Daybreak, Politics, Entertainment, Sport

Tag: Fashola

  • OLOMI ROAD: Fed. Lawmaker, Akande-Sadipe Meets Fashola, Says Road a Death-trap

    OLOMI ROAD: Fed. Lawmaker, Akande-Sadipe Meets Fashola, Says Road a Death-trap

    The Lawmaker Representing Oluyole Federal Constituency, Rep. Tolulope Akande-Sadipe has met with Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, over the deplorable condition of Olomi/Olojuoro and Liberty Academy Roads in Oyo State.

    The lawmaker called for the immediate rehabilitation of the roads, describing them as death traps.

    She said this in Ibadan after a meeting with the Minister at his office during the week.

    The lawmaker revealed she had fruitful deliberations with the Minister, arguing that priority attention ought to be given to such roads which shared borders with Ogun state, in order to save it from the present deplorable state.

    Akande-Sadipe, who Chairs the House Committee on Diaspora expressed her worries on the slow pace of work on the federal roads within Oluyole Federal Constituency.

    “Olomi road has now become a death trap, where lives are lost on a daily basis, adding that business activities and wellbeing of residents are negatively affected”, she said.

    She said despite several interventions made by her in the past, the Federal roads through her constituency have not seen any significant improvement.

    The lawmaker argued further that the roads, when rehabilitated, will not only boost the economic fortune of the residents of the areas, but would lead to drastic reduction in serial auto crashes that have claimed people’s lives.

    Akande-Sadipe further said that she has visited the sites three times with the major stakeholders of the federal government including the Public Complaint commission and representatives of the Ministry of Works. 

    “After back-to-back intervention and calling out of contractors, we haven’t seen any improvement as inaction continues to add to the sufferings of my people”, she added.

    “This road, I mean Olomi Olojoro road has been listed in the budget every year as far back as 2018, but up until this moment, we cannot continue to bear the suffering, we need an urgent intervention. We also have five other roads under the purview of the ministry that has been listed in the 2022 budget, but we haven’t felt the impact of these inclusion in our communities”

    According to her, “economic activities are being halted on Olomi road and several constituents are on the verge of relocation from their personal homes due to the condition of the road, this road should be a blessing as it borders Ogun State and has the potential to boost economic activities of both states.”

    While acknowledging the complaints of the Lawmaker, the Minister of Works, Babatunde Fashola promised to expedite the process and immediately requested for an investigation and prompt action on the road.

    He reiterated that the Federal Government has not reneged on its resolve to reduce the commuter’s plight through massive road rehabilitation in the state.

  • BREAKING: Four Policemen feared dead as Fashola, Ngige’s convoy crashes in Delta

    BREAKING: Four Policemen feared dead as Fashola, Ngige’s convoy crashes in Delta

    The convoy of the Chief of Staff, Prof. Ibrahim Gambari; Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola; and his counterpart in Labour and Employment, Christ Ngige, crashed during the inspection of a bridge in Asaba, Delta State.

    Four policemen were feared dead in the accident that occurred Tuesday evening.

    according TO The PUNCH the driver lost control of the vehicle conveying security operatives and crashed into a deep pit.

    An eyewitness, John Okorie, said the incident happened when the vehicle conveying the victims was negotiating the bend leading to the construction site of the Second Niger Bridge at the Asaba.

    It was gathered that the police vehicle was speeding to meet up with the ministers’ vehicles when it veered off the road and crashed.

    Also, a Delta Line driver, who spoke to our correspondent on condition of anonymity, said, “The incident was very fatal.

    “The policeman driver was speeding and while negotiating the bend because of the speed could not control the vehicle. They crashed into a deep pit. I was at the back of the convoy, driving slowly.

    “With the help of other people, we rescued four of them but they were badly injured. They were shouting as the vehicle fell on them,” he narrated.

    When contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer in the State, DSP Bright Edafe, said he was yet to receive the accident report as of the time of filling this report.

    “I have not received the accident report, I will get back to you,” he said.

  • APC’s zoning agreement should be respected in 2023 – Fashola

    APC’s zoning agreement should be respected in 2023 – Fashola

    Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola has disclosed that there is a gentleman agreement on zoning in the All Progressives Congress.

    The former Governor of Lagos in an interactive session with newsmen at his ministry in Abuja on Tuesday November 24, appealed to leaders of the party to respect the gentleman agreement reached in 2015 on zoning.

    Fashola said;

    “First let’s talk about law. Let’s talk about agreements. The law is the constitution. The constitution decides the age which you can contest certain offices and there is nothing in the constitution that says zoning. All are political parties are clubs where you write agreements just like a social club and we can decide that it is the youngest person who will be the chairman of the club or we can decide that it is the oldest person or the next female or the next male, that is the matter of agreement between people.

    “ But the constitution that sets up the climate of political parties formation does not prescribe zoning. The truth is that what makes an agreement special is the honour in which it is made not whether it is written. If it was written there would be no court cases on a breach of contract because it’s a document that is written and signed that go to court. But the private agreement you make with your brother and sister cannot be breached. It must be honoured.”

