As part of continuing political engagements with stakeholders, Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu met with market leaders on Tuesday.
Under the auspices of the Association of Commodity Market Women and Men of Nigeria, Sanwo-Olu met the traders.
The gathering took place at Mrs. Folasade Tinubu-Ojo, their president-general’s home in Alausa.
According to Sanwo-Olu, the traders are significant state stakeholders, and the visit was a component of his extensive engagement process leading up to the general elections.
He believes that interacting with traders in the informal economy is important for reaching out to the general public.
He emphasised that the All Progressives Congress (APC) would have their full support in the upcoming elections and pledged that his administration was committed to the welfare of the traders.
“Market leaders and their members are important stakeholders in the governance of Lagos. We interact with them from time to time and consult them on issues concerning growth of our markets.
“Today, we have come here to thank them for the support they have continued to give our government and to encourage them to continue to be loyal citizens of the state,” he said.
According to Sanwo-Olu, the government has accelerated ongoing projects to finish building every market that is now under construction.
Given that the intervention had enabled many women and low-income households to satisfy their needs, he announced the continuance of loan awards to 100 micro and small companies in each market around the state.
Sanwo-Olu claimed that his administration’s initiatives were designed to improve citizens’ quality of life, regardless of their financial situation or social standing.
“We are in the season of politics and we consider it necessary to meet with our people in the market and solicit for your support in the forthcoming general elections, especially for our presidential candidate, governorship candidate and other positions our party is vying.
“This is an important step, you are part of the crop of people that diligently wait at the polling booths to cast votes for our party. We cannot take you for granted, despite having new people in the electoral register.
“We need to engage and talk to you about our plans. In this case, we are seeking their support for all our candidates in general,” he said.
The governor received assurances from the Iyaloja-General, Mrs. Folasade Tinubu-Ojo, about the market leaders’ ongoing support for the party.
In both the state and federal elections, Tinubu-Ojo promised to mobilise members of their homes and communities to cast a large number of APC votes.
