*Fashola says PDP Federal Government
Bereft of Ideas, Lack Planning
The Peoples Democratic Party(PDP) controlled Federal Government has been described as an administration bereft of ideas and planning to develop the country and move it to greater heights.
This was how the Governor of Lagos State,Mr Babatunde Raji Fashola responded to the statement of the President,Goodluck Jonathan during the flag off of his party’s campaign in Ibadan, Oyo State early in the week where he referred to opposition controlled Sate Governors in the Southwest as ‘Rascals’.
Speaking with journalists yesterday on his return from Abuja., Fashola noted that the statement by the president was unbecoming of the person of Jonathan who was presently occupying the exalted office of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
He told the president to channel his energy toward addressing the infrastructural decay that dotted the country’s landscape such as bad roads instead of engaging in cheap diatribe and name calling which was unbefitting of the exalted office of the President.
Expatiating on his challenge to President Jonathan, Governor Fashola asked the president to come to Lagos and see lots of abandoned Federal roads adding that if governors qualify as " Rascals" , Jonathan himself is a ' president of rascals'.
Fashola went on: "I think that I am happy that you have put the remark in its very appropriate perspective. The office of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria is a very high office and I do not think that that kind of language coming from the PDP presidential candidate is unpresidential.
And it is interesting that these remarks are being made from outside Lagos, so I hope that when they come here they would be able to call us rascals again. And if we are rascals it means that some of the other governors he has been presiding over are in a republic of rascals’.
He added: ’But I leave him to decide his own choice of words. Why should they be worried about our success in Lagos? If it(our success) gives them sleepless night and it makes them uncomfortable, I make no apologies, that is why I am in government, to succeed here, to improve the quality of lives of people as best as I can.’
Governor Fashola pondered:, ‘Look. This party, PDP , has spent 12 years trying to provide electricity. We have provided three major electricity plants in Lagos, the next one will be completed in a few weeks. And clearly therefore they are deficient in ideas , they are deficient in planning. They spent four years trying to build 400 meters bridge in Ota, Ogun State and on the day that they finally came to open that bridge instead of apologizing to the people Lagosians, they inundated us again, they were fighting themselves about who will cut the tape."
Said Fashola : " Meanwhile the road that leads to the bridge is not completed. We built Okota link bridge in 18 months. It is longer than that bridge in which they were fighting. So, that is what we expect them to come and talk about. Apapa- Oshodi-Oworoshoki Express Road is their road, is potholes ridden. The road to the biggest airport to this country is a national embarrassment.
“ We cleared Oshodi, asking them to finish their roads so that Nigerians can even begin to change our image to foreigners who come here. These are the issues that we expect them to come and address our voters about. We are waiting for them.’
‘But Lagosians will have to be determined to see clearly the pattern of the candidacy of the PDP candidates who seek to continue to lead this country into poverty, into inefficiency, into insecurity. But having said that I think that I have asked myself whether the president is more concerned about who is governor of Lagos or about becoming president.
The governor continued,:’I think that if the PDP wants to swap candidates for the governor of Lagos I will be ready to face him because his candidate is not talking about what he wants to do in Lagos. And I will leave our own presidential candidate on issues that are germane to Nigerians.
Why the federal roads in Lagos have not been fixed? Why Lagosians do not have electricity? Why Lagosians have to bear the cost of their own security in spite of the enormous votes every year in the federal budget?
‘These are the issues that concern Lagosians and those are the issues about which their votes will be deployed. Lagos voters will not vote on the basis of luck. I did not win this office on the basis of luck, it was won on the basis of very clear manifesto of the ACN, very clear ideas about how to propel this economy, very hard work that we have done since 1999 as a people, progressives who have shown our common touch with the people."
He further said : " Elections will not be won by resulting to derogatory language and by claiming luck, elections require those who seek elective offices to focus on the people over who they plan to exercise authority and to communicate to them in a very clear and practical manner how they intend to improve thier lot. I think that the PDP led federal government has a lot of questions to answer in Lagos."
On the controversial elevation of the president of the Court of Appeal into the Supreme Court, Fashola said : " Seriously, I don’t have all of the facts, and you know that until I have the facts it is dangerous to make conclusions, more importantly I think I read somewhere that there is now a court action so I more than anybody should respect and not make the work of the court difficult in this matter. Except of course to say on a general basis that I know as a fact that the president of the court of appeal has opted on occasion not to be elevated to the supreme court, he made that choice. And therefore many of his colleagues some of whom were his juniors have been elevated to that place. And it is common knowledge in our profession that if we were colleagues or classmates on the day that I get appointed to the court even if I were your junior, on the day I get appointed to a court and you come after me, you become my junior in that court.
‘ So, if his colleagues and juniors have gone to the Supreme Court ahead of him and we are promoting him, is there a real promotion there? Because he is going to take a queue behind them. If it is a promotion, is that a real promotion to go and queue up behind those you presided over? "
No comments:
Post a Comment