Wife of Lagos State Governor, Dr. Ibijoke Sanwo-Olu, on Friday urged market stakeholders in the state to be conscious and sensitive to security concerns in the markets to avert attacks.
The governor’s wife spoke at a one-day seminar organised by the Committee of Wives of Lagos State Officials (COWLSO) on “Market Sanitation, Security and Safety for Market Leaders”, in Surulere division of Lagos State.
She charged the market stakeholders to embrace intelligence gathering and divulging of information about security threats to the appropriate channels to nip crimes in the bud before they are carried out.
“We have purposely included the security and safety of our markets as part of the topics at this seminar for obvious reasons that security is everybody’s business, and as market men and women and community leaders, we must be conscious of the need to make our security a priority.
“When we see something, let us not only say something but do something to ensure that a potential security threat is nipped in the bud,” she told the market stakeholders.
Reiterating that there must be proper identification of all traders and people trading in the market, she said monitoring and evaluation of security activities in the market “must be a daily affair and also in every community.”
“As market men and women, you must take ownership of security in your markets, and you have to speak up and speak out loud and clear when you suspect any suspicious movement or activity around you,” she charged them.
She further charged them to be sensitive to prevent fire outbreaks in the markets.
This is just as she called on them to instill sanity in markets across Lagos, mentioning such was essential to take the profile of market situations in Lagos beyond the present state to meet international standards.
In his address, the Special Adviser to Lagos State Governor on Local Government and Community Affairs, Mr. Bolaji Kayode Robert, said organising such programmes “consistently over the years is proof that with our concerted efforts, making Lagos State a 21st Century Economy is possible.”
He said the seminar addresses the fibre of the state of security and sanity of markets in Lagos State, saying, “Much vigilance and attention must be paid even to the tiniest detail in our markets, so as to guarantee safety of lives and properties.”