    On whether he has 2023 presidential or vice-presidential ambition, the Minister said;

    “I belong to a party, the APC, and I am committed to good governance because I think the best politics is good governance.

    “The beauty of it for me is the opportunity it gives to impact peoples’ lives. We have elections only once in four years, but we have a responsibility to provide good governance every day and that’s the culture.”

    Fashola also expressed hope of APC retaining the presidency in 2023 if it delivered on its campaign promises to Nigerians.

    He added;

    “To retain power in 2023, certainly if we keep our promises, is that simple. That’s politics. If you do what you said you will do even if you don’t do it 100% and they see that you are making progress, they will even want you to finish what you started.

    “Our opposition has to think well than us to defeat us; right now they are not doing that. When it’s election time they should come and meet us.”

    RELATED POSTS:

    Fashola lashes out over report alleging payment of ₦4.6bn into staffers’ accounts

    Senate, Fashola bicker over deplorable state of Federal Roads

    Lekki shooting: Fashola reveals installers of ‘hidden camera’

  • Fashola lashes out over report alleging payment of ₦4.6bn into staffers’ accounts

    Fashola lashes out over report alleging payment of ₦4.6bn into staffers’ accounts


    By Amadin Idahosa

    Minister of Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Fashola has expressed his dissatisfaction following PremiumTimes report regarding the illegal payment of N4.6 billion to officials under his watch.

    In a release he titled “Stealing Public Trust: PremiumTimes Low Premium Reporting,” the Minister said, “If anything has been stolen, it is the Trust of the public,” by the aforementioned news medium.

    His outburst emanated from another publication of premiumtimes on November 18 which cited requests from Nigerians to probe into the illegal payment of ₦4.6 billion into the personal accounts of some officials of the former ministry of power, works and housing,

    Fashola, whose reply dated Wednesday, November 18, got to newsmen on Sunday 23, stated that, “If Premium Times investigated, it would have found and reported that Ministers do not manage accounts and finances of Ministries.

    “A little investigation would have shown that Directors of Finance and Accounts, DFAs, are those who do this job and they are staff of the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation and seconded to the Ministries as part of financial controls.”

    Concluding, Fashola declared that in all, no money was stolen or is missing, adding that there’s no ‘Smoking Gun’ to criminalize him.

    Not holding back words, the Minister further said what PremiumTimes did “Is not investigative Journalism. It is Irresponsible Journalism.”

    But according premiumtimes, their findings revealed that payments were made to 21 staff members of the ministry within four months, with two-thirds of the amount going to the duo of Ogueri Ugochukwu Pascal and Olasehinde Micah.

    Premiumtimes reported that Pascal was paid ₦1.6 billion while the Micah got ₦1.4 billion.

    An excerpt from Fashola’s release, earlier, posited that no investigation was undertaken in respect of the alleged fraud as the report was from “Open Portal.”

    “If it was from the Open Portal then there was nothing to hide.” He said.

    Via the payment platform called Integrated Payment Platform and Information System, IPPIS, Fashola explained the standard procedure of obtaining and dispensing public funds.

    Meanwhile the position of premiumtimes remains that in the last lap of 2019, the ministry of power and the ministry of works and housing, both gave no information about the two men, (Pascal and Micah) and online searches for their names yielded little luck.

    Premiumtimes reported that the ministry of power said they are not its staff, while Works and housing ministry declined to comment.

  • Buhari appoints Malami, Fashola others power committee members

    Buhari appoints Malami, Fashola others power committee members

    President Muhammadu Buhari, on Thursday, inaugurated the Special Purpose Vehicle for Presidential Power Initiate to assist the government in improving the delivery of power in the country.

    Members of the committee inaugurated by Buhari include the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr Abubakar Malami (SAN), the Minister of Finance, Budget, and National Planning, Mrs Zainab Ahmed; Minister of Power, Saleh Mamman; and Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola.

    Malami’s spokesperson, Dr Umar Gwandu, stated that other members of the committee are the Director-General of Nigeria’s Bureau of Public Enterprise, Mr. Alex Okoh, and the President Nigerian Society of Engineers, Babagana Mohammed.

    The statement added, “Inaugurating the Committee on Thursday, President Muhamamdu Buhari who described power sector as one of the most critical components of sustainable development, expressed commitment to improve the delivery of power in the country as his enduring and defining legacy.

    “He said following the Federal Executive Council Approval, the coast is
    now clear and the SPV has the responsibility of executing the Presidential Power Initiative (PPI), providing project management for the implementation of PPI and serve as the key manager to ensure cohesion and seamless execution.”

  • Fashola backs LASG on motorcycle ban, tasks Nigerians, agencies on security

    Fashola backs LASG on motorcycle ban, tasks Nigerians, agencies on security

    Minister of Works and Housing, Mr Babatunde Fashola, on Thursday advised residents of Lagos to support the state government on the ban on motorcycles and tricycles in the state.

