports Games.

    NAN

  • Kano Pillars beat Sokoto 14-1 to setup a quarter final clash with Lagos

    Kano Pillars beat Sokoto 14-1 to setup a quarter final clash with Lagos

    Kano pillars   Para-soccer team on Sunday pipped Sokoto team 14-1 to advance to the quarter final of the para-soccer at the ongoing Para-Sports Games in Abuja.

    The para soccer match was played at the Moshood Abiola National Stadium, Abuja.

    The games which started on Saturday is expected to end on Dec.12.

    The Kano Pillars team appeared more determined and relaxed as they capitalised on the mistakes of the Sokoto team to score quick goals.

    Mubarak Ibrahim score four goals, Umar Dahiru, score six goals and Ibrahim Hashim scored a brace.

    Sani Gimbiya and substitute Auwalu Shuaibiu scored one each for Pillars in the 14-1 against Sokoto team while Lawali Mohammed scored the only goal for the  Sokoto team.

    Speaking after the match, Ibrahim Musa, Kano pillars para soccer coach said that he is optimistic of winning the trophy.

    “ My next game is 4.30pm against  Lagos team and I will also beat them with the same margin that I  beat the Sokoto team.

    “ We are all in high spirit and are committed to bring positive results to Kano state.

    “ My confidence is in my team winning all subsequent matches.I am happy, ” he said.

    A total of nine states are participating in the Para-soccer competition. They are Kwara team,Lagos team,FCT Abuja team,Bauchi team,Kano team,Sokoto team, kaduna team, Jigawa team and Plateau team.

    NAN reports that a total of 15 sports events are featuring in the second edition of the Para-Sports Games holding at the Moshood Abiola National Stadium.

    The sports are Amputee football, Nigeria Shooting Sport Federation, sitting Volleyball, para table tennis, para swimming, wheelchair basketball, para taekwondo, and wheelchair tennis.

    Others are para badminton, powerlifting, deaf sport, para athletics, para soccer, para karate and para canoe

  • Famous Alapere pedestrian bridge collapses (Video)

    Famous Alapere pedestrian bridge collapses (Video)

    There have been severe traffic obstructions following the famous Alapere pedestrian bridge collapse in Lagos state on Friday.

    It was said to have collapsed when a truck conveying a container along the Ojota -Oworonsoki Highway hit the bridge on one side, causing it to collapse completely.

    However, reports have it that officials of the Lagos State Transport Management Agency led by the Special Adviser to the Governor on Transport, Sola Giwa, made spirited efforts to clear the debris to allow for the free traffic flow.

    See video below:

  • Opebi-Ojota link bridge will be ready Q3 2024 – Sanwo Olu

    Opebi-Ojota link bridge will be ready Q3 2024 – Sanwo Olu

    Gov. Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State says the Opebi-Mende-Ojota Link Bridge will be ready for commuters by third quarter of 2024.

    Sanwo-Olu re-emphasised this during an inspection of the bridge, to assert the level of work done on the site on Tuesday.

    He said the bridge, whose construction started over a year ago, had reached 65 per cent completion, adding that there were still a lot to be done.

    ”I’m impressed with the level of work that Messrs Julius Berger has done here. We came here last year, I think about 11 months ago, in January or so, or February, and this bridge was not in existence at that time.

    “There was barely nothing. I’m happy with the level of work that we have seen thus far.

    ”We are still on track with the completion. We are still hoping that by the second quarter of next year, towards the third quarter, we should finish this entire road construction, so that it can be handed over to the residents and also can be made available.

    ”There is still going to be a bit of furniture that you are going to see on this bridge. Eventually, it will look like another iconic bridge in Lagos, which will be similar to what we have in the Lekki axis.

    ”As you can see, there is enough room for cycling, there is enough room for pedestrian walking on the road. We are going to see a total life change,” Sanwo-Olu said.

    He said the government would encourage people that wanted to exercise by the bridge to do so, and move freely, as government was ensuring that what was seen in other developed nations were replicated in Lagos State.

    According to him, the Opebi-Mende-Ojota Link Bridge is meant to solve a major traffic problem and provide alternative routes for Lagos residents.

    ”People that are commuting from Toyin, Allen, Opebi, how can they access the Ojota bridge? People from Manyland, how can they go on straight into Ikeja?

    ”So, it will solve a lot of the alternative problems that we have, either on Kudirat Abiola road, even as far as going towards Alausa and it also try to solve the major traffic issues we have on Mobolaji Bank Anthony Way,” he said.

