Lagos Lawmaker Escapes Death

Lagos lawmaker, Kazeem Raheem Adewale, has got reason to forever be grateful to God. At least he is alive to speak about how he narrowly escaped death in a fire that engulfed his house in Eti-Osa area of Lagos State recently.

The member of the state House of Assembly, representing Ibeju-Lekki Constituency 2, was relishing in the euphoria of the inauguration which made him a bona fide member of the House when the unfortunate incident occurred.

Though he has resumed duty at the Assembly, Adewale spent weeks at the Burns unit of the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH) where he underwent treatment.

Speaking to Assembly Matters in his office, the lawmaker, with scars that are still fresh as a result of the inferno, intermittently thanked God for helping him to escape with only some degree of injury.

According to him, it was a usual day and “I had gone to bed early enough to get myself prepared for the next day’s job.

“I am happy I was alone in the house, a one-storey building that day. Maybe there would have been casualties.”

Deep into the night, the lawmaker said, he suddenly woke up in the midst of thick smoke. “The smoke started from the living room, but by the time I got there, I could not see anything. The entire room was dark.

“In the midst of the confusion, I could not remember where the main door to my apartment was located. All I could remember was just one of the exit points.

“With the desperation to escape, I forced the exit door open, scaled the protector at the balcony and jumped down from the top floor where my apartment is located while the fire continued to raze the building.”

He thanked his colleagues and the staff of the Burns unit of the hospital for their concern and for ensuring that he got effective treatment while he was on admission at the hospital.

Adewale, while assessing the House since 4 June, when the seventh Assembly was inaugurated, said the impression he had of lawmaking is different from what he met.

He explained that the House is an excellent place to learn and to contribute to the progress of the state.

“In fact, I am very happy to be counted among the 40 wise men that have assisted in lifting this state to an enviable height. I am also satisfied with the level of lawmaking and I now see why the legislative arm of this government is seen as the best among the 36 Houses of Assembly in the country,” he said.

He noted that within the last four months, the lawmakers have been undergoing trainings, workshops and seminars aimed at improving their skills.

“In the next four years, just keep your fingers crossed, because I can vouch for my colleagues that we will carry out legislations that would for ever endear us to the people of Lagos State,” he added.

The lawmaker said his recent challenge not withstanding, he would also make sure that he fulfils his promises to the people of his constituency.

He said he had begun to map out ways of touching the lives of the majority of the people in the constituency, adding that he is liaising with stakeholders in the Ibeju-Lekki Constituency 2 to bring the dividends of democracy to them.

“As you know, lawmakers are not part of the executive arm of government and as such are not given the power to execute projects, but in the next few months, the people of my constituency will be happy for sending me here,” he said.