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Babajide Sanwo-Olu: 100 Days of Sure, Steady Strides
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By Eric Elezuo
“The Babajide Sanwo-Olu you see today shall not change and try to become something I am not. My prayer is only that I grow and improve as your governor to implement good policies and bring the prosperity you deserve”
The 6th of September, 2019 when the much sought after Governor of Lagos State, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, clocked 100 days on the seat of power, did not come upon Lagosians by accident. They waited for it. They wanted to celebrate it. This is because from day one of his administration, Sanwo-Olu had put mechanisms in motion to create the proverbial ‘greater Lagos’ which formed a major part of his campaign slogan. And true to type, the ever jovial governor did not disappoint. He blessed Lagos State with an avalanche of achievements that most of his counterparts were wondering how he did.
Sanwo-Olu did not mince words when prior to inauguration, he promised to clear the problematic Apapa gridlock within his first 60 days. Today, the Apapa gridlock has undergone creative overhauling that has seen gradual disintegration of the hellish situation.
“In collaboration with the Federal Government, the Task force we set up to remove illegally parked trucks went on tough assignment to return discipline along the Apapa-Oshodi corridor. I am glad to inform you that we have seen tremendous improvement and we are happy with the results in the last 100 days. We will continue to attend to the situation for permanent solution,” the governor said.
Again, the Sanwo-Olu Lagos State Government has set aside N4 billion as grant to Lagosians with “ingenious business ideas”.
This was disclosed by the Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr. Gbenga Omotoso, during a media briefing herald the governor’s first 100 days in office.
The grant being handled by the Lagos State Employment Trust Fund Initiative in collaboration with Access Bank Plc., is aimed at promoting ingenious business ideas. Presently, 600 people had already been billed to benefit from the initiative.
The Commissioner added that about 1,700 people have been shortlisted to benefit from a World Bank-assisted agricultural programme, and each of the beneficiaries will receive the sum of N2m, bring to a total of N3.4 billion.
Recall that at inception of his administration, Sanwo-Olu hinted that his government will be making Lagos State the Heaven it is meant to be through the the well thought out vision encapsulated in the Six Pillars of Development, with the acronym, T.H.E.M.E.S. This stands for Traffic Management & Transportation; Health & Environment; Education & Technology; Making Lagos a 21st Century Economy; Entertainment & Tourism and Security & Governance. These were carefully formulated to tackle the problems identified in sectors that are strategic to the growth of Lagos State.
Sanwo-Olu in 100 days is one governor who made a promise, and kept a promise, doing it in style as he took steps to build on the foundations of Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, Mr. Babatunde Fashola and Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode, his predecessors.
Kick starting his administration, Sanwo-Olu dished out an executive order declaring emergency on traffic management and transportation in the Lagos State. This singular act brought about reasonable relief to residents in their day to day activities. Not only that, it saw to the speedy rehabilitation of arterial roads, which has in essence reduced travel time and stress for motorists and commuters.
The governor’s Executive Order empowered members of the state’s traffic management agency to increase their shifts so as to control traffic till 11 pm daily. The move has brought an element of sanity on the roads after dark. Their salaries were also enhanced to undertake the great task in a rub my back, I rub your back arrangement. To whom much is given, much is being expected. The synergy has delivered great benefits.
HEALTHCARE
Having a health background as he is married to a medical doctor, Sanwo-Olu has tackled the health sector with the agility of a horse within 100 days.
He has opened a 110-bed Maternal and Childcare Centre (MCC), domiciled in a tastefully built four-storey edifice at Eti Osa Local Government. The whole essence is to prosecute the war against infant and maternal mortality. The end game lies in upgrading the facility to a general hospital. In addition, another 140-bed MCC had been completed in Alimosho area, and will be commissioned anytime soon, and will strengthen the capacity of the state in providing sound maternity care for residents.
For 31 whole days in August, the prolific governor embarked on a festival of surgeries, where a team of volunteer doctors, specialists in diverse areas of medical practice, and other medical practitioners performed thousands of surgeries, especially on children with deformed limbs. This was totally free. The project was christened “Healthy Bee Initiative” and about 25,000 residents benefited.
