LAGOS COMMISSIONERS ON SECURITY & DEVELOPMENT

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 LAGOS 000672 SIPDIS SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED - HANDLE ACCORDINGLY SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PREL ASEC NI SUBJECT: LAGOS COMMISSIONERS ON SECURITY & DEVELOPMENT REF: LAGOS 30 ¶1. (SBU) Summary: In meetings with Theodore Craig, Office of Policy Planning, U.S. Department of State, two Lagos State Commissioners explained that relations between Lagos Governor Fashola and President Yar'Adua are strong, that Yar'Adua has agreed to expand a major expressway from four to 16 lanes, and that the GON has released approximately USD 82.4 million to the state for local development. Governor Fashola is committed to transparency and reportedly provides the state's budget to a stakeholder's forum. A Security Trust Fund, to which private companies can contribute, will augment the city's Rapid Response Force to which the state government has already allotted 200 vehicles. End Summary. ¶2. (SBU) During a September 29 visit to Lagos, Theodore Craig, Adviser on West African Affairs, Office of Policy and Planning, U.S. Department of State, met with Opeyemi Bamidele, Commissioner for Information and Strategy for Lagos State and Jide Sanwo-Olu, Commissioner for Training in Lagos State. -------------- Good Relations Between Fashola & Yar'Adua -------------- ¶3. (SBU) Bamidele told Craig and Poloffs that relations between Lagos State Governor Fashola and President Yar'Adua are good, despite being from opposing political parties (Yar'Adua is with the People's Democratic Party and Fashola is with the Action Congress) and that their parties would equally benefit from the positive relationship. Bamidele said Lagos State fully supports Yar'Adua, as witnessed by the fact that Yar'Adua and Fashola recently traveled to the United States together. President Obasanjo, on the other hand, was often at odds with Lagos State's former AC Governor Bola Tinubu. Bamidele put this down to the fact that Yar'Adua is better educated than was Obasanjo. People are comfortable offering Yar'Adua advice and opinions as he settles into his position, unlike under Obasanjo who readily expelled people from the party for offering candid opposing views, our contact said. -------------- -------------- State & Local Government Development Responsibilities -------------- -------------- ¶4. (SBU) The Federal Government agreed to expand the Badagry Expressway, which connects Lagos city to Cotonou, Republic of Benin, from four to 16 lanes. Lagos State expects to see the funds by 2008 and Bamidele thought the Nigerian-owned construction firm Hi-Tech would be hired for the project. Governor Fashola's "good working relations" with President Yar'Adua left Bamidele confident projects such as this would move forward. Further, Lagos state will begin building a fourth "mainland bridge" between the Lekki peninsula and Ikorodu on the mainland in September 2008, Bamidele told Poloffs. ¶5. (SBU) According to Bamidele, the State Government consulted with local government stakeholders to identify the communities' priority development projects. President Obasanjo withheld from Lagos State naira 10.3 billion (approximately USD 82.4 million) because he did not accept the increased number of local government areas (LGAs) in the state. However, Yar'Adua released these funds to the state, which then visited local government project sites to ensure that projects were funded and completed. LGAs are responsible for providing waste management, market development and management (such as providing the infrastructure necessary for markets),and running primary health centers and elementary schools. Lagos State, like many others, opposed President Yar'Adua's attempt to remove health care from the purview of local governments, Bamidele said. State officials believe the federal and state governments should fund research institutions and teaching hospitals and leave primary health care to the LGAs. -------------- Internally Generated State Income; Budgets Shown to Stake Holders -------------- LAGOS 00000672 002 OF 002 ¶6. (SBU) Lagos State government receives naira 2.8 billion from the federal account; it has managed to raise over naira 5 billion (approximately USD 40 million) through capital development and internally generated revenue, Bamidele said. Major revenue sources include state income tax, property tax, and a value added tax (VAT). Foreign investment and air and sea ports also generate substantial amounts of revenue. ¶7. (SBU) Credible state accountants monitor spending and file budgets with professional budget monitoring institutions, according to Bamidele. The state opens its books to civil society and interest groups at a stakeholder's forum where it receives suggestions and recommendations from experts and those involved in decision making. Sometimes local government allocations are also publicized, he added. -------------- Lagos Government Invests in Security -------------- ¶8. (SBU) To increase the capacity of federal police forces in that Lagos megacity, the state government has invested in a Rapid Response Force, providing 200 new security vehicles equipped with vehicle tracking systems to ensure they can be traced, personal protective vests, and housing for Rapid Response workers. (Note: There are no state controlled police in Nigeria; all police are federal level employees. End Note.) According to Jide Sanwo-Olu, Commissioner of Training in Lagos State, the Rapid Response Force will be privately managed but paid for by government through a trust fund. A bill authorizing the Security Trust Fund was sent to the Lagos State House of Assembly to fully legalize the fund and allow private companies to contribute funds to cover the Force's costs. Sanwo-Olu said there is "absolutely no pressure on companies" to contribute to the Trust Fund. In the alternative they could buy items on a "wish list" and/or make in-kind contributions to the management and administration of the Force. ¶9. (SBU) Sanwo-Olu said it is the government's responsibility to prioritize solutions to the Lagos megacity's problems of security, waste, crime, pollution, traffic, etc., in order to attract investment. Crime in Lagos is poverty driven, he asserted, as the city was planned for 5 million people but is now home to approximately 18 million, and does not generate sufficient job opportunities to employ them all. (Note: The 2006 national census announced Lagos's population to be 9 million people; many Lagosians estimate the city's population to be between 16-18 million. (Reftel) End Note.) -------------- State Politics: Civil Servants & Judiciary -------------- ¶10. (SBU) Reorganization of the civil service, which employs 130,000 people, is a huge challenge, explained Sanwo-Olu. The state government is now using software and consulting services provided by Oracle to facilitate the state's restructuring. The systems Oracle put in place help government identify ghost workers and to eliminate them by directly depositing salary payments into the bank accounts of legitimate workers. Improvements to justice administration, such as upgrading buildings and "remunerating judges well," have been made to prevent corruption, Sanwo-Olu said. ¶11. (SBU) Over eight million land reform dispute and title transfer documents have been put online, according to Bamidele. He believes this will effect positive change by improving the efficiency of mortgage payments and personal transactions. ¶12. (U) Theodore Craig did not clear this cable before departing post. HUTCHINSON