A source close to the President (and was in fact present in the Vice-President’s entourage to Lagos has confirmed the rumours making headlines that President Buhari as a matter of fact did cancel his highly publicized trip to Lagos state due to his personal differences with Tinubu; pleading anonymity, he said the President and Tinubu are not in good terms and on confirming that the Party leader will not welcome him in person, this he believes will make public the personal rift between them. Many believe that Tinubu’s meeting with Labour further annoyed the President who believes Tinubu shields too much power both in the party and in Lagos state.
President Muhammadu Buhari, who was earlier scheduled to make the visit, canceled late yesterday on account of an “ear infection.” The vice president then stepped in to represent him.
Vice President Oluyemi Osinbajo stood in for President Muhammadu Buhari to commission a series of projects by the Lagos State government. Governor Akinwunmi Ambode of Lagos State, several ministers, state commissioners and other government officials accompanied Vice President Osinbajo to the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA) response unit at Cappa Oshodi, Lagos. Oba Rilwan Akiolu of Lagos was also present.
In his speech, Governor Ambode outlined the reasons for the establishment of LASEMA, and urged all Lagosians, including the enforcement agencies, to cooperate with LASEMA. “Many people lost their lives and sources of livelihood not because of the initial incident but from the delay in the response time due to inadequate resources and training. Our initial goal is to significantly bring down response time by our responders,” the governor said.
He added that the state was working on the next phase of the project, to establish dispatch centers across key areas within the state in order to further reduce the response time. “LASEMA is empowered by law to coordinate all the first responders’ activities, the Lagos State Fire Service, Lagos State Ambulance Service and the Lagos State Traffic Management Agency,” said the governor.
He implored all residents to call only when there was a genuine emergency. “Anytime you place what is known as a false call, you divert resources and attention from someone who may be genuinely in need. LASEMA needs the cooperation of the Nigerian police force and other law enforcement agencies to carry out its objectives successfully,” Governor Ambode said.
