S’West govs’ rivalry good for democracy – Fashola
Lagos
State Governor Babatunde Fashola has said governors of the South-West
region are in healthy rivalry in order to deliver the dividends of
democracy to the masses, adding that the country’s democracy and people
will be better for it.
Fashola, at the Osun State University,
Osogbo, on Thursday where he was a guest lecturer at an Inaugural
Lecture, titled, ‘The role of higher education in the development of a
knowledge-based economy in a federal democracy,’ faulted the country’s
centralised system of governance tied the greatness of the country to
evolution of true federalism that would give each component state
freedom to develop according to its capacity and pace.
He said Nigeria would not achieve
greatness if it continued to adopt unitary system of governance,
stressing that the United States of America thrived on devolution of
powers to component states.
“It is wrong for only Power Holding
Company of Nigeria to be the only firm producing power in the country.
Let us free the country in order for it to attain greatness,” the
governor said.
Affirming that “Nigeria’s greatness will
not come from Abuja,” Fashola contended that the nation’s greatness
would be achieved through harnessing the potentials of the 36 states of
the federation.
He said the country must invest massively in education if her dream of industrialisation would materialise.
Fashola said, “Conflicts arise from
telling all states to do the same thing. It’s like
ordering people in
the same house to wear the same size of clothes and shoes.
“It is wrong to order minimum wage for
skilled workers because this will not encourage competition. Chrisitiano
Ronaldo earns so much because of his skills unlike a player who misses
goals every week.
Deputy Governor, Osun State, Mrs. Titi
Laoye-Tomori, said the advent of Action Congress of Nigeria in the
administration of South-West had brought development to the region.
She noted that the region would continue to witness development and progress under the leadership of the party.
Vice Chancellor of the institution,
Prof. Sola Akinrinade, described Fashola as an advocate of good
governance, whose administration had impacted tremendously on Lagos
State.
He said Fashola did not disappoint the
university community in the delivery of the lecture, adding that good
leadership was vital to development.
