THE Vice Chairman, Senate Committee on Communications, Senator Solomon Adeola, said on Tuesday that he has not yet made up his mind to contest the governorship poll in Ogun State come 2019, stating he was still consulting with stakeholders and would ensure he carried his “constituents along in any decision to contest election in Ogun State.”
The lawmaker, who is currently representing Lagos West, said this at the Second Town Hall meeting and empowerment programme for his constituents which took place Lagos at Badagry, Lagos.
This was just as he called on the Federal Government to increase budgetary allocation to Lagos West Senatorial District in view of its unequal population as well as the numerous Federal establishments in the senatorial district.
“Before I proceed, I consider it appropriate at this point to discuss a matter that is of topical interest among my constituents and elsewhere in the political sphere. I am talking about the issue of my humble self possibly contesting for the governorship seat of Ogun State.
“Without mincing words and from the depth of my heart, I am full of gratitude for the rare opportunity given to me to serve the people of Lagos State, first as a state legislator representing Alimosho Constituency 2 and secondly as a member of the House of Representatives representing Alimosho Federal constituency and now as a senator for Lagos West.
“I do not take you generosity and magnanimity lightly and I hope I have not disappointed you in these public offices that you entrusted in me through your mandate.
“But as the saying goes, ‘Ile la bo simi oko,’ and my dear people from Ogun State are earnestly yearning for my service as I have demonstrated here in the only ‘Centre of Excellence’ in Nigeria. However, let me state that the present situation is that of wide spread consultations and stakeholders in Ogun State and in our party, APC, on the desirability of such a political move.
“For now, no decision has been reached and I pledge that I will always carry my constituents along in any decision to contest in Ogun state. But as I said, I do not take your support and confidence in me over these years lightly. I will cherish it for the rest of my life whatever the circumstances going forward,” the senator said.
Justify his call for more federal presence in the Lagos West Senatorial District, Adeola contended that the district accommodated several Federal Government strategic institutions as well as key corporate concerns, insisting that such an area deserved all the infrastructural support it could get on a yearly basis.
This, he said, would be in addition to the burden Lagos State government had to bear in attending to development challenges of the massive urbanization that was ongoing in Lagos West.
The lawmaker, however, assured the people of his senatorial district that he would work in conjunction with his colleagues in the relevant Senate Committees overseeing various agencies to ensure that all the capital projects provided for in the 2017 Budget for his senatorial district were maximally executed.
“With the passage of the 2017 Budget, I intend to keep a tab on all the projects domiciled in Lagos West for their proper execution. In 2017, with the exclusion of multi-tier capital projects, a total of N38.5billion is appropriated for Capital Budget in Lagos State and predictably, almost half, N14.7billion was allocated to Lagos West,” he disclosed.
Items distributed to constituents at the empowerment programme by the senator, include 28 Block Moulding machines, 29 deep freezers, 28 sewing machines, 10 welding machines, 10 vulcanising machines, 28 generating sets, 28 clippers, 28 standing dryers, 56 Hand held dryers, 185 grinding machines and 340 lifejackets.
He also announced construction of 28 boreholes and 28 VIP toilets within the senatorial district as well as donation of two 18-seater buses to National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), who were involved in an accident during the celebration of this year’s June 12 Anniversary, and the Lagos State University Ojo.
The senator also pledged an endowment for the Best Graduating Accountant Student in Lagos State University as well as purchasing 500 GCE forms for constituents.
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