Hold Me Accountable To My Promises – Hamzat Tells Lagosians

Lagos State Deputy Governor and governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Lagos State, Dr. Kadri Obafemi Hamzat, on Friday unveiled a 100-point manifesto, urging the electorate and residents of the state to hold him accountable for its implementation if elected governor in 2027.

Hamzat, who read the manifesto, tagged The Lagos Promise at the Wole Soyinka Centre for Culture and Creative Arts, formerly the National Theatre, Iganmu, Lagos described the document as a social contract between him and the people.

He promised far-reaching interventions in healthcare, education, infrastructure, economic development, security and social welfare, with particular emphasis on improving the quality of life of ordinary residents.

The document is anchored on seven pillars: People First, Renewal, Opportunity, Machinery of Government, Inclusion, Security and Resilience, and Everyday Dignity.

Describing the manifesto as a set of measurable commitments rather than conventional campaign promises, Hamzat said its provisions were designed to give Lagosians clear benchmarks against which to evaluate his performance.

“Seven letters, seven pillars, one word you can hold me to,” he declared.

He urged residents to scrutinise the document, insisting that his proposed administration would be judged by its ability to translate the promises into tangible results.

Among the major healthcare commitments is a plan to increase the number of maternal and child centres in the state from 10 to 15 and expand enrolment in the Ilera Eko health insurance scheme from its current level of nearly two million to one in every three Lagos residents, with priority for low-income households.

He also promised to deliver the new 150-bed Massey Children’s Hospital and a 280-bed general hospital, complete the ongoing 150-bed Shomolu General Hospital and establish two additional general hospitals at Ogombo and Ibeju-Lekki.

According to him, the projects would provide an additional 580 hospital beds, alongside the upgrading of 100 primary healthcare centres to flagship status.

Hamzat further pledged to recruit more doctors, nurses and midwives while improving the working conditions of healthcare professionals.

On education, the APC candidate promised to strengthen public schools and improve learning outcomes, particularly in reading, comprehension and reasoning.

He said the ECO-EXCEL programme was already operating in 1,028 public primary schools, while the ECO-LEARNERS initiative provided 320 lessons through online platforms and television to enable pupils to continue learning outside the classroom.

He promised to expand both initiatives and ensure that children acquired the necessary foundational skills before entering primary education.

The former commissioner also highlighted the establishment of Lagos State University of Science and Technology, Ikorodu, and Lagos State University of Education, Ijanikin, saying the state now had three public universities.

He disclosed that plans were underway for a University of Medicine and Health Services to increase the capacity to train healthcare professionals.

For teachers, he promised continuous professional development and a review of their compensation packages to reflect their responsibilities, noting that more than 33,000 teachers had been trained in the past seven years.

On economic development and job creation, Hamzat identified small businesses, artisans, traders, manufacturers and entrepreneurs as critical drivers of Lagos’ economy.

He promised to simplify government charges, reduce the burden of business permits, improve access to credit and align vocational training with the actual needs of employers.

Citing the performance of the Lagos State Employment Trust Fund, he said more than ₦15 billion had been disbursed to over 21,000 businesses, while more than 116,000 businesses had benefited from training, advisory and mentorship support.

He added that 30,000 young people had been trained, nearly 15,000 placed in employment and businesses supported by the fund had generated more than 300,000 jobs.

Hamzat pledged to introduce a single published schedule of local government charges, allocate a defined proportion of state procurement to qualified small businesses and establish a one-stop system to simplify business registration and permit processes.

He also promised six to 12 months of workplace placements for vocational and technical trainees, with the state bearing 40 per cent of their stipends.

Artisans and other workers with existing practical skills, he said, would be able to obtain free certification at their workplaces.

Beyond economic and social infrastructure, Hamzat said his administration would place children and vulnerable residents at the centre of its policies.

Recalling the rescue of a 10-year-old boy found sleeping under a bridge in Oshodi after running away from home because he felt unsafe, he said the experience reinforced the need for stronger protection systems involving schools, healthcare facilities, social welfare agencies, security institutions and communities.

“If you are a child and you live in Lagos, then you are a child of Lagos. Wherever your parents were born, whatever language you speak, and whatever faith your family practises, Lagos will know your name, Lagos will work for you, Lagos will protect you,” he said.

In his emotional speech , Lagos State Governor Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu said his deputy was not only loyal but very trustworthy .

Sanwo-Olu said the state’s governance was anchored on continuity, saying, ‘’Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu ran the first leg. When he passed the baton in 2007, he passed it to Babatunde Raji Fashola, who had been running beside him as his Chief of Staff. When Fashola passed it in 2015, he passed it to Akinwunmi Ambode, who had run beside three governors as a civil servant and as the Accountant-General of this state.

‘’When the baton came to me in 2019, I had been running since 2003: a commissioner under Asiwaju, a commissioner under Fashola, the head of a quasi-government agency under Ambode. I did not come to Alausa to learn where the offices were.

Speaking on behalf of the party’s Governance Advisory Council (GAC), former Deputy Governor, Princess Sarah Adebisi Sosan, also called for continuity in governance, urging the next administration to preserve successful policies while correcting identified shortcomings.

Sosan said Lagos’ development was the product of deliberate planning and purposeful leadership, warning against abandoning programmes that had delivered results.

“You cannot build a strong state by abandoning everything that has worked; you must preserve the good, correct the areas that need improvement and continue to make progress,” she said.

She identified infrastructure, transportation, education, healthcare, security, employment, housing and environmental sanitation as critical areas requiring sustained attention.

Sosan also stressed that the development of Lagos required collective responsibility, urging residents, businesses and government institutions to work together.

In a related development, the Director-General of the Kadri Obafemi Hamzat Campaign Organisation pledged that the campaign would be peaceful, disciplined and issue-based.

He said the contest should be determined by ideas, competence and capacity to deliver rather than personalities or political structures.

According to him, the campaign would focus on practical solutions to the challenges confronting Lagos residents, guided by the principles of Forward and Together.

He explained that Forward represented the commitment to sustaining development, improving public services and embracing innovation, while Together reflected the promise of inclusive governance that gives every resident a stake in the state’s future.

He said the campaign organisation would take its message to local governments, wards and communities across Lagos, while urging party members to remain united and disciplined.

The APC candidate said the ultimate test of his manifesto would be its impact on the lives of residents, maintaining that public trust could only be earned through transparency and accountability.

“A government that publishes the truth about itself earns its people’s trust,” he said.