Deborah Akinyosoye
Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has urged Nigerians to resolutely defend the country and government against any form of external threat.
Meanwhile, Sanwo-Olu has stressed the importance of databases and measurable outcomes in managing both governance and party structures.
The Governor, who was represented by the Deputy Governor, Dr Obafemi Hamzat, made the remarks yesterday, at the flag-off of the All Progressives Congress, APC, e-registration hands-on device/application themed “Train-the-Trainer” for the South West Zone, held at Lagos House, Marina.
Sanwo-Olu, apparently reacting to the US President Donald Trump’s threat to launch military incursion into the country over allegations of genocide against Christians by terrorists, said, “The Dangote 650,000 barrel per day of refining capacity must be protected, the billions of dollars expended is not a joke.
“We all said we should signthe Petroleum Industry Bill, PIB in this country. What are they doing now.? So those refineries in San Francisco that are now empty because we are refining here. But it’s not our fight.
“Should we not produce jobs for our people.? The man took 3,000 Nigerians to India to train for a year, the man has built 35,000 flats in Ibeju-Lekki to house his employees; that place sits on a land bigger than the whole of Victoria Island. Is it not in Nigeria? We must protect it, it’s a Nigerian expenditure.”
Continuing he noted, “If somebody spent 20 billion US dollars, is it a joke.? The budget of Federal Government of Nigeria, all the 36 states and FCT is 62 billion dollars. The man spent 20 billion dollars, that is one-third of the full-time expenditure of federal government, state government. You think it’s a joke,?” he queried.
“And our President is taking those right decisions. People that don’t understand will criticize him but let us go out there and be proud and defend this government. They are doing the right things. As we do it, God will continue to be with us.”
Speaking on the e-registration, the governor, underscored the significance of accurate data collection and management in sustaining effective governance and party organization, citing that whatever cannot be measured cannot be managed.
Sanwo-Olu was of the opinion that for APC to move forward, the party must build a reliable membership database to strengthen internal communication, improve engagement, and enhance electoral readiness. “As a political party, we must also measure our members. That’s the only way we can manage effectively. We must know who our members are, where they are, and how they feel about governance. It shouldn’t only be during elections that we start running around,” he said.
Sanwo-Olu stressed the importance of two-way communication between the government and the electorate, noting that with accurate data, the party can better understand the needs and sentiments of its members and the general public.
While commending President Bola Tinubu for implementing tasking but necessary reforms, particularly in the petroleum and financial/economic sectors, the Governor, said the reforms are now yielding positive results and citizens are now seeing the benefitting results.
National Secretary, APC, Sen. Ajibola Basiru, described the programme as a vital step towards institutionalizing accuracy, transparency, and structure in party administration, emphasizing that a political party must maintain an authentic and verifiable membership database to ensure credibility and effective participation in democratic processes.
Chairman, Lagos State APC, Cornelius Ojelabi, said the programme would further deepen the country’s democracy, through accurate record keeping and data-driven policies that will place the party in a leadership position.
“This programme is also an avenue to show everyone that we are very organised and capable people who believe in doing things rightly and meeting the needs of our people. Through this programme, we have scored another first as a party of progressives. With this e-registration exercise, our party is again teaching other contractions that we teach other political parties how to run a true people-friendly political party,” Ojelabi said.