Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu has said that his deputy, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat jettisoned his governorship ambition because of him in 2018 after party leaders persuaded him despite having the record and the backing to win.
Sanwo-olu stated this on Friday in Lagos during the flag off of Hamzat’s governorship campaign.
He stated: “Back in September 2018, Femi Hamzat wanted to be Governor of Lagos State. He had 13 years of public service under Asiwaju and BRF, with the record and backing to win. Then party leaders asked him to step aside for me.
“It takes a rare man to put down what he wants without nursing a grudge. Femi shook my hand and five weeks later, agreed to run beside me. I have never forgotten that.
The Governor noted that for 2,711 days – seven years – Hamzat has been in the room where decisions are made, from the COVID-19 pandemic to the delivery of the Blue and Red Line rail projects and the Lekki Deep Sea Port.
He added: “When COVID-19 hit, when we faced our hardest weeks, when the Blue and Red Lines ran and when the Lekki Deep Sea Port opened, Femi was there. Long before any ribbon was cut, he was asking the tough questions an engineer asks.”
Sanwo-Olu stressed that unlike other states where deputies are kept in reserve, Hamzat promised on day one to be the best deputy governor in Lagos history and kept his word.
According to him, In seven years, there has not been a single day I wondered whose side he was on. We have had one government, one direction, and one voice,” he said.
Sanwo-olu framed the endorsement around Lagos’ continuity model, describing governance as a relay where the baton is never passed to a runner standing still.
“Lagos runs on a relay system. The baton is never passed to a runner standing still. You run at full speed inside the exchange zone, together, before the pass. That is how Lagos has been governed for 27 years, from Asiwaju to BRF, to Ambode, to me,” he said.
Highlighting his deputy’s pedigree, Sanwo-Olu noted that Hamzat built the Lekki-Ikoyi Link Bridge under Fashola, digitized the government under Bola Tinubu, holds a doctorate in engineering, and his father served under Lateef Jakande.
Responding to critics who say Lagos keeps choosing from the same pool, Sanwo-Olu said: “Lagos trains its people. With major projects underway and a master plan stretching to 2052, this is not the time to experiment.”
“What Femi presents today is not a campaign promise cooked up on a bus, it is the next leg of a race we have been running since 1999.
“Lagos does not hand the baton to a man standing still. Today, you have seen the man who is already running. Let us move forward together with The Lagos Promise.”