Sanwo-Olu best among contestants, says Omotoso

• States factors responsible for APC defeat being addressed
• Mohammed, LASAA ex-boss, Sanusi, NANS urge support for gov, APC at polls

Lagos State Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Gbenga Omotoso, has said that Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu is the best among candidates contesting to be governor of the state in Saturday’s election because he is contesting on record that others do not have.

In a statement, yesterday, Omotoso said it was the reason he and other supporters of the governor and All Progressives Congress (APC) were optimistic that Sanwo-Olu would be re-elected.

The commissioner, who said the insinuation that the party has lost Lagos was not correct but a reflection of the “beauty of democracy,” assuring that the APC would come out “stronger and better” after the March 11, 2023 election.

MEANWHILE, the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), Lagos Axis, has declared support for Sanwo-Olu to return as the governor of Lagos State, citing his performance record in education as best in Nigeria.

Executive Chairman, NANS Joint Campus Committee (JCC), Lagos Axis, Tolulope Olusesi, who gave the declaration during a media briefing at the Lagos State University College of Medicine Ikeja, said that none of the governors under the new democratic dispensation stand on the same dais of achievements as Sanwo-Olu in tertiary education.

He, therefore, urged eligible voters among the students to vote for Sanwo-Olu.
RELATEDLY, the Minister of Information, Lai Mohammed, has called on the people, especially indigenes of Kwara State resident in Lagos State, to vote massively for Sanwo-Olu and his deputy, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat, to enable them run their second term.

Mohammed, who urged the people to also vote in APC members for the House of Assembly, described the Saturday election as a payback period for indigenes of Kwara State who have benefitted maximally from Lagos and have also contributed to the development of the state from their forefathers.

The minister, who spoke yesterday as Chairman of the occasion at a programme titled “Kwarans Assembly in Lagos for the purpose of APC winning governorship and Assembly elections” held at Teslim Balogun Stadium, said the collaboration between people of Kwara State in Lagos and Lagos State in politics and development of the state did not start yesterday but since the days of Kwarans’ fore-fathers who have benefitted in Lagos, which resulted into them building houses and doing great things in Kwara State.

ALSO, the immediate past Managing Director (MD) and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Lagos State Signage and Advertising Agency (LASAA), Mobolaji Sanusi, yesterday, warned members of APC against going into Saturday’s gubernatorial and House of Assembly elections with the type of complacency displayed on February 25, 2023 during the presidential and National Assembly polls.

Sanusi, who spoke with The Guardian, urged supporters of APC in the state to eschew whatever their grievances may be and come out en-masse to vote for Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, his running mate, Dr. Kadiri Obafemi Hamzat and all House of Assembly candidates.

He noted that Sanwo-Olu deserves support because of his administration’s sterling performance, which he said, cut across all areas of governance in the past four years.

He, however, lauded the state governor and his deputy for forging a united front in the running of the state’s affairs.

“As Lagosians, one of the important things for us to do is to renew the mandate of Sanwo-Olu by confidently casting our votes for him to ensure continuity of his developmental strides.

“Sanwo-Olu and his running mate have in the last four years taken development in the state to a greater height, thereby sustaining Lagos’ top spot in the comity of states across the federation,” Sanusi said.

He dismissed insinuations that the candidates of the Labour Party (LP), Gbadebo Chinedu Rhodes-Vivour and of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Jide Adediran, pose any threat to the incumbent’s re-election.

“Lagos electorate will not be cajoled into bequeathing the fifth largest growing economy in Africa into the hands of either of the opposition candidates that lack public service experience or proven leadership track records.

“As much as I am convinced that Lagosians, especially the electorate, are adequately in the know of Sanwo-Olu’s impressive resume and track record in public office, I humbly urge everyone to see to his victory at the polls for the continued manifestation of his #AGreaterLagosRising agenda. We cannot afford to entrust the economy of Lagos State to political neophytes,” he further stated.