Lagos Assembly begins 3-day training for members-elect

The Lagos State House of Assembly began legislative training in Ikeja on Friday for the 40 members-elect of the March 18 elections.

The three-day training has: “Towards a Responsive and Participatory Governance – Prospects, Opportunities and Challenges’’ as its theme.

Thirty-eight of the members-elect were elected on the platform of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state while the other two were elected on the platform of the Labour Party (LP).

Clerk of the House, Mr Lekan Onafeko, said the training would enable members-elect to work together, irrespective of party affiliations.

He noted that the training was critical to how the 10th Assembly would conduct its businesses.

“This training is important because Houses of Assembly across the country take cues from the Lagos State House of Assembly.

“I appeal to the members-elect to be open to learning so as to be able to contribute to transform the House into a better institution and Lagos State into a better place,’’ Onafeko admonished.

He noted also that lawmakers had special roles to play in strengthening the legislature.

Speaker of the House, Mr Mudashiru Obasa, advised members-elect to eschew greed and selfishness while representing their constituents.

Congratulating the members-elect, especially those getting into the House for the first time, Obasa charged them to remain conscious of the reason they were elected to represent millions of Lagos residents.

“How do we represent our people? We must put their interests first before our personal interests. It is also to have the political will to be able to oversight on other arms of government.

“The day you start thinking about yourself and your personal interests is the day you start betraying the people you represent.

“We must guide against greed and selfishness. Greed will set you against the House and selfishness will set you against those you represent and it will not do you any good.

“For this reason, you must do away with greed and selfishness if you truly want to succeed as a House of Assembly member,’’ Obasa admonished.