Ambode: Lagos Has Never Witnessed Religious Crisis under My Watch

•   Plans to acquires surveillance aircraft

Gboyega Akinsanmi

Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode, monday said the state had never witnessed any religious violence or ethnic conflict under his watch, noting that it had been two and half years of religious tolerance across all parts of the state.

Ambode, however, said the state government had perfected plan “to acquire intelligence surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) platform, a specialised light aircraft, to secure creeks and riverine communities in the state.

Ambode stated this yesterday when the leadership of Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN) led by its President, Dr. Felix Omobude, and commanders of all military formations in the state paid him separate courtesy visits at Lagos House in Alausa, Ikeja.

At the meeting with the PFN leadership, Ambode commended all religious leaders for upholding religious tolerance in the state and complementing government efforts in offering essential services to the people in critical areas such free medical care, provision of shelter and assistance to the needy among others.

The governor briefly acknowledged that there “has never been any major religious or ethnic crisis in the state in the last two and half years of his administration while religious bodies have been complementing the state government.

He, therefore, urged the religious leaders in the state “to sustain the selfless service they have been offering to the people of the state. I want to thank you on behalf of our administration.

“In another two days, our administration will be two and half years and it has been two and half years of sincere religious tolerance in this state. It has never been like this before. We have never had any disagreement between or among the religious groups or even among our people on a tribal note.

“That also shows God is present in state. Religious leaders are significant in the development of the state. There are too many things we plan to do. Our policies do not cover and a strong part of the civil society is our religious bodies.

“There are churches that are feeding people. They are taking care of health of the people. They are taking care of maternal mortality issues, taking care of delivery of babies where there are no hospitals and thereby complementing the efforts of government.

“That in itself deserves to be commended. I must say a big thank you to all our religious bodies. What you are doing is not going unnoticed. I take note of everything that our churches are doing. I commend you most sincerely from the bottom of our hearts.”

At the meeting with the military leaders, he restated the commitment of the state government to ensuring the comfort and safety of residents and investors, saying the welfare of the people remains a top priority for his administration.

Specifically, Ambode said the state government had perfected plans to acquire intelligence surveillance and reconnaissance platform, a specialised light aircraft, to secure creeks and riverine communities in Lagos State.

In the last two and half years, the governor explained that security agencies in the state “have been extremely cooperative with the state government and working hard to ensure that lives and property are safe.”