    Fashola gave the advice in Lagos at the 4th annual public lecture organised by United Action for Change with the theme “Security of Citizens as a Social Contract’’.

    The event was convened by Dr Muize Banire, former National Legal Adviser of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and a three-term commissioner in Lagos.

    He said the ban was backed by legislation and Lagos residents should look beyond the immediate comfort provided by the commercial motorcycle operators to the long term benefits of safety.

    He called for the reintroduction of taxis as a viable means of transportation befitting a mega city like Lagos alongside other intermodal means of transportation being evolved by the state government.

    “I think that we should all rally round government, commit government to ensuring that those services are completed and put in use.

    “And we must not, whilst sympathetic to those who may legitimately have concerns about discomfort, livelihood, and all of those kinds of things, dismiss an existential threat to internal security,’’ he said.

    Speaking on the topic, “Insecurity: Taking Action Against Organised Crime“, Fashola stressed the need to close all vacuums that allowed criminals safe haven to breed within communities.

    He called for policing of open spaces and empty houses nationwide to tackle various kinds of crimes and criminality which, according to him, is the conduct of a few people who are giving government stress.

    Fashola also called for ban on vehicles without registration numbers to remove identity concealment, adding that, all political office holders should use number plates no matter the time of the day or season.

    He called on attorney generals and ministries of physical planning and urban development to ensure open spaces and empty buildings used for criminal operations were put to use.

    “In all public buildings, people should not be able to hide. If you go to other jurisdictions, people do compulsory identity verification when checking into a hotel.

    “There should be cameras in government and public buildings. It must become compulsory by law to install cameras. Lawmakers, Attorney General should make laws to keep us safe.

    “Organised crime looks for unmanned spaces. We must occupy those spaces, if not, criminals will occupy them,’’ he said.

    Reeling out statistics from various developed countries, Fashola said that insecurity was not only a Nigerian problem but a global phenomenon, arguing that the way it was tackled mattered.

    He said that measures against crime and criminality, whether proactive or reactive, needed the support of citizens who had constitutional responsibility to volunteer information to law enforcement agencies.

    He added that all forms of crime, including kidnapping, banditry, terrorism, robbery and cultism were not accidental but were usually planned hence the need to adopt new strategies.

    The minister, however, stressed the need for peaceful co-existence and remove all sources of conflict to address all security challenges, adding that opinion leaders and influencers could help cultivate harmonious living.

    Fashola also called for resuscitation of residents and landlords associations and multilevel policing to help identify strangers and curb rising wave of insurgency, kidnapping, cattle rustling and other crimes.

    Lagos State Governor, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu, represented by Mr Shina Thorpes, Permanent Secretary, Lagos State Ministry of Information, told journalists that the state government was proactive in gathering data of residents.

    Sanwo-Olu said the government began residents registration to know true identity of residents and to be able to plan for their welfare.

    “The beauty of identification is that it helps government to plan and also helps the community to know one another,’’ he said. (NAN)

  • Fashola narrates how robbers attacked him, backs Okada ban

    Fashola narrates how robbers attacked him, backs Okada ban

    The Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, says the use of motorcycles (Okada) as a major means of transportation is not in the plan of Lagos State and should be banned.

    He spoke at a public lecture organised by the United Action for Change in Lagos on Thursday.

    It will be recalled that Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State had banned the operations of motorcycle and tricycle in 15 Local Government Development Areas and Local Council Development Areas, including highways and major roads in the state.

    The ban, however, has generated controversies and mixed reactions from residents of Lagos and other Nigerians

    Since the enforcement of the ban, residents complained of gridlock, hike in transportation fare and unavailability of vehicles to convey them to their destinations.

    But Fashola said rather than reduce crime, motorcycles aid it.

    During his eight-year tenure as the Lagos State Governor, Fashola also banned Okadas, Daybreak reports.

    “If you are concerned about security you must support the present Lagos governor now on Okada ban. As the Center of Excellence, motorcycles should not be our choice of transport,” he added.

    He also advised the Lagos State Government enforcement of the law, saying, “We are more focused on launch enforcement and increasing the numbers of policemen. Capacity development is great but security is more than law enforcement.”

    While giving reasons for his support for Okada ban, Fashola narrated that he was once robbed in his home.

    He said Okada riding also aided crisis and caused youths not to explore other productive ways of generating income.

    He said, “Do we stand in reacting mode or proactive mode. If reacting, there is already a victim and a criminal. If we are proactive then how long can we sustain that?

    “Motorcycles are means of peddling drugs to children even under the watch of parents without knowing.

    I’ve always held this position. Motorcycle has always been a conduit pipe for the opioid crisis among youths. We must act to eliminate anonymity.

    “I was robbed in my home, in fact on my bed in 1999. Organised crime is dynamic, criminals are aware that people don’t keep money at home again, now they diversified into kidnapping people for ransom.”