By Tope Musowo
Lagos
Members of the Lagos state House of Assembly have congratulated the former Governor of the state, Mr. Babatunde Raji Fashola, on his appointment as the Minister for Power, Works and Housing.
The Lawmakers at the plenary showered encomiums on him and urged the federal government to give special recognition and status to Lagos state as a former capital and economic nerve centre of the country.
Hon. Jimoh Wahab representing Apapa Consistency II, who moved the motion, in his submission, urged the federal government to hasten the payment of the outstanding debt of N52 billion expended on federal roads by the state government.
“I congratulate the Hon. Minister who happened to be the former Governor of this state. Lagos is the commercial source of Nigeria and Sub-Sahara in Africa and there is need to rehabilitate our roads in proper shape to foster our economy activities.”
Contributing, Hon. Sola Giwa representing Lagos Island Consistency II, emphasised on the need for the rehabilitation of federal roads in the state, adding that “Lagos state is a megacity that provides 70 per cent Value Added Tax (VAT) and now reducing because of the gridlock in Apapa and, therefore, we urge Mr. Fashola at this moment to consider the construction of the Fourth Mainland Bridge we’ve been craving for.”
The Speaker, Rt. Hon. Mudashiru Obasa, in his statement said: “The House unanimously resolves to call on the Minister for Power, Works and Housing Mr Babatunde Raji Fashola, to refund the outstanding debts.”
He enjoined the Minister to consider the state for infrastructural and developmental projects before bombardments from other interest across the country.
In another development, the lawmakers presented their reports on the stakeholders meetings held on November 10, 2015 across the state; they described the event as a welcome initiate that showcased what the legislative duties, responsibilities and commitment to the people stand for.
Obasa explained that the event “is now an annual one” and urged members to always liaise with their Consistencies as collated reports would be forwarded to the Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode, for the implementation in the year 2016 budget.