Benue State chapter of the Grassroots Independent Campaign Council for Tinubu/Shettima yesterday inaugurated its local government coordinators and secretaries in the state.
The inauguration was carried out by the state coordinator of the council, Chief Steven Lawani at the Makurdi secretariat of the group.
Lawani commended the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Bola Ahmed Tinubu for appointing him and members of the State Executive Committee to lead the Grassroots Independent Campaign Council.
“I want to urge all the Coordinators and Secretaries to devote their time and energies to work for the actualisation of TInubu/Shettima ticket in 2023,” he said.
Lawani who was a former deputy governor of Benue State said the members of the state exco of the council had since been inaugurated and that 10 deputy coordinators will also be inaugurated on a later date at the local government level.
A statement by the APC publicity secretary, Daniel Ihomun quoted Lawani as charging the coordinators to be in charge of the council at the local level, by ensuring that Bola Ahmed Tinunu wins Benue State, especially now that the Benue People’s Democratic Party (PDP) is without a presidential candidate.
He said, “For now, Governor Samuel Ortom is indecisive about who the Benue PDP should vote for as president in the 2023 general election and has asked PDP members in Benue State to ‘vote every election according to the election’. Therefore, I urge you to take advantage of this rare opportunity.
“Tinubu is going to win massively in Benue come 2023, because of his track record of performance and longstanding relationship with the leader of APC in Benue State, Sen George Akume.”
Lawani who thanked party leaders for selecting people who are tested and trusted as local government coordinators, urged the coordinators and secretaries to also work for the election of Rev. Fr. Hyacinth Alia as governor of Benue State and for all other candidates of the APC in the forthcoming general election.
Responding on behalf of the coordinators and secretaries, Prof. Steve Ugba, thanked the state exco of Grassroots Independent Campaign Council for Tinubu/Shettima for finding them worthy of the assignment and promised to put in their best for the success of the Tinubu/Shettima mandate in 2023.
Use Art To Fight Societal Ills, Drive Transformation, Sanwo-Olu Tells Artists
Lagos State governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu on Tuesday emphasised the power of artworks to drive social transformation and serve as a potent vehicle for information and reorientation, calling on artists to deploy their creative skills to fight societal ills.
The governor spoke at the Greater Lagos Arts Exhibition which was collaboratively organised by the Office of Lagos State First Lady and the state government through the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture for young artists to showcase their talents, network with their peers and gain from the experience of veterans through mentorship.
Governor Sanwo-Olu, who was represented by the deputy governor, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat said since assumption of office in 2019, his administration had left no one in doubt about the desire to fully harness the largely untapped potential of the entertainment sector especially the creative arts component, including supporting and encouraging young talented individuals to grow and gain the exposure required to succeed in line with the THEMES Agenda.
One of the things the state government has also done is to create what we call the Lagos State Creative Initiative. Using that initiative, we have trained over 3,000 Nigerians in different skills including films, and cinematography, among others and we used private sector experts to ensure that the beneficiaries are exposed to the best,” Sanwo-Olu said.
He explained that the art exhibition, with the theme, “Art in and for Transformation,” was designed to feature knowledge-sharing discussions by highly successful and award-winning professionals and that it was one of the several initiatives being implemented by the state government to realize the objectives for the sector.
“The theme of this event speaks to the power of artworks as potent tools to drive and influence social transformation through the message they communicate,” the Governor said.
On her part, the wife of the governor, Dr. Ibijoke Sanwo-Olu said the decision to collaborate with the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture on the exhibition was borne out of the genuine desire to open up opportunities for visual artists who have proven to stand out in their artistic work, adding that arts had been proven to be a powerful tool which helps people communicate with the outer world and better understand their inner selves.
While commending the enormous contributions of artists to socio-cultural and socio-political development, she also challenged them to use their artworks to speak against ills in society, particularly the menace of Sexual and Gender-Based Violence (SGBV).
“With these special skills, you are a great contributor to the Tourism and Entertainment pillar of this present administration and this also gives you space under the Education and Technology pillar of the THEMES Agenda of the administration of Mr. Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu.
“As opinion molders and great influencers of thought, I challenge you to be deeply involved and commit yourself to support this administration in stamping out the menace of Domestic, Sexual and Gender-Based Violence from our society through the use of your artworks as a form of campaign against SGBV,” she said.”
Earlier in her opening remarks, the Commissioner for Tourism, Arts and Culture, Pharm. (Mrs.) Uzamat Akinbile-Yussuf commended the Lagos first lady for her consistency and commitment which, according to her, ensured that the novel Greater Lagos Arts Exhibition became a reality.
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