COMMISSIONER INFORMATION LAGOS STATE, IBIROGBA

State police is the ultimate.

The flooding in the state has been attributed to the state government failure to prepare adequately for the rain. What is the state government doing to avert a future occurrence?
From experience, the flooding is as a result of global warming and what this means is that we are expecting more rains twice the type that had fallen before the end of the raining season.
For all of us to live in Lagos, we have to be prepared for what is coming so that the effects will not be devastating as it was.
It was not because the system failed that was why the last rain was devastating but the problem we had has do with the attitude of the people who dump refuse in gutters, and building on waterways, the laws are there to guide people but they have not been adhering due to bad attitude towards the environment.
It is sad that people who witness others doing the wrong thing will turn a blind eye, therefore allowing selfish people to cause problems for others.
People affected by the flooding complained of neglect by the government. How has the government responded in alleviating their plight?
The Lagos State government is demolishing houses that are unfit for human habitation; these are the houses we are pulling down.
For those who were affected by the rain, the Lagos state government is a humane government and we have provided relief package for the people that were affected by the flood but we are aware of people who would put their lives in danger by living in poor environment because they feel the government will come to their aid.
The vast population of the state has put pressure on infrastructures.
What can be done to cope with these challenges?
This is the same thing we have been talking about because governance is about taking care of the people and peoples' lives should not be mortgaged on political sentiment.
Lagos is a mini Nigeria and the influx of people is so much that an average of one thousand people enters Lagos daily.
We are aware of that and because we are accommodating, there are opportunities in Lagos for people to change their lives so we welcome everybody but people should live by the laws of Lagos.
In coping with the situation, we are appealing to the federal government to give Lagos a special status because it is not right to lump Lagos with the rest thirty five states in the country due to the population of the state.
In whatever way the federal government can, they should give Lagos a special status and stop playing politics with peoples' lives.
The police have added five area commands to the Lagos state police command. What does this portend for the security in the state?
Creating the new area commands is a good one and a right step in the right direction.
Just that it will be more rewarding if the area commands work well; the best thing is to agree on state police.
State police is the ultimate and the federal government stance to continue running away from it is only postponing what will eventually happen because it is only a state police that can conveniently stamp out insecurity in Nigeria since it is the people who really know the terrains that will be able to stop criminals from operating.