A former Minister of State for Defence, Musiliu Obanikoro, says he is contesting for the Lagos West Senatorial seat to secure a vantage bargaining chip for Lagos State in the next dispensation.
Mr Obanikoro, an aspirant of the All Progressives Congress (APC), made his intention known in a statement on Friday in Lagos.
The aspirant said his legislative and administrative experiences would help in attracting major infrastructural projects where unemployment could be addressed in the short and midterms.
He added that the state would be better positioned for better economic prosperity and the security of the state would take center stage at the federal level if elected.
Mr Obanikoro expressed confidence that he would lobby other legislators to achieve the long-awaited special status for Lagos State, address unemployment, and more infrastructure, and make Lagos security a focal national issue.
“With over 20 years of experience serving at all tiers of government, including the National Assembly as a senator, I know how things work,” said Mr Obanikoro, who joined the APC in 2017 from the PDP.
“I know how to navigate and get things done in government which the state will benefit from, from day one of my resuming office.
“My experience and capacity to get things done undoubtedly make me the most viable candidate.
“However, my vision and legislative plan for Lagos is one that I am equally proud of and confident the people of Lagos West Senatorial District will appreciate and approve.”
Mr Obanikoro noted that the centre of excellence was too germane to Nigeria not to be accorded special status requiring special attention and collaboration with the Federal Government.
The aspirant said in terms of infrastructural development, the state deserved a Seaport in Badagry, and he was committed to seeing this through.
He said on unemployment, the youth need jobs and a short-term plan was required where a large contributor to this was also lack of skills for the jobs available.
Mr Obanikoro said there is a focus on white-collar jobs, hence the need for a robust blue-collared workforce for their foremost industries.
On security, he said they were already feeling the fallout of the insecurity in the country in Lagos State, which showed the state needed a secure Nigeria to also keep Lagos safe.
(NAN
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