Again, the state-owned Health Insurance Scheme has received boost to extend its services to more than one million residents in order to give them affordable and quality healthcare services.
EDUCATION
In education, Sanwo-Olu has built, in partnership with the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), Tabernacle of David Parish in Alaguntan village, Eti Osa, a beautiful school, containing 12 blocks of classrooms and other modern learning facilities.
In addition, plans have been concluded to recruit more than 10,000 teachers for various categories of education and learning, just as resources have been appropriated for the upgrade of public schools, as well as equip them with required materials to aid quality learning.
ENVIRONMENT AND WASTE MANAGEMENT
Before now, the environment state of Lagos has become a matter of utmost concern, as the state had became a massive heap of refuse, necessitating drastic measures. These measures included the immediate upgrade of Lagos’ waste management infrastructure fashioned to achieve efficient services in waste disposal towards realising a cleaner environment.
Lagos State Governor, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu (right) and Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General, Tukur Buratai (left) during a courtesy visit by the Army Chief to the Governor at Lagos House, Alausa, Ikeja,
To this end, Sanwo-Olu, as a matter of urgency improved the capacity of Lagos State Waste Management Authority (LAWMA) to remove heaps of waste that littered streets and highways. This policy saved the state from an imminent outbreak of epidemic occasioned by the indiscriminate dumping of refuse by residents following the disengagement of LAWMA from waste management duties. As a follow-up to environmental management, the government launched the Blue Box Initiative, designed to recyclable waste for the purpose of creating jobs and wealth.
INFRASTRUCTURE
As a chip of the old block, Sanwo-Olu had pledged not to discontinue inherited projects. Therefore, contractors handling construction of various infrastructure projects had return to site and complete them. He has also ensured that work resumed on the Mile 2/Badagry Expressway project, hopefully to be completed by December 2019, among others. This will further boost tourism and international business.
HI-TECH
The administration of Sanwo-Olu has perfected plans to actualise the Smart City initiative, which is billed to hit airwaves in the coming weeks. The high points of the initiative is the deployment of metropolitan fibre optics across the State. The project, when launched would provide Internet infrastructure for the populace to boost aid e-commerce and tech innovation.
Governor Sanwo-Olu, his Deputy, Dr Obafemi Hamzat and other officials
POWER
The administration has made arrangements with key power distribution firms to distribute 20,000 metres to residents to ease challenges of accessing power.
In his usual modest mien, the governor has has promised that “The coming days will be filled with good governance and more successes.”
Describing the 100 days of the governor, Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr. Gbenga Omotoso, said it is “excessively eventful”.
Sanwo-Olu with Iyaloja- General, Chief ( Mrs.) Shade- Tinubu
Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu is widely regarded as a public sector expert in
human resources and policy formation a power sector consultant per excellence,
an astute banker, a compelling public speaker and an inspirational leader.
Apart from a robust public sector service experience which spanned over eight years during
which he was Honourable Commissioner for Commerce and Industry, Honourable
Commissioner for Budget and Planning and Honourable Commissioner for
Establishments and Training, Lagos State, at different times, the very dynamic governor
also has an enviable background in the private sector and close to ten years of exemplary
banking experience during which he contributed immensely to the growth and
development of Lead Bank Plc, UBA, and First Atlantic Bank (now First City Monument
Bank) in various critical capacities.
Catriona Laing, Babajide Sanwoolu & Laure Beaufils
He has distinguished himself as a boardroom guru and has since become a widely
recognised force in both the private and public sector, serving as Board member,
Department for International Development, DFID/DEEPEN Fund; Member of the Board
Audit Committee of Caverton Offshore Services Group, PLC and as Director, Light Level
Nigeria Limited, the foremost digital signage company in Nigeria.
Babajide Sanwo-Olu with Dr Femi Hamzat
A man of admirable social skills, who is generally believed is capable of achieving the greater Lagos initiative, Sanwo-Olu is happily married to Dr. (Mrs.) Ibijoke Sanwo-Olu and they are blessed with children.
