Presidential-elect Bola Tinubu
Eko Hot Blog reports that presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Tinubu, says he turned Lagos from a jungle to a megacity during his tenure as the governor of the state.
Tinubu was Lagos governor from 1999 to 2007.
In a mini documentary that aired on Channels TV on Friday night, the APC presidential candidate stressed that all other Lagos State governors after him have built upon the solid foundation he laid while in office.
According to Tinubu, Lagos was a jungle when he took office in 1999 but he gradually transformed the state to the megacity it is today.
He noted that he initiated and implemented smart policies that were successful.
“When I came in as governor of Lagos State in 1999, Lagos was a jungle. It was a completely uncivilised environment. There were refuse dumps everywhere, schools without roofs, hospitals without ambulances and oxygen tanks to save lives. It was in a very bad state.,” the presidential candidate said.
“We started to put things in place gradually and the state began to take shape. What we did was to take the liabilities in the state and convert them to assets.
“Civic Centre to Oriental Hotel areas of Victoria Island were back then refuse dumps, but look at what the areas have turned to today. It is only the older ones who would remember all these.
“I initiated and implemented policies that launched Lagos to the city it is today. I will say I left Lagos better than I met it and no other state in the country till date can boast of what Lagos has achieved.”
The documentary noted that Lagos became fully independent of the Federal Government in terms of revenue generation, thanks to Tinubu’s policies of reengineering the state’s wealth generation scheme.
“When Tinubu took over in 1999, Lagos was bankrupt. The internally generated revenue at the time was N600m monthly and the state was completely dependent on the Federal Government for it,” it said.
“When Tinubu was leaving office in 2007, the IGR of Lagos was N7bn monthly. Babatunde Fashola built on that legacy to N15bn monthly. This was made possible by the short, medium and long-term goals that Tinubu laid down for the state in terms of revenue and wealth generation.
“Under his leadership Lagos came alive. He took Lagos from jungle to megacity and no governor equals his governorship trend. Tinubu brought the blueprint that set Lagos apart.”
President Muhammadu Buhari also made an appearance in the documentary.
The president was shown describing the former Lagos governor as a political strategist—a gift that drew him (Buhari) to Tinubu.
“Asiwaju Bola Tinubu has set himself apart as a political strategist and a mountain of ideas which drew me to him. He is a true humanitarian and has contributed immensely to the success of Nigeria and Africa,” Buhari said.
Click to watch our video of the week:
The Kano State Government has announced its intention to prosecute all tax defaulters in 2025…
In light of recent tragic events involving stampedes during philanthropic activities, the Lagos State Government…
Dangote Industries Limited President, Aliko Dangote, has applauded President Bola Tinubu's naira for crude swap…