TheNewsGuru

Tag: Lagosians

  • Lagosians choke, risk serious health issues as Olusosun dumpsite goes up in flames [Photos]

    There was pandemonium on Tuesday in Lagos as the popular Olusosun dump site in Ojota burst into flames again.

    Recall that the dump site which had been causing controversy between the state government and the scavengers had last month also caught fire burning for several days despite the intervention of the state fire service.

    The fire incident which occurred around noon on Tuesday (today) was said to have happened without any trace. Eyewitnesses at the scene of the incident confirmed to TheNewsGuru.com team that the site had long been deserted by the scavengers and there was no activity to have prompted the fire incident.

    ‘The dump site had been causing serious controversy. The state government had long took over the site and was under maintenance by LAWMA. However, these fire outbreaks are becoming rampant and injurious to our health. I can assure you that the Lagos State Government cannot claim innocence in this incident. They are using style to push people away and possibly convert the place to something more useful. But they should be civil in doing that. Putting peoples’ lives at risk because of your selfish motive is just too bad,’ an eyewitness said.

    When TheNewsGuru.com team visited the site, hundreds of men and women of the Nigeria Police Force heavily armed were seen guiding the entrance. When TheNewsGuru.com team approached them for comments, they declined.

    However, an official of the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA) who spoke on condition of anonymity with TheNewsGuru.com team at the scene of the incident said the agency received a distress call in the afternoon of the fire outbreak. He said the agency was intensifying efforts to ensure that the fire is totally put out.

    The inferno which was still raging at the time of filing this report was almost extending to the popular Motorways building at toll gate. People were seen scampering for safety with nose covers as the smoke made breathing difficult.

    A visibly enraged passer-by, who managed to speak with TheNewsGuru.com team said: ‘I can’t imagine we have a government in this state and country. All they care for is elections and looting the treasury dry. Look at what we are going through here? Who will save us from this insensitive government? This is not the first time this site has been engulfed in fire. However, the response from government is rather slow and insensitive. Someone had collapsed earlier. Our lives is seriously at risk with this kind of smoke taking over the entire atmosphere,’ he said.

    Efforts by TheNewsGuru.com team to speak with officials of The Ministry of Environment who came on routine check of the site was not successful as they said they were not on authority to do so.

     

     

  • Buhari-in-Lagos: FirstBank mocks Lagosians, apologises few hours later

    The social media (especially Twitter) was on Thursday set on fire as one of the first generation banks, FirstBank mocked Lagosians over the inconveniences experienced by President Muhammadu Buhari’s visit to the state.

    The bank through its official Twitter handle, @FirstBankngr posted series of tweets apparently mocking the traffic stress Lagosians were made to go through while the president visited.

    Recall that President Muhammadu Buhari on Thursday arrived Lagos for a two-day official visit. He attended the 10th Bola Ahmed Tinubu Colloquium held at the Eko Hotel in commemoration of the 66th Birthday Anniversary of former Lagos Governor and national leader of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

    The president’s two-day official visit to the state disrupted traffic and caused residents to embark on long walk to their destinations.

    “Lagosians how far…. How was the trek this morning? The people still trekking, how’s the #WalkOfChange going,” the bank tweeted around 11:18 am on Thursday from its Twitter handle @FirstBankngr.

    When a Twitter user (@Jenn_nikolas) tweeted at the bank that its tweet was “terrible to look at”, the bank offered a sarcastic response, “Don’t look. Keep trekking”.

    Another Twitter user (@omookwah) told FirstBank, “This is an epic fail in attempt to ‘hijack’ an issue. You lost the ‘emotional’ drift to this and got caught on the wrong side of story. Always remember…. Market share and mindshare.”

    “Story,” the bank responded.

    FirstBank later pulled back after its tweets attracted barrage of criticisms.

    “Dear Twitter Family. A tweet from us earlier in the day was totally inappropriate. As a responsible organization, we do not support or share humor taken too far. And that is what this was; humor taken too far. We take it back and apologize unreservedly,” the bank tweeted around 2:14 pm on Thursday.

  • Ambode adding to hardships of Lagosians with proposed Lekki-Epe Toll increment – PDP

    The Lagos State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has condemned plans to increase the toll charged on the Lekki-Epe and Ikoyi link roads.

    Recall that the Lekki Concession Company (LCC) had in a statement released over the weekend said the new toll takes effect from February 1, 2018.

    But the chairman of the Lagos PDP, Hon Moshood Salvador, in a statement expressed shock over the development.

    According to him, the plan has once again brought to the fore the height of wickedness of the Lagos State government in connivance with LCC against hapless Lagosians.

    “The reasons adduced for the planned increase, according to them include high operating cost and the current exchange rate of the naira to the dollar.

    “This is rather laughable and a great indictment of the ruling APC at the federal level which has demonstrated inept leadership from economy to Fulani/farmers’ clashes and other critical issue.

    “This is a company that generates hundreds of millions daily from tolling and nobody has an idea of what goes into its coffers.

    “It is no doubt acting in league with the state government which year in year out budgets billions of naira for projects without making the details available,” he said.

    Continuing, Salvador stressed that it was rather strange that the new tolls planned to take effect less than one week after the announcement.

    According to him, this was rather suspicious because the rush leaves much to be desired.

