The Speaker Lagos State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon Mudashiru Obasa has urged lawmakers-elect of the assembly to eschew greed and selfishness while they represent their constituents.
Obasa who spoke at the commencement of a 3-day induction programme on Friday further tasked the members-elect to develop the political will to effectively perform oversight functions as part of their responsibilities.
Declaring the programme open in Lagos, Obasa noted the importance of the legislative arm of government in a democracy, adding that lawmakers have special roles to play in strengthening the institution.
The Speaker, while congratulating the members-elect, especially those getting into the House for the first time, charged them to remain conscious of the reason they were elected to represent the millions of Lagos residents.
“How do we represent our people? By putting their interests forward beyond personal interest. It is also to have the political will to be able to carry out oversight on other arms of government.
“The day you start thinking about yourself and your personal interest is the day you start betraying the people you represent.
“We must guide against greed and selfishness. Greed will set you against the House and selfishness will set you against those you represent and it will not do you any good.
“For this reason, you must do away with greed and selfishness if you truly want to succeed as a lawmaker. Always know that it is when you serve your people wholeheartedly that you would have enough reasons to judge yourself adequately.’’
He urged them to learn to be passionate about their institution and be ambassadors of the House, saying, ‘’ We must work together irrespective of the party through which you came to the House. Elections are gone and we are now for the interest of our people,” Dr. Obasa told the lawmakers-elect.
Earlier, while harping on the theme: ‘Towards A Responsive and participatory governance – prospects, opportunities and challenges’, the Clerk of the House, Barrister Olalekan Onafeko, said the training was critical to how the 10th Assembly would conduct its business.
“This is because the Lagos Assembly is built in a way that other Houses of Assembly learn from it,” he said.
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