By Oguwike Nwachuku
Executive Editor
The conspicuous absence of former governor of Lagos State, Babatunde Fashola at the recent dinner held by the government in commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the creation of Lagos was not only shocking to Governor Akinwunmi Ambode, but other dignitaries who graced the occasion, TheNiche investigation has shown.
National leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and former governor of Lagos State, Bola Tinubu, was also said to have expressed concern that Fashola was not at the event.
All former governors of Lagos State, both military and civilian, were said to have been duly invited to the event weeks ahead of the occasion, according to sources at the Lagos State Government House, Alausa, Ikeja.
TheNiche learnt that Fashola did not only shun the event, but failed to give reason(s) for his absence; a development that was said to have shocked Ambode and other important personalities present.
Not only did the absence of the former governor who is the Minister of Power, Works and Housing give room for speculations, it was said to have created doubts over his cordial relations with Ambode, his successor, and former Accountant General of the state.
Consequently, there were insinuations that the rift between the duo may have taken a new dimension ahead of the 2019 general election.
Political analysts are of the view that Fashola still habours ill feeling for Ambode even though he works so hard to cover it up. The ill feeling was said to have dated well back to when Ambode was the State’s Accountant General during which period Fashola sacked him over official differences they could not reconcile.
A media aide to the Lagos State Governor told TheNiche that Fashola was duly invited to the dinner the way other former governors and stakeholders were invited but he chose to stay away. The aide also said Fashola’s wife, Abimbola, a former Lagos First Lady did also not attend.
“He was duly informed and invited like other former governors but for reasons not known to us, he failed to show up,” Ambode’s Chief Press Secretary, Habib Aruna, told this newspaper on Wednesday, May 31.
Indications that Fashola’s relationship with Ambode was getting worse emerged in March this year, when Ambode alleged that the minister was disrespecting the directive given by President Muhammadu Buhari on a Presidential Lodge Marina Lagos, and that his ministry was frustrating his desire to fix the road that leads to the Muritala Mohammed International Airport in Ikeja, Lagos from Oshodi.
Ambode had alleged on Wednesday, March 8, that his administration’s plan to carry out a total reconstruction of the International Airport Road from Oshodi was being frustrated by the Federal Ministry of Works.
Ambode had also said the present state of the Muritala Mohammed International Airport Road was a national disgrace and required immediate attention to salvage the nation’s image. He claimed that Fashola’s ministry’s was not helping matters even though Lagos State Government presently has a design for the reconstruction of the road and the funds to embark on the project. Ambode had said all he wanted from the Federal Government was to grant approval, apparently expecting Fashola to facilitate same.
Ambode said then: “The road linking Oshodi to the International Airport, you would all agree with me is a national embarrassment. In the spirit of the regeneration and urbanisation that this administration has set out to achieve, we believe strongly that the image that is exhumed by the decadence of that road must be repaired and we took it upon ourselves to appropriate the 2017 budget that the House of Assembly should approve the total reconstruction of the Airport Road from Oshodi to the International Airport.
“The State currently has a design of 10 lanes to come from Oshodi to the International Airport with interchange and flyover that would drop you towards the Local Airport. The contractor is already set to go and everything as I said has been completed and we already have the cash, but alas we are having challenges with the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing. This is a Federal and not a State road. The Federal Ministry of Works believes that they should do the road, but they have not been able to do it all these years past.”
Ambode had said despite the fact that the Federal Government was indebted to Lagos to the tune of N51 billion, which was spent on fixing Federal roads over the years, including the roads repaired by Fashola, the State Government’s effort to immediately transform the Airport Road to world class standard was being frustrated.
Ambode had also said his administration was ready to hit the ground running with construction of the Airport Road within two weeks and would finish same within a period of six months if the approval was given.
Expressing frustration that six months after Buhari approved the handover of the Presidential Lodge, Marina, the State Government was yet to gain access into the premises, he said the nonchalant attitude was seriously frustrating the programmes outlined for the Lagos @ 50 celebrations.
His words: “One of the key venues that we need to celebrate the real essence of Lagos, the historic place that we refer to as Presidential Lodge is still more or less being tossed about in terms of being handed over to us. We believe strongly that by May 27, 2017, we should be able to invite Mr. President and other people who have actually made Lagos what is it today to that Presidential Lodge for the final Banquet and Dinner to mark Lagos at 50.
“As we speak, we are yet to gain entrance into that place and this is frustrating our programme. So I want to use this medium to appeal and say that the approval of Mr. President should be rightly honoured and the agencies concerned, that is the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing and the Security Services should honour that promise by Mr. President. We just believe strongly that we must proceed to gain access into that place so that we can roll out our programmes for Lagos at 50.”
Fashola had denied all the allegations raised by Ambode as false, accusing him of deliberate misinformation to deceive the public.
On Thursday, March 9, Fashola through his media adviser, Hakeem Bello, said rather than what Ambode said, his ministry has instead favoured Lagos State in several ways which Ambode was deliberately playing down. The minister had also paid a visit to Ambode at the Government House as a way of dousing the escalating insinuation about their face off.
