Press Releases

We Shall Continue To Deepen Education – Fashola

Aug 14, 2009 - Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola (SAN), Friday said his administration would continue to deepen Education in the State as the only means to liberate the people from ignorance.

Governor Fashola, who spoke at the Lagos House, Alausa, Ikeja, while playing host to Dr. Mehmet Asutay, a Political Science Lecturer at the University of Durham, the United Kingdom who paid him a courtesy visit, said this is because the Government realizes that the only thing that empowers people to make informed choices is Education.

The Governor noted that within a larger educated set of people, justice can be achieve adding that if the people are empowered through Education, the State, country and the African Continent would progress.

“More educated people will ask for their rights; more educated people will not be misled, they will not rise to arms because somebody said, ‘let us go and fight’; more educated people will ask questions, ‘is this a conflict of necessity or one of choice? If it is one of choice, why should we go, is it only because we are stronger?”, Governor Fashola asked.

He noted that Africa is the Continent that the whole world depends on for resources that sustain humanity adding that if Africa, as a Continent, provides substantial part of the world’s cocoa, coffee, petrol, diamond and crude oil, why can’t it use the God-given resources to liberate its people.

Welcoming the lecturer to Africa, Governor Fashola said the topic of the lecture he is to deliver at the weekend is a most auspicious one which comes at a most auspicious time pointing out that Capitalism as a concept has metamorphosed from systems of exchange of goods and service on cash.

“Because, we will recall that the credo of Capitalism was no credit today, come tomorrow. But as Capitalism reached its peak, it was difficult to sustain it with cash”, the Governor said adding that Capitalism invented Credit, Leasing and Hire-purchase to keep production growing.

According to him, “Capitalism is now a great hurdle to overcome. Globalization – business without commerce, without frontiers, without limitation – so that the activity or inactivity of one government agency or one financial institution several thousands of miles away may decide are whether I eat breakfast or your child eats lunch”, the Governor said,.

He further declared, “This is the biggest challenge of our time. This is the time we now need a new economic order. How will Capitalism overcome the challenges of globalization?”, adding, “The refreshing perspective here is the Islamic Perspective”.

Governor Fashola lamented that so many things has kept much of the World’s population in poverty and in disease, largely because there is mistrust, adding that as a result of the lack of knowledge about Arabic, a Muslim seems to be suspected and feared.

“We must continue to remember that irrespective of our faiths, we are people first . What binds us together are so enormous; are so interwoven and inter-dependent that they overcome the things that differentiate us. Our humanity is such a denominator and therefore it should not matter, black or white or blue, which faith I prefer”, the Governor said.

Governor Fashola who also spoke on how air travels has moved from being a pleasurable experience to a fearful intent, added that several decisions taken about security at airports did not consider that on the other side there exists a voice that recognizes the rights and roles of women contrary to held views.

He described as a wrong notion the concept that those who choose to learn in a language different from the one everyone is used to are not educated, and queried, “But how different is Arabic from English?”

Speaking earlier, Dr Mehmet Asutay said the promotion of justice and progress would bring accelerated development and peace to Nigeria and Africa and commended Fashola for promoting justice and progress as displayed on the logo of the State as part of his administration’s policy thrust, adding that the promotion of justice and progress would also propel development based on right and proper strategy by the government.

The lecturer said that there is hope of a prosperous Africa and Nigeria based on the great potentials and the availability of huge natural resources, stressing that realizing those potentialities would be achieved through proper policy articulation and implementation which would be through the promotion of justice and progress.

“This is responding to global financial crisis. We can get values from religious and secular sectors but could be better complemented through the promotion of economic policy values. Through that, the lay people on the street should be able to feel the level of progress and development as done by the powers that be,’’ he explained.

Asutay, a Turkish national, is the Special Guest of the University of Lagos Muslim Alumni Association whose members accompanied the visitor. Dr. Asutay will be delivering the Association’s 15th Annual pre-Ramadan Lecture, ``Financial Crisis in the World Today and Islamic Solution’’ on Sunday at the University of Lagos auditorium.