    He added “curiously, details of the planned increase still remains speculative in spite of the rush to force the new tolls on Lagosians.

    “Is this part of the so-called change which was used to hoodwink Nigerians to vote for them?

    “We want to ask Governor Ambode who was until recently a civil servant whether this is justifiable against the backdrop of the state of the economy.

    “It is even worrisome in view of the fact that Ambode had at the 2018 budget presentation last year promised to raise additional revenue which may overburden Lagosians.

    “As we speak, plans are afoot to increase land use charge in the state, which may lead to rent increase.”

    According to him, this is at a time when millions are out of jobs and salaries have remained static.

    Consequently, he said the Lagos PDP was totally opposed to the planned increase as a part dedicated to the welfare of the people.

    Meanwhile, Salvador has expressed confidence that the Lagos PDP is gradually regaining lost grounds in the build-up to 2019.

    He said the recent inauguration of the executive members at the local levels which was witnessed by a mammoth crowd at the state secretariat of the party was a sign of good things to come.

  • Lagosians now pay taxes voluntarily — Ambode

    Governor Akinwunmi Ambode of Lagos State says more residents of the state are now voluntarily paying their taxes and levies to the government, with a positive effect on state revenues.

    Ambode told media executives in Lagos on Thursday that this was partly because the state government was spending money to create tax awareness.

    Aside this, he said that people in the state were also seeing their taxes working for them.

    “Many of them now walk to the Tax Offices on their own, to voluntarily pay their taxes because they have been able to see for themselves what we have been able to do with revenues generated from taxes and levies,’’ the governor said.

    He said that Lagos State had survived mainly on internally-generated revenue ( IGR ).

    “It represents two-thirds of our total revenue.

    “We are trying to make the people of Lagos State to become aware that if they pay more taxes, the state government would be able to do much more for them,’’ Ambode said.

    The governor said that the state government had a monthly wage bill of about N9 billion.

    He recalled that the state government paid out about N700 million as compensation to property owners at Oshodi, and N500 million to those at Abule-Egba.

    “Compensation to property owners around the planned flyover at Pen Cinema, Agege may gulp up to N1 billion.

    “It is not that these property owners have the appropriate documents, but we have just been trying to be humane,’’ the governor said.

    On Lake Rice, which is being sold at N12, 000 per bag, Ambode said that the product was being subsidised, “because it is consumed by all’’.

    “We are only trying to create a paradigm shift,’’ he said.

     

    NAN

  • We’ve kept faith with our promise to Lagosians – Ambode

    We’ve kept faith with our promise to Lagosians – Ambode

    …Says Lagos’ll witness massive infrastructure development In 2017

    Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode on Thursday said his administration has kept faith with the electioneering campaign promises made to Lagosians, assuring that the State would witness quantum leap in infrastructural development in 2017.

    Speaking at the grand finale of the campaign of All Progressives Congress (APC) for Saturday’s bye-election for Ifako-Ijaiye Federal Constituency of the House of Representatives, Governor Ambode assured that no electoral promise made by him would go unfulfilled, saying that he had operated under that principle ever since assuming office and remained committed to fulfilling all pledges and doing even more.

    Governor Ambode, who thanked all those who believed in him and voted for him, said the government has faithfully carried out the promise of transforming the communities and running an all inclusive administration where no one is left behind.

    He said it was evidently clear to all that Lagos is working, saying that the pledge to transform the communities, among others, has been fulfilled and still ongoing.

    “I like to start by thanking you for believing in us; thank you for believing in Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu. The past, the present and the future belong to all of you and so far that we are all working together, we know that Ojokoro and Ifako-Ijaiye will move forward and there will be tremendous progress in this community.

    “I just want to promise you that this government that you have seen what we have done in the last 18 months, we have not started anything yet. As you are aware, we just presented the 2017 budget to the House of Assembly but I tell you what you will see in Lagos by this time next year, you will not believe the progress that Lagos will make.

    “This is the best State in Nigeria and we don’t make promises that we cannot fulfill. We will even do more than we have promised,” the Governor said, adding that his administration will commence the construction of Ifako-Ijaiye Stadium within the first quarter of 2017.

    The House of Representative seat became vacant following the death of the former lawmaker representing the constituency, Dr Elijah Adewale, while Akinwunmi Olaitan Nurudeen emerged as the APC candidate for the bye-election after a keenly contested primary.

    The Governor also commiserated with the family of Dr Adewale over the painful loss of their father, and thanked them and all the leaders in the constituency for the massive support given to his administration and the party.

    Governor Ambode, who equally vouched for the candidate of the party (Akinwunmi), urged the people to troop out in droves on Saturday to vote for the APC candidate for more dividends of democracy.

    Also speaking at the rally, Senator representing Lagos West at the Senate, Olamilekan Adeola Solomon, urged the people of the constituency to vote for Akinwunmi who, according to him, is well experienced to give quality representation.

    Solomon, who alluded to the numerous projects ongoing in the State including the Abule-Egba flyover, pleaded with the people to continue to support the APC government in the State.

    At the rally, the candidates of Action Alliance (AA), Yussuf Olawale Abdulfatai and that of Alliance for Democracy (AD), Michael Adebayo also stepped down from the Saturday’s election, and urged their supporters and the people to vote for the APC candidate.