Lagos Governorship Candidates Debate Housing, Transport and Education

Four Lagos governorship candidates debated housing, transport, flooding and education on Sunday evening, November 8, at an event organised by the Nigeria Debate Consortium. African Democratic Congress candidate Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour challenged the state administration’s record, while incumbent deputy governor Obafemi Hamzat, the All Progressives Congress candidate, defended it. Funso Doherty of the Nigeria Democratic Congress and Deji Doherty of the Peoples Democratic Party also participated. Rhodes-Vivour argued that the state’s internally generated revenue had not translated into better living conditions for ordinary residents. “Lagos celebrates high IGR, yet people are not experiencing it,” he said. He promised more than 100,000 housing units, saying they would be affordable and allocated transparently. Hamzat said the administration had created 24 housing estates in eight years and proposed wider access to mortgages and completion of housing projects. On transport, Hamzat advocated a combination of rail, roads and waterways. Discussing flooding, he said drainage channels needed to remain clear to allow water to reach the creeks. Rhodes-Vivour proposed using technology in environmental management. Their exchanges set out competing approaches to the city’s services and infrastructure. Funso Doherty promised free education, including removal of examination fees and requirements for parents to show tax payments at examination time. He also proposed an affordable daily meal for public-school pupils. Deji Doherty criticised the state’s debt burden and the lack of financial independence for local governments. The Lagos event opened a planned series of debates in selected battleground states, which is scheduled to conclude with a presidential debate.