    The governor said the bridge was situated in a very tough terrain, which had made the project manager, Julius Berger, to do 20 metres excavation, so as to execute a solid bridge.

    ”The soil texture is really bad. In fact, the project manager, Julius Berger, says they have to do excavation of over 20 metres in some places, so that they can preserve the land and they can work seamlessly.

    ”What this has opened up to is that this is an economic development and we are changing the face of traffic management, we are changing the face of commuting in Lagos and we are changing the face of access to modern infrastructure roads and development,” he said.

  • JUST IN: Tension in FESTAC town as govt reveals plan to demolish 677 Houses

    JUST IN: Tension in FESTAC town as govt reveals plan to demolish 677 Houses

    The Federal Housing Authority (FHA) has revealed a plan to demolish 677 houses, while 744 others will be partially demolished over infringement by a developer in Phase 2, Festac Town, Amuwo-Odofin area of Lagos State.

    FHA’s South-West Zonal Manager, Mr. Akintola Olagbemiro, disclosed this during a visit to the affected area to assess level of disregard to building codes and the environment.

    According to Olagbemiro, despite letters and stakeholders’ meetings, the developers have continued to build on the swampy land without meeting the requirements.

    He said: “After so many years of trying to get into the property belonging to FHA, which we labelled as Festac Phase 2. There has been encroachment and illegal development and it’s turning the place into a slum. We are trying to see how best we can resolve it and make people live in a more serene environment. Unfortunately, there have been cases of illegal developers and land grabbers.”

    Deputy General Manager, FHA, Urban and Regional Planning, Southwest, Francisca Michael-James, said: “We have given the residents several notices but to our surprise, works are still going on, without regard to the law.

    “Now we have the permission of our management and we will ask for security back up and start enforcement. We will start removing structures from the roads and those on pipelines set back.

    “We will also remove the buildings constructed after the stakeholders’ meetings where we agreed that everyone should wait until we are done with our assessment but some of them continued to build and concluded that we will regularise, but regularisation is not automatic. Now, the ones that did not meet regularisation will have to go.”

    Speaking on punishment for contravenors, she said: “In the law, if we demolish, we are supposed to penalise the owner of the building and charge for the fees for the cost of carrying out the operation. Assuming any of the buildings collapsed, the landlord will be charged for manslaughter but the first point of call will be pointing accusing fingers at the agency so, as to avoid that, that’s why we want to carry out the enforcement. The enforcement will be done soon.

    “The first thing we are doing is to clear the road; some of the buildings will be partially demolished for right of way. 677 houses will be demolished and 744 will be demolished partially.”

  • Pipeline explosion averted in Lagos community

    Pipeline explosion averted in Lagos community

    The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Lagos State Command, has averted an oil pipeline explosion that would have led to the destruction of lives and properties in Alimosho, Lagos State.

    This is contained in a statement signed by the state command’s Public Relations Officer (PRO), DSC Oluwaseun Abolurin, on Friday.

    Abolurin said that the incident also meant to vandalize the oil pipelines of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) in Liberty Estate and its environs, Alimosho Local Government Area (LGA), was averted on Thursday.

    He said that this was in line with the zero tolerance of the Commandant General (CG) NSCDC, CG Ahmed Audi, to prevent all forms of economic sabotage in Nigeria.

    “The residents of the environment alerted the Command of leaked petroleum products, which almost caused panic and fear, leading to the close of some business activities and schools on Thursday.

    “The NNPC maintenance team came to the scene later in the afternoon, after being duly notified by the Command.

    “Maintenance operation was carried out on the lines,” the spokesperson said.

    Abolurin said that the Commandant, NSCDC, Lagos State Command, Commandant of Corps, Mr Usman Alfadarai, had ensured adequate security and safety of lives and properties in the area.

    “The operatives of the Corps had earlier cordoned the affected area to prevent unscrupulous elements from converting the ugly situation into an untoward advantage for themselves.

    “Alfadarai, therefore, directed, immediate 24/7 vigilance, surveillance, patrol and monitoring of the area to avoid further compromise.

    “Alfadarai also warned vandals to desist from the act as the command will not rest on its oars to making sure that saboteurs are brought to book,” he said.

    Abolurin said that the Lagos State Commandant appreciated the inhabitants of the community for offering prompt, credible and actionable intelligence to avoid what would have had a negative impact on the community.