The Lagos State Governor, Babatunde Fashola, has said only collective efforts of Nigerians can rescue the country from its many woes.
The governor said this on Friday at a grassroots empowerment programme organised by council chairmen in the state, under the aegis of Conference 57.
He said the failure of Nigeria to achieve socio-economic and political growth, after over a decade of self-governance, should give a cause for concern.
Fashola, who was represented at the event, held at Alausa, Ikeja, by the Commissioner for Transportation, Mr. Kayode Opeifa, said the vision of the state and the councils was to work together to grow the state to be the pride of the country.
He said, “We do not do poverty alleviation, but grassroots empowerment. The council chairmen have done well in providing infrastructure for the citizens. They have built roads, schools, hospitals and drainage channels. They have individually organised empowerment programmes in their domains. They have now come together for the biggest empowerment programme in the country.”
The governor urged Lagosians to be vigilant in the face of security challenges in the country, adding that they must be security conscious to keep the state safe.
The Chairman of Conference 57, Mr. Suleiman Hakeem, said council chairmen decided to empower over 3,000 people to improve the standard of living of the masses.
“It is obvious that most people in this country cannot provide for themselves the basic needs of life. This has made it imperative for us to embark on some developmental programmes.
“We will be giving out refrigerators, deep freezers, outboard boat engines, generators, food stuffs, mobile phones, spray painter, machine box and sewing machine, among others,” he added.
