“The continuous growth of the population of the state is one of the biggest challenges confronting the state government,” the Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Adeyemi Ikuforiji, has said.
According to Ikuforiji, part of efforts by the Assembly to curb this problem and make life comfortable for the residents had resulted in the people-oriented laws passed by the House so far.
The Speaker, who said this when the Executive Committee of Crime Reporters Association of Nigeria led by its Vice President, Mr. Raymond Tedunjaye, presented him with the twin-award of “Best Security-Conscious Speaker and Best Security-Conscious House of Assembly in Nigeria”, added that it is always the duty of the House to ensure that constituents live in a peaceful environment where businesses flourish.
The Security Trust Fund Law passed by the House in 2008 had effectively reduced incidents of armed robbery, violence and other social vices in the state.
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“We face challenges in population increase everyday and that is a great challenge. There is an atmosphere of secure living and good environment for business to grow because of some laws passed by the House, especially the Security Trust Fund, Child Trafficking and Child Rights Laws,” he stated.
He noted that other states in the country have much to gain from the initiative of Lagos State, saying that some of them have been trying to replicate the developments that have been taking place in the state. He stressed that development could only spread across the country when there is healthy competition among states.
While presenting the award, Tedunjaye said the Assembly was favourably considered because of the laws it had passed to safeguard lives and property in the state.
“You have fulfilled your responsibility as a legislative body, by providing the legal framework for everything to work well in the state. No state can parade the kind of security equipment we have in Lagos, except Lagos state itself. This was made possible by some important laws like Security Trust Fund, Child Trafficking and Child Rights Abuse laws,” he said.
Speaker of the Delta State House of Assembly, Victor Ochei, who witnessed the ceremony, described the Lagos State House of Assembly as a “very strong legislature which remains an excellent example for other states in the federation.
“Lagos remains Centre of Excellence because its legislature is very strong. You have to give it to Lagos. We are looking forward to a time when we will have this situation in Delta state.”
Ochei, who advised crime reporters to be considerate and focus more on developmental efforts of governments in their stories, however, praised them for exposing crimes in the society.