Fashola had said: “The attention of the Federal Ministry of Power, Works and Housing has been drawn to certain statements credited to the Governor of Lagos State, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode claiming that the “Federal Ministry of Works“ has been frustrating the efforts of his administration to carry out a “total reconstruction of the International Airport Road from Oshodi.”
“The Governor also reportedly accused the “Federal Ministry of Works and Housing” and Security Services of denying the State Government access to the Presidential Lodge in Lagos six months after President Muhammadu Buhari approved it for the State.
“This response is to ensure that members of the public are not misled by deliberate or inadvertent mis-statements. The allegations of lack of cooperation from the Ministry and frustration of Lagos State Government development initiatives are simply not true and the facts do not bear them out.
“In 2016, the Hon Minister for Power Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Raji Fashola, SAN, approved the use of the Federal Ministry of works yard at Oworonsoki for Lagos State Government to create a lay-by to ease traffic. The Hon Minister also approved that Lagos State be granted the Rights to manage the Street Lighting on the 3rd Mainland Bridge to support the security initiatives of the State, a request which the previous Federal Government administration had denied Lagos State for years.
“During the same year the Hon Minister also supported the approval of the World Bank Loan of $200m to Lagos State, again a request the previous administration had denied Lagos State.
“As far as International Airport Road which is currently the ground for alleged “frustration” is concerned, the correct position is that the Lagos State Government presented a request for four roads that it would wish to take over. This is consistent with the position being canvassed by the Hon Minisiter for States who are interested to apply to take over Roads that are within their States.
“The Ministry has presented the Memorandum conveying the request of the Lagos State Government to the Federal Executive Council as was done with a similar request by the Kaduna State Government in 2016. Due to the fact that two of the roads also connect Ogun State, the Federal Executive Council could not reach an immediate decision on them because it requested the input of the other State Government affected.
“The Kaduna State Government requested the Federal Government to transfer two roads within Kaduna Metropolis to the State in November 2015. Due process was followed and the request of the State Government was approved in August 2016, a period of ten months.
“Federal Executive Councill Memorandum are debated and commented upon by all members and in cases of roads, surveys, maps and other material have to be provided to assist members understand the location and connectivity of the roads, (in this case Four roads), in order to assist how they vote on the Memorandum.
“As far as the Presidential Lodge is concerned, it is under the management of the Presidency and not the Ministry. After the approval by Mr. President that the Presidential Lodge be handed over to the State Government, there was a directive to the Ministry to work out the modalities for handing over.
“The Ministry has prepared a vesting instrument to convey the transfer and all that is needed is a survey plan. The Presidential Lodge is a high security location and officials of the Ministry also require security clearance to enter in order to do any works. Access to the lodge is not under the control of the Ministry.
“The motive behind this public accusations must therefore be scrutinized coming barely a week after the Governor spoke with the Honorable Minister, Mr Babatunde Fashola SAN on the outstanding requests of the State for several minutes and the Minister took time to explain the situation of things to the Governor. (The first telephone conversation the Governor has had with the Minister since May 29, 2015).
“If there is any lack of co-operation it is on the part of the State Government that has refused to acknowledge not to talk of approving the Ministry’s request for Land of the National Housing Programme in Lagos. The Ministry is not frustrated by this lack of response and remains optimistic that a response will come from Lagos State.
“The Ministry remains committed to serving the Government and Good People of Lagos and will treat all their requests on Merit and in accordance with necessary due process as will be done to other States.
“As far as the refund of N51billion is concerned this is not a new item. Almost all if not all states have these claims and the Federal Ministry of Power Works and Housing has verified these claims. What is left is the process of raising the finance to pay the Debt owed to the States. Those who are familiar with the workings of Government will attest to the fact that it is an intricate sequence of processes, consultation and collaboration. Equating processes to a lack of co-operation is therefore akin to creating a storm in a tea cup.”
Bello was not prepared to speak on the absence of his boss at the State Banquet Golden Jubilee Dinner when TheNiche contacted him on Wednesday, May 31.
Meanwhile, Ambode has got the approval of the Federal Government to fix the Lagos International Airport Road from Oshodi as requested.
The Secretary to the State Government, Tunji Bello, made the disclosure on Wednesday, May 31 in a statement, adding that Ambode said the approval was a 50th birthday gift to the state from the Acting President Yemi Osinbajo who okayed a total reconstruction of the International Airport Road stretching from Oshodi by Ambode.
According to the statement, the governor commended Osinbajo’s “statesman-like approach” to issues and for fast-tracking the process.
Ambode’s words: “We are very appreciative of the good gesture of His Excellency, the Acting President for acceding to our request which is not only very timely but a very heartwarming one. Posterity will never forget this genuine developmental action.”
He further described the approval as a demonstration of the determination of the present administration to ensure the effectiveness of the Executive Order on improving the Ease of Doing Business recently signed by the Acting President, and also gave kudos to Buhari for providing the enabling environment to attract Foreign Direct Investment into the nation.
Ambode added that with the upgrading of the International Airport Road which is the gateway to the nation’s commercial nerve centre, the country will attract new investments.
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