Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode (2nd left), with Speaker, Lagos State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Mudashiru Obasa; International Music Act, Dapo Oyebanji popularly known as Dbanj and Minister for Information & Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, during the flag off of the One Lagos Fiesta, at the Agege Mini Stadium, Agege, Lagos, during the One Lagos Fiesta 2015.
Gov. Akinwunmi Amobode of Lagos State was among top dignitaries present at the 2015 Lagos Countdown, tagged “One Lagos Fiesta“ held at the Bar Beach on Victoria Island, Lagos, on Dec. 31st, 2015.
It was indeed a night of fun, energy-pumping celebrations, sparklers, and fireworks as over 200,000 Lagosians joined the beautiful and memorable entrance into the 2016 in this year’s Lagos Countdown.
The ‘One Lagos Fiesta’, an initiative of the present Ambode-led administration, was tailored toward ushering in the New Year, held between Dec. 27, 2015 and Jan. 1, 2016.
It was held simultaneously in the following five locations: Epe, Badagry, Ikorodu, Agege and Lagos Island.
The fiesta marked the flag-off of the 2015 Crossover Festival, a world-class celebration of the close of the calendar year, as well as ushering in of the New Year.
Ambode speaking at the event said, “This is the start of another day to pursue the Lagos dream, the dream that whoever you are, where ever you come from, you can be what you wish to be in Lagos. That is the Lagos dream.
“It is the moment we wish to thank all of you for standing by us, your government in the past seven months.
“Together with you, we have commenced the journey to take Lagos to greater heights, with your support; we have demonstrated that good governance is what you will get.
“We promise to take the government back to you the people; we pledge to give government back to the communities.’’
According to him, “in the last seven months, we have earnestly pursued these goals, nothing better demonstrates this commitment than the one Lagos Fiesta, the grand finale of what we are witnessing now.
“For the very first time, in the history of Lagos State, Lagosians can now celebrate crossover night and the New Year day wherever they live in the state.
“Whether you are on Victoria Island, Ikorodu, Epe, Agege or Badagry, you now have the opportunity to celebrate the countdown in your locality simultaneously.
“This is a government of inclusion, our pledge is to make Lagos clean, safety and security will witness a remarkable boost this year.’’
The governor also said, “We are committed to work as hard as possible to bring more jobs for our youths, the employment trust fund which we promised to help our youths to set up their businesses would commence this year.
“Our massive investment in education, health, entertainment, sports and tourism, to effectively engage our youths will start in this year 2016.
“We encourage you all to work with your government, to bring your ideas to us.
“We want to hear from you. This is your government and we as your servant always want to know your views about our performance. Let us make Lagos great. One Lagos! “
Also speaking at the event, the State Commissioner for Tourism, Folly Coker, stressed on why exactly the fiesta was happening in five locations in Lagos State this time around.
He said “the government has taken a simple decision to decentralize the countdown ceremony.
“The governor was not happy about people from all over Lagos concentrating on Bar Beach alone for the countdown, so he instructed that we decentralize it.
“And the easiest way for us to decentralize it was to create a new brand, `One Lagos Fiesta`. And take it to the five divisions of Lagos under the three senatorial districts.
“He also made an election promise to the people of Lagos where he said I will give you an entertainment civil economy. That means that instead of one stage, one sound system, one night system, it’s now in five places.
“What he has done is to energize the communities at the lowest level so that it becomes an effective government strategic intervention in an entertainment industry which is the alternative to crude oil,” he said.
Lagos State ushers-in 2016 through `Lagos Countdown fiesta’
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