Headlines
Atiku Drags Tinubu to Court over Certificate Forgery, Eligibility to Contest 2027 Election
Atiku, who is the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), personally appeared at the court registry to depose to an affidavit in support of the suit.
The suit was instituted by Atiku and the ADC against President Tinubu, the All Progressives Congress (APC), and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
It is anchored on Sections 137(1)(j), 139(1)(a)(i), and 285(14)(c) of the 1999 Constitution, as well as provisions of the Electoral Act, 2026.
At the heart of the case is Section 137(1)(j), which disqualifies anyone who presents a forged certificate to INEC from contesting for President.
The plaintiffs are asking the court to determine whether Tinubu and the APC should be disqualified from the 2027 election over allegations that the President submitted an NYSC discharge certificate bearing the name “Tinubu Bola Adekunle” to INEC for both the 2023 and 2027 elections.
According to Atiku’s affidavit, the name on the certificate is different from “Bola Ahmed Tinubu,” and the document was not obtained by the President.
Speaking after taking the oath, Atiku said his personal appearance was to show seriousness.
“I came here personally because the issues before the court go to the heart of our Constitution and the integrity of the office of President… I have therefore put my name, my signature and my oath behind the facts we are presenting to the court. Now it is President Tinubu’s turn to answer them,” he said.
The suit also asks INEC to produce Tinubu’s Form CF001 submitted for the 2023 and 2027 elections.
Atiku said he had applied for certified true copies of the form but got no response before filing.
“This is precisely why we have gone to court. We are not asking Nigerians to decide this matter on social media… We are asking the institution holding the records to produce them and the judiciary to examine the evidence and pronounce on it,” Atiku stated.
“If the certificate belongs to Bola Ahmed Tinubu, let that be established before the court. If ‘Tinubu Bola Adekunle’ and ‘Bola Ahmed Tinubu’ are one and the same person for the purpose of that certificate, let the evidence establish it.”
Beyond the certificate, the ADC and Atiku are also challenging aspects of the Electoral Act, 2026, which they argue restrict pre-election challenges to a candidate’s qualification. They contend that no law can override the Constitution.
“Can an Act of the National Assembly be used as a shield against an express provision of the Constitution?… Our position is that the Constitution remains supreme,” Atiku said.
Among the reliefs sought is an order disqualifying Tinubu and the APC from participating in the 2027 presidential election if the court upholds the plaintiffs’ case.
“Nobody should misunderstand what is at stake. Nigerian graduates cannot complete NYSC documentation with one identity and simply ask employers to ignore discrepancies… The Presidency is not an immunity certificate against constitutional scrutiny,” he added.
Atiku further urged INEC to demonstrate neutrality by making the relevant records available to the court.
“The 2027 election must begin with clarity about the qualification of those seeking the Presidency. Nigerians should not be asked to vote first and investigate later,” he said.
Lead counsel, Joseph Onu Silas, Esq., said the legal team was confident the case would help deepen Nigeria’s electoral jurisprudence.
“This is not about privilege, personalities or presidential power. It is about one Constitution and one standard for every Nigerian. Nobody is above the Constitution — not Atiku Abubakar, not Bola Tinubu, and certainly not the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria,” Onu said.
Lawyer petitions EU over Tinubu’s qualification, cites ‘subversion of constitution’
Relatedly, a renowned Nigerian lawyer, Kalu Kalu Esq., has submitted a petition to the European Union in Brussels, alleging that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu subverted constitutional order ahead of the 2027 general election.
His remark was shared on Facebook Friday by Paul Ibe, Media Adviser to former Vice President Atiku Abubakar.
Kalu, who spoke at the European Commission headquarters, said the petition seeks the EU’s intervention to “help restore constitutional democracy in Nigeria.”
He accused President Tinubu of submitting false academic credentials to the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, and failing to state the primary and secondary schools he attended.
