Meanwhile, to ensure a hitch-free visit, the Lagos State police command has deployed personnel and tools.
The Police Commissioner, Fatai Owoseni who spoke to The Guardian about their preparedness for the presidents’ visit, said: “We are very prepared to welcome the president and ensure that traffic issues are curtailed during his stay in Lagos. We are deploying all we have to ensure that the visit is hitch-free. We are adequately prepared and we are working with other security agencies to ensure this.”
It was gathered that the Inspector General of Police, Solomon Arase had arrived yesterday afternoon ahead of the visit.
Ahead of the visit, the Lagos State government had released traffic guide which it said would help its residents to review their travel plans between Monday and Tuesday to avoid undue traffic congestion in the metropolis.
The Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr. Steve Ayorinde, confirmed the president’s official visit to the state in a statement he issued yesterday, noting that the president would inaugurate some landmark projects the administration of Governor Akinwunmi Ambode has fully executed in its first year.
Beyond inaugurating different projects, a source said that traditional rulers, illustrious indigenes and political leaders would seize the opportunity of the president’s visit to renew their call for special status for Lagos.
Also, government officials disclosed that traditional rulers in particular would urge the president to work with the National Assembly and ensure that the 37 local council development areas (LCDAs) are granted full status.
During the visit, it was gathered that the president would be requested to return to Lagos State Government, the Federal Secretariat and the Tafawa Balewa Square, among other properties of the Federal Government that were sold under the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo.
In his statement, Ayorinde said “ it is the first time in about 15 years that a sitting president will be visiting the state officially.”
Ayorinde disclosed that Osinbajo “will formally inaugurate the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA) Rescue Unit in Cappa, Oshodi built by the state government to ensure prompt and swift response to emergency situations in the state.”
After unveiling the LASEMA Rescue Unit, the commissioner said the vice president “would thereafter inaugurate the newly constructed Ago Palace Way in Okota, Isolo after which he would pay homage to the Oba of Lagos, Babatunde Rilwanu Aremu Akiolu at the Iga Iduganran, Lagos Island.
“The visitor would later be hosted to a reception by the state government at the Tafawa Balewa Square, Lagos where he will also commission and hand over security equipment and vehicles contributed by the Ambode administration to security agencies to beef up security in the state.”