Mr. Ambode, who spoke Tuesday at a town hall meeting in Abesan, in Lagos West Senatorial District, said N12 billion had been saved in the first four months of his
government.
”This has provided us with morefunds to inject into capital projects and the initial funds to establish the Employment Trust
Fund which we promised our youths,” Mr. Ambode said.
“Today, a major landmark of our administration is the reduction in the cost of governance. We want a lean government with quality service delivery.”
It was the first edition of a quarterly town hall meeting Mr. Ambode was holding since he was sworn in on May 29th as the third
governor of Lagos State since
1999.
The governor said that reducing the cost of governance was achieved through the re-
alignment of the state’s Ministries, Departments and Agencies, MDAs
and restructuring of government.
He also reiterated his determination to be accountable for every revenue and
expenditure of the state.
“Lagos State Government is proud to declare that it has consistently met its obligations, especially prompt payment of workers’ salaries without seeking any
bailout from the Federal Government,” he said.
Mr. Ambode said his administration was poised to stabilize Lagos State’s finances
through financial re-engineering and reviewing the state’s expenditure and revenue framework.
In August, the governor stated, N11 billion was released for the payment of pension arrears since 2010 and, in the succeeding
months, bond certificates of the
Contributory Pension Scheme had been presented to pensioners.
In addition, the state government had
approved the appointment of four additional Pension Fund Administrators to further boost the processes and accord staff a wider range of options, according to Mr. Ambode.
“We are presently reviewing our loans with
our bankers with a view to restructuring them in order to free up funds for further
infrastructural development,” he said.
In the health sector, Mr. Ambode said that his government had provided additional 20
Mobile Intensive Care Unit ambulances –
bringing the total number of the ambulances to 36 – at a cost of N145.240 million deployed in all the state’s ambulance points.
“We have also provided additional 26
Transport Ambulances at the cost of N257.4
million deployed across all our General
Hospitals,” said Mr. Ambode.
“We have created Ambulance Points across
the States for easy access to our people. The
ambulance service can be reached by calling the Toll-Free Line 112.
“Our administration in the last three months has installed 22 power generating sets ranging from 350 –500 KVA as additional back-up sets
across all our General Hospitals at the cost of N270 million to ensure 24-hour power supply.
“In addition, 26 Mobile X-Ray machines,
costing N519.656 million are being installed at all our general hospitals across the State.
Similarly, we have granted approval for the
recruitment of more paramedic staff and
special medical coordinators to ensure 24
hours service in our health facilities.”
The governor further promised that the
Ayinke House Project, the abandoned
maternity complex near the Lagos State
University Teaching Hospital, had been re-
awarded to a contractor and would be
completed within 6 months.
On the proposed Lagos Medical Park, Mr.
Ambode said that expressions of interest had been received.
“We will enter the phase of the project soon
and at the end of this, Lagos State will become a key destination for Medical Tourism,” he said.
“All these have been painstakingly done to
create better access to health services for all
Lagosians.”
Mr. Ambode said that he had laid down the
foundation for the programmes of his
administration.
“You cannot run a 4-year marathon at top
speed from the onset. Like any other well-
bred Chief Executive Officer, CEO, I have put in place all the ingredients needed to run a successful race,” he said.
“We will continue to woo investors to Lagos.
We are assisting businesses and creating a
conducive environment for these investors to start business and employ our people. Our administration is committed to serve and render good governance.
”However, we need your support and
cooperation to enable us deliver on our lofty programmes. I want to assure you that our programmes are well thought out and
carefully designed to make life easier and
better for all our citizens.”
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