“Mr President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has suspended the constitutional order in Nigeria because of his false academic credentials, which he submitted to INEC for the 2027 general election and he did not state the primary school and the secondary school he attended,” Kalu said.
The lawyer cited Section 137(1)(j) of the 1999 Constitution, arguing that presenting a false certificate to INEC disqualifies a candidate.
“Section 1371J says if you have presented a false certificate to INEC, the Independent National Electoral Commission, you will not be qualified to run election and he has submitted forged documents, forged certificates to INEC that made him not to be qualified to run for the 2027 general election,” he stated.
Kalu further alleged that because “they have captured all the power in Nigeria,” the President has “imposed himself on Nigeria, thereby subverting the provisions of the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as amended, which is a mini-coup, a sub-coup against the people of Nigeria.”
He said the purpose of his visit to Brussels was to formally submit the petition to the EU and solicit support for the restoration of constitutional governance in Nigeria.
“Good afternoon all and good afternoon to the whole world. I am here at the European Commission to submit a petition to the European Union concerning the subversion of constitutional order in Nigeria… So, I’m here to submit the petition to the EU to help restore constitutional democracy in Nigeria,” he said.
As of the time of filing this report, the Presidency and INEC have not responded to the allegations.
The European Union-Supported Election Observation Group has deployed 843 observers across Osun State for Saturday’s governorship election, as part of efforts to independently assess the conduct of the poll.
The group, comprising the Centre for Media, Society, the International Press Centre, the Nigerian Women’s Trust Fund, the Kukah Centre and Yiaga Africa, disclosed this in its preliminary statement on the election on Friday in Osogbo, the state capital.
Speaking at the event, the Executive Director of Yiaga Africa, Samson Itodo, said the observers would monitor, document and report on the electoral process in line with the principles of independence, impartiality and non-partisanship.
Itodo said; “the election was of significant national importance as it would provide another opportunity to assess the implementation of provisions of the electoral legal framework and offer INEC, security agencies, electoral stakeholders and the public further insight into preparations ahead of the 2027 general election.”
He said, “the group acknowledged INEC’s declared operational, technological and logistical readiness for the election, including the deployment of election materials and personnel.”
The EU group also noted that INEC had increased the number of Bimodal Voter Accreditation System devices following technical challenges identified during the mock accreditation exercise, with additional devices provided as backup.
On result management, however, the group called for greater clarity on the electronic transmission and backend validation of polling unit results.
It urged INEC to make the result transmission process more transparent and verifiable, including providing clearer information on the backend validation process and the use of electronic result sheets.
The group also called on the Commission to ensure smooth electronic transmission of validated polling unit results and maintain adequate live backup of election data to prevent disruptions during accreditation and counting.
United States President, Donald Trump, says his country is now in “total control” of the Strait of Hormuz amid ongoing tensions with Iran over the reopening of the strategic waterway.
Trump made the claim while speaking to reporters at Joint Base Andrews, saying the situation with Iran was progressing well despite continued disagreements between both countries.
“Iran is going fine – going just absolutely fine. We totally control the Strait of Hormuz. We have control over it; nobody else, only us. Our navy is unbelievable, and things going great for our country,” Trump told reporters at Joint Base Andrews.
“I don’t trust Iran. I’m the last person to trust Iran; they’ve lied to me constantly. We have total control over the Hormuz Strait right now; they don’t have control,” he added.
The claim comes as the United States and Iran continue to exchange demands over the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, casting further uncertainty over negotiations aimed at ending their five-month conflict.
Although the US has confirmed its involvement in the talks, Iran maintains that it is negotiating directly only with Oman. Tehran has also proposed that the future management of the strategic waterway be shared with Oman.
The Strait of Hormuz is a critical global energy route, with about one-fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas supplies passing through it before the US-Israel war with Iran began at the end of February.
On Monday, Trump said he would seek compensation from Iran for deaths and injuries associated with conflicts and attacks spanning several decades.
His position followed Iran’s demands for reparations over the war last week, as Tehran said it would not reopen the strait until Washington addresses its political and economic conditions.
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