‘I am fulfilling my campaign promises to Lagos East’

Senator Adetokunbo Abiru (Lagos East) has rendered his account of stewardship at the lunch of the COVID-19 Relief  Financial Assistance at his Constituency Office, Ikorodu. He also unfolded plans to attract more democratic dividends to the district.

 

This scheme is designed to ameliorate the devastating economic impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the mass of our people at the bottom of the pyramid.

That is done in fulfillment of one of my electoral campaign promises that the vulnerable segments in our constituency, the Lagos East Senatorial District will not be abandoned in the face of the greatest phenomenon in recent history.

I was inaugurated on the 15th December, 2020 as the Senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The sense of urgency that my team attached to the welfare of the poorest of the poor in our midst, compelled us to hit the ground running immediately.

We reached out to our revered  GAC Leaders, Party chairmen and our esteemed spiritual fathers and leaders, Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) leadership and League of Imams in our Senatorial District to draw up a list of less privileged  beneficiaries like: Widows, Unemployed Youths, Women , Physically Challenged Persons among others.

Over 2,000 of vulnerable people in 98 wards across 16 local government areas in the Senatorial district have benefited N5,000 (Five Thousand Naira) support scheme since January.

The beneficiaries who are scheduled into two categories are getting the assistance bimonthly (i.e once in two months), and it will run through the year 2021 by way of direct credit to their bank accounts.

Having successfully piloted two (2) streams of payments to beneficiaries under the scheme, we deemed it fit to formally launch the scheme as the third stream of payment for the month of March will be paid today.

This intervention is one in the series of lined up interventions that are targeted at the critical demography in our Senatorial district.

Other that will follow in this new quarter are: The Traders Assistance Scheme for market, Scholarship and bursary award for qualified students in Higher Institutions of learning

In addition, let me also inform you that through doggedness and proactiveness, we were able to facilitate a N30,000 Federal Government Survival Fund for 370 transporters and artisans in our district.

The first tranche was paid about two weeks ago and they have two more tranches to receive. Other interventions we are vigorously pursuing include; Guaranteed Take – Off grant, CAC Business Formalisation for MSME.

In the same vein, under the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Disaster Management, we facilitated disbursements of N20,000  to 100 rural women across our Senatorial district in February. The disbursement exercise was held at Police College Ground, Ikeja Lagos.

Though I came in midstream due to the sad demise of my predecessor, Late Senator Sikiru Adebayo Osinowo (May Almighty Allah grant him eternal rest), I have made necessary contact to make up for what was almost lost out like the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN’s agricultural-focused intervention like Anchor Borrower Scheme and Agricultural Credit Support Schemes (ACSS) domiciled with the apex bank.

Agriculture being the mainstay occupation of large majority of our people in the hinterlands of Ikorodu, Epe, Ikosi Ejinrin and Origanrigan, Oshoroko, Okunraye, Tiye and other coastal communities in Ibeju Lekki axis. We shall continue to ensure that our people get necessary support for economic prosperity.

I have also engaged Ministries, Departments and Agencies(MDAs) in the presidency to partner with us to build Primary Health Care facilities, Rehabilitation of Primary Schools and establishment of vocational training centers in the Lagos East District.  I shall be giving updates on these proposed projects as they progress.

On Monday 22nd February, 2021, our team was at the Headquarters of Lagos State Universal Basic Education Board, (LASUBEB) in Maryland, Lagos where we donated 150,000 face masks for primary school pupils in Lagos East Senatorial District. This was part of our commitment to ensuring that our kids are safe while learning.

I said at the occasion that,‘ Education being paramount on our agenda, we deem it expedient to support pupils and teachers of public primary schools in Lagos East with protective materials as a non-pharmaceutical measure to curtail the rate of infections in the schools.

“We cannot afford to fail young children who have chosen to learn. It is our duty as leaders to protect these minors who are the most vulnerable segment of the society in the context of the war against COVID-19 pandemic”.

Our Leaders and esteemed constituents, be assured that the Lagos East Senatorial District won’t be short changed in the scheme of things . We are constantly looking out for opportunities for our people and working assiduously to attract development to the district.

We are currently engaging the authorities on the Ikorodu/Sagamu Expressway on how the contractors can return to site. Ditto for Ikorodu/ Itoikin/Epe road.

Our interventions so far had been guided by the feedback from residents through the Needs Assessment we conducted using scientific research.

We used Convergent Mixed Method Design within a Participatory Action Research (PAR) to collect both the quantitative and the qualitative data.

We dispatched survey questionnaires titled ‘Community Needs Assessment Survey –  (CNAS)’  for data collection.

Through disproportionate stratified sampling technique, We sampled a total number of 770 constituents in the Lagos East District of the 4, 055, 471 target population.

The research outcomes of the Needs Assessment were revealing which were further validated by leadership of respective Local Governments and Local Council Development Areas, LCDA.

Arising from the need assessment, we have been able to prioritize our interventions and legislative agenda.

We have opened four Liaison offices across Epe, Ibeju/Lekki. Somolu and Kosofe serve as administrative support outlets for the constituency headquarters in Ikorodu. That was another fulfillment of my campaign promise to bring governance closer to the people at the grassroots.