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IKEJA – The Lagos State House of Assembly has passed bills and resolutions that have enabled the delivery of dividends of democracy to residents.
The Chairman, House Committee on Information, Security and Strategy, Mr Stephen Ogundipe, said this in a statement issued to mark Democracy Day in Lagos on Thursday.
Ogundipe said the 10th Assembly under the leadership of the Speaker, Mr Mudashiru Obasa, was resolute and committed to supporting bills that would bring dividends of democracy to the people of the state.
The spokesperson said some of the bills and resolutions were historic,adding that many of them eventually became laws which had impacted residents greatly as well as people outside of the state.
He said: “Particularly worthy of mention are the Financial Autonomy law, Neighbourhood Safety Agency law, Regulation Approval law, and the Local Government Administration law.
“The law also creates a four-year tenure for elected officials of the local government councils, making Lagos the first state in Nigeria to do so.
“Also, there is the Traffic Sector Reform law which created the Bus Rapid Transportation (BRT) system and the Lagos State Transport Management Authority (LASTMA) law.
“As a matter of fact, most of our laws, including our House Rules, have become models for other State Houses of Assembly in Nigeria.
“The Assembly also enacted the Lagos State University of Science and Technology law which converted the old Lagos State Polytechnic to a full university,” the spokesperson said.
He said one of the beauties of the Lagos State University of Science and Technology Bil passed and assented by the executive ,was that it would eliminate the discrimination against polytechnic graduates in the labour market.
Ogundipe added that the Lagos State College of Education was upgraded to the Lagos State University of Education through an enabling law, thereby increasing the number of universities established by the state to three.
The spokesperson said in a bid to proffer solutions to the security challenges facing the country, the Assembly pioneered the agitation for the creation of state police.
He said these laws had attracted significant attention from local and international admirers, leading to frequent visits from international representatives and private citizens seeking to learn from the Assembly.
“These have attracted significant attention from local and international admirers, leading to frequent visits from international representatives and private citizens seeking to learn from us.
“This visit to the Assembly was also to exchange ideas, conduct research, or participate in exchange programmes,” the spokesperson said.
He urged Nigerians to continue to support state Houses of Assemblies to further deepen democratic values and bring governance closer to the grassroots.
Ogundipe added that the Assembly remained committed to supporting laws that guarantee more development in the state. (NAN)
