Governor Chibuike Amaechi of Rivers in Lagos on Friday has acclaimed that governors have a lot to learn from the development stride of Gov. Babatunde Fashola of Lagos state.Amaechi said this in his opening remarks at the third Nigeria Governors` Forum (NGF) retreat in Lagos, adding that Fashola`s development strides was evident.
“Peer learning is our major hallmark as a forum and there is no doubt that we have a lot to learn from Lagos state,’’ he said.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the retreat is the third in the series organised by the NGF under the chairmanship of Amaechi.
According to him, it is part of the forum’s effort to collectively reflect on national life and articulate ways forward not only for states, but for the country at large.
Amaechi said that the retreat was expected to build on the forum’s second retreat held in Sokoto State in November 2013, and to explore the way forward for 2014-2016 strategic plans.
He said issues that would be discussed at the retreat would be adopted, internalised and domesticated to enhance the quality of governance in states and the country in generally.
Earlier, Fashola said that the state government was unrelenting in its effort to ensure good service delivery to the people of the state.
He added that the state government’s intervention in various sectors of the state economy was unlimited.
Fashola stressed that the state government was presently intervening in education at the grassroots where children get their foundation in education.
According to him, some children in the state are not getting enough knowledge because they are visually impaired and due attention is not being given to them.
He added that the state government had been working with the national automotive association to create a vision corridor.
This, he said, was to ensure that even in an interactive and almost playful way, children could be given a more structured and formal test.
The governor said the process would involve not only the teachers, but the children and their parents.
Fashola, however, maintained that his faith in the country remained intact in spite of its challenges, which he said, could be overcome.
He said that though it was a challenging time for the country, it was also a time for change and to look at its problems differently, especially from the national level as 2015 draws closer.
The retreat was attended by the governors of Rivers, Lagos, Edo, Ekiti, Adamawa,Sokoto and Zamfara, while Imo, Ogun, Kwara and Oyo governors were represented by their deputies.
The retreat, which was chaired by Sen. Bukola Saraki, a former governor of Kwara, also has Malam Nuhu Ribadu, a former EFCC boss, retired Justice Mustapha Akanbi, a former ICPC boss, and Prof. Akin Oyebode as guest speakers.
It is expected to discuss current state of agriculture in states of the federation, Nigeria without oil, and building systems and institutions that prevents corruption, among others.
Source: NAN
