Wife of Lagos state governor, Dr Ibijoke Sanwo-Olu, has called on the general public to disregard the claim purportedly linking her office to the programme of a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO), South-Westhire Health Trust to remove mentally challenged people from the streets of Lagos.
Dr Sanwo-Olu made this call in a signed statement titled, ‘Re: Vagrant Free Society,’ copy of which was made available to newsmen by Mrs Olubukonla Nwonah, Asst Director, Public Affairs, Office of Lagos State First Lady, describing the claim as false in its entirety as there was no such arrangement with the NGO.
“The attention of the Office of First Lady of Lagos State has been drawn to a Brochure of events by a Non– Governmental Organisation (NGO) that goes by the name; ‘South-Westhire Health Trust,’ planning to remove mentally challenged people from the streets of Lagos between 12th and 20th November 2019.
“In the Brochure, the management of South-Westshire Health Trust purportedly claimed that the planned removal of the mentally challenged persons from the streets is in partnership with the Office of the First Lady of Lagos State. Nothing could be farther from the truth,” the statement said.
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It disclosed that while it was true that the management of the said NGO paid a courtesy visit to the First Lady to solicit for partnership, the First Lady made it abundantly clear that some background checks would have to be conducted on the said NGO to ascertain the safety of the mentally challenged persons to be removed from the streets.
The statement, however, said the body without getting due approval from the First Lady Office went on to print the said Brochure in a “preposterous manner” and attributed the initiative to the First Lady.
“For us, the safety of the mentally challenged persons is very important and we will have to conduct our espionage into the background and activities of your NGO (South-Westshire Health Trust) to be sure that they will be in safe hands.
“Without getting due approval from the Office of the First Lady, South-Westshire Health Trust went on to print the said Brochure in a preposterous manner and attributed the initiative to the First Lady,” the statement noted.
It assured that the state government was opened to credible partnerships from worthy private organisations whose intentions had been certified to be genuine and sincere, as it was a fact that it had a well-structured system in place to take care of this category of persons.
“While it is a fact that the Lagos state government has a well-structured system in place to take care of this category of persons, the state government is, however, opened to credible partnerships from worthy private organisations whose intentions have been certified to be genuine and sincere,” the statement said.
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