Sanwo-olu. Photo/TWITTER/JUDESANWOOLU
Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu has commended religious leaders for cooperating with his administration during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, noting that the collaboration over the protocols and guidelines helped in successfully managing the pandemic.
Speaking at a special Jumaat prayer to commemorate his second anniversary, Sanwo-Olu, represented by his deputy, Dr Obafemi Hamzat, said the success recorded by the state wouldn’t have been possible if religious leaders had not shown understanding when cases were rising in the state.
He urged parents, particularly men to be responsible for their families and train their children uprightly, stating that it was disheartening that most husbands have abandoned their wives and children without taking responsibility for them.
He said it was time parents take responsibilities for their children to build a peaceful society.
He assured that his administration would intensify efforts to ensure the speedy implementation of the T.H.E.M.E.S agenda, disclosing that Lagosians should expect more projects execution in the next two years.
He said: “The most important thing is for us to thank God, the Almighty Allah for His mercies. All of us are aware of what happened around the world. COVID-19 struck, even the most important countries or the so-called advanced countries like America lost over 600,000 people, China lost a lot of people. So, we must thank God and we pray for the souls that went to Nigeria, but our number was very small.
“When the pandemic started, everybody in the world was afraid for Africa, that bodies would be picked on the streets, but Allah did not allow that to happen.
“We must thank God for His mercies. We must thank our Imams and of course our Christian brothers because during the lockdown, we were challenged and we had meetings with our Imams and they were very forthright. They said if we needed to shut the mosque, then shut it. They did not argue, they said if it was about safety, then shut it down. So, we didn’t have any crisis. We must thank all our Imams, and may Almighty Allah continue to be with you.”
He appealed to Nigerians to bear with the fact that COVID-19 is not yet gone, reason residents should always observe safety guidelines, as established by health experts. He warned of new variants that could be recorded in the country, due to the influx of people into the country with reported cases of the deadly variant of the pandemic.
