The Lagos State government has assured all residents of adequate infrastructure that will provide quality service delivery at all levels, thereby preventing overstretched of public facilities.
Deputy Governor, Dr. Kadiri Hamzat, who gave the assurance during a virtual session of Citizensgate 2.0, a civic engagement platform tagged “Sensitization on Volunteerism: The Power of Community in Action”, charged residents to become the champions of their respective communities, towards enlightening people about activities of the government.
Dr Hamzat said that in 2024 alone, about seven points eight million patients visited Lagos general hospitals, with the Orile-Agege General Hospital recording about thirty two percent of its patients as residents of Ogun State, which shows the efficiency of Lagos government in healthcare service delivery.
“If Lagos is not doing well, people from other States will not come to receive health care services from the state. People should learn to appreciate the government if they do well but we recognize the communication gap between government and the people and that is the reason for creating the Citizens gate platform and it has been really engaging” he said
The Deputy Governor attributed part of the challenges of the government success stories to communication gaps between the government and the public, emphasizing the need for platforms like Citizensgate to bridge the gaps.
The Special Adviser to the Governor on Political, Legislative, and Civic Engagement, Dr. Tajudeen Afolabi, reinforced the importance of citizen participation in governance and maintained the state government commitment to improving lives of people at the grassroots.
“The Citizen gate platform is a form of feedback mechanism to the government where people report their challenges and are being handled by relevant stakeholders to proffer solutions,” Dr Afolabi said
One of the Volunteers, Ms Yemisi Ramsome-kuti, commended the state government for initiating the engagement platform that would bring people closer to governance.
“This is one of the best initiative of the Lagos State government which will help draw residents attention to activities of the government with a view to doing more.”
Others lauded the Citizen Gate’s initiative which according to them would scale up democratic values, grassroot participation and good governance.
Reporting by Yemisi Dada