Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has urged Nigerians to defend the administration of President Bola Tinubu, saying his reforms are yielding results and must be supported by all citizens.
Sanwo-Olu also called for protection of the multibillion-dollar Dangote Refinery, describing it as a vital national investment that must not be sabotaged.
The governor made the remarks on Tuesday at the launch of the All Progressives Congress (APC) e-registration hands-on device and Train-the-Trainer programme for the South-West Zone, held at the Lagos House, Marina.
Represented by his deputy, Dr Obafemi Hamzat, Sanwo-Olu said the $20bn refinery project was a monumental national investment comparable to one-third of Nigeria’s combined federal and state budgets.
He said, “Dangote took 3,000 Nigerians to India for training and built 35,000 flats to house his employees in Ibeju-Lekki. That place sits on land bigger than Victoria Island. We must protect it. It’s a Nigerian expenditure.”
The governor, who stressed that the Tinubu administration was making difficult but necessary economic decisions, likened subsidy removal to a painful but healing surgery.
“All the presidential candidates promised to remove fuel subsidy, but when it happened, they ran away because it wasn’t easy,” he said. “President Tinubu has done the surgery; it’s healing now, and we are seeing the results.”
Sanwo-Olu cited stabilising foreign exchange rates and falling food prices as signs that government reforms were working.
He said, “Let us go out there, be proud, and defend this government. They are doing the right things. God will continue to be with us.”
Speaking on the essence of the APC e-registration, the governor said the initiative would provide an accurate database of members for effective planning and accountability.
“Whatever you can’t measure, you can’t manage. We must know who our members are, not just when elections are near,” he said.
APC National Secretary, Senator Ajibola Bashiru, who represented the party’s National Chairman, Professor Nentawe Yilwatda, said the new platform would help clean up the membership register and strengthen internal democracy.
He revealed that several aspirants in past primaries were found not to be registered party members, describing the new system as a corrective step.
Bashiru added that politics was “engineering and science driven by verifiable data”, noting that the party would ensure full deployment of the e-registration nationwide.
On the influx of opposition politicians into the APC, Bashiru said, “We are not turning Nigeria into a one-party state. We are only doing our job. More governors from the North-East will join us soon.”
Earlier, Lagos APC Chairman, Pastor Cornelius Ojelabi, said accurate record-keeping and data management were vital in modern political administration.
“With this e-registration, our party is showing others how to run a truly people-friendly organisation,” he said.
The event was attended by representatives from Lagos, Ogun, Oyo, Osun, Ondo, and Ekiti States, alongside local government chairmen and members of the APC South-West leadership.