The Lagos State Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode, says the military must see themselves as part of Nigeria, aside fulfilling their constitutionally — assigned role of providing territorial security for the country.
The governor added that military personnel must therefore behave as partners in progress to governments and must obey the laws of the land.
Ambode, who was represented by the Deputy Governor, Dr. Idiat Adebule, spoke on Friday when receiving the members of the Course 24 of the National Defence College, Abuja, who were on a study tour of Lagos.
The governor urged members of the course to educate the military hierarchy, especially the middle and lower cadres, on the need to subject themselves to the laws of the land.
He said it was always sad when members of the armed forces were seen disobeying laws, especially the laws on traffic and environmental sanitation.
Ambode said, “The military are our partners, even in a democratic dispensation. They must cooperate with the government at all levels by obeying laws, which remains a critical ingredient towards achieving economic prosperity for our people.
“We do not like to embarrass anyone, especially our military officers, but we must continue to educate ourselves as there are a few bad eggs, who still go about disobeying our traffic law and the law on environmental sanitation.
“While we want to run a government with a human face, we also desire that our military men subject themselves to the laws of the state.”
Earlier, the team leader, Brig. Gen. Mashe Bashir, said members of the Course 24 were interested in how Lagos State had been able to increase its revenue over the years.
He added that the course participants had met with government officials and agency officials at some local government and local council development areas.
He said, “We want to expose ourselves to the socio-economic realities of the state with a view to carrying out research on topical issues, identifying the challenges and proferring solutions that can help the country to move forward.
“Members of the team have been enriched by the study tour, as they have first-hand information on the efforts of the state government at increasing its revenue in order to fulfil its promise of good governance to the people.”
It was learnt that the study tour took the participants to the Lagos Internal Revenue Service, Cabinet Office, Surulere, Kosofe and Ikeja local government areas of the state.
You must be logged in to post a comment Login