Press Releases

Fashola Calls For Restoration Of Virtures Of Good Neighbourliness Among The Citizenry

Aug 15, 2012 - As Nigerians celebrate Ed-el- Fitri, Lagos State Governor, Mr Babatunde Fashola (SAN) has called for a restoration of the virtues of good neighbourliness and re-orientation to respect law and order among the citizenry.

The Governor who spoke during a Tasfir and prayer session for the nation organized by the Lagos State Pilgrims Welfare Board in Mecca, Saudi Arabia said the citizenry all levels need a lot of re-orientation about how to be their brother keepers and be more sensitive to the well being of one another stating that those virtues are currently missing.

The Governor reiterated that good virtue is not about praying or worshipping God alone because many Nigerians worship God but do not have the fear of God in them, adding that it would be difficult to explain, for example, why a Muslim who just left a Mosque after prayers would proceed to drive his vehicle against traffic.

The Governor asked all Nigerians who have had cause to visit Saudi Arabia at one time or the other to always ask themselves why the city of Mecca appears orderly and set each time a new set of pilgrims come around for pilgrimage.

He urged all Nigerian pilgrims to Mecca to always copy good deeds about Saudi Arabia and replicate same when they get back to Nigeria, adding that on a yearly basis, many Nigerian Muslims travel to Saudi Arabia on pilgrimage and always obey the laws willingly there but resist the same laws when they get back to Nigeria.

He stated that Saudis despite their nature are very law abiding people who give utmost respect to their law enforcement agents, adding however that in Nigeria, once a Policeman is not armed, the average Nigerian does not respect him.

He added that traffic lights are in the streets of Mecca and are obeyed by everyone including Nigerian pilgrims, but are the same set of people who would resist attempt to be contravened by officials of Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) when they disobey traffic lights.

He added that if Saudis adopt driving against traffic as a way of life, the several millions of pilgrims who throng the country yearly may not return there because of the effect of traffic bottlenecks which may even prevent visiting pilgrims from driving out of the airport.

He said despite the fact that Saudi Arabia has crude oil, it still depends on tourism for most of its infrastructural developments and has only been possible because the people respect law and order.

Governor Fashola who thanked the State House of Assembly for enacting the new State Traffic Law, added that if the new law is fully implemented and takes full effect in Lagos, the State will surpass the desired progress.

He said each person should see him or herself as the head of a home or a particular office and should not wait until the government starts making public announcements before they do the right things in the different homes.

Governor Fashola said if everyone does what is right in the homes and neighbourhoods, Lagos State will move to the next level. Urging the Muslim pilgrims to take the best practices back home, Governor Fashola said that it was in the city of Mecca that Lagos adopted its waste clearing method which it is putting to good use currently.

In his sermon at the prayers, Sheikh Musa Yahya Agboola, the Director of the Darul-Falahi Arabic School urged all Muslims to imbibe good deeds because it is whatever deeds one engaged in that would be used to judge him on the day of judgement.

He added that every Muslim must be on the right path with his creator at all times so when death comes calling, he would not have cause to blame himself for the kind of live that he lived.

Prominent among those who were at the Tafsir prayers were the Deputy Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Hon Kolawole Taiwo, some members of the State Executive Council including the Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr Lateef Ibirogba, Special Duties, Dr Wale Ahmed, Education, Mrs Olayinka Oladunjoye and pilgrims from different parts of the State and country.