Lagos State Governor Akinwunmi Ambode has advised politicians across the country to always remember the need to work together in their service to the people who elected them.
He believed it was impossible for any arm of government to exist without the other and as such, there must be collaboration and mutual understanding across party lines for effective governance to take place.
The governor made the remarks on Friday while declaring open the Second Quarterly General Meeting of Conference of Speakers of State Legislatures in Nigeria at the Lagos House in Ikeja.
“There is no arm of government that can exist without another,” he said in a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Habib Aruna, while reacting to the wave of defection by politicians in the country.
He added, “Legislature is vital to the sustenance of democracy. Its stability, equity, and economic prosperity through the effective performance of legislative duties and oversight functions cannot be overemphasised.”
Governor Ambode urged Nigerian lawmakers, including members of the National Assembly, to avoid all acts that can constitute an obstruction to the wheel of progress as a result of party differences.
He noted that the spirit of politics was to serve the people and give back to the society, stressing that politicians across party lines must be constantly reminded that the essence of politics as enshrined in the Constitution was to protect the lives and property, as well as the welfare of the people.
The Governor said, “As politicians, we must ensure that the electorate continues to believe and trust in the principles of equity and the rule of law.
“No arm of government must be a clog in the wheel of progress on the basis of partisan differences and that was why I said that it is very significant that irrespective of our party lines, irrespective of what has happened, we are still here to find a common ground to discuss national issues that relate to autonomy, that relate to State Police and that is the message that we have been sending in the last three and half years.”
“The whole essence of us being called politicians is to be able to give service to our people. When we do the road, bridge or the hospital, it does not ask whether you are PDP or APC neither does it ask whether you are Igbo, Hausa or Yoruba before you can climb on the Third Mainland Bridge.”
Ambode added, “There are only two reasons why we are in this business of politics which are also enshrined in the Constitution – protection of lives and property and welfare of our people and so no matter what strategy or path or geographical landscape we use, what is important is that we should be able to achieve those two objectives.”
The speakers of the 36 State Houses of Assembly in the country were in Lagos to discuss issues of national importance, including the creation of state police among others.
