Lagos Assembly Holds Last Session In Old Chambers

The Lagos State House of Assembly this morning held its last session at the old Assembly chamber as the lawmakers would be moving into the new ultra-modern chamber on Thursday this week.

In a press briefing this morning to announce the movement of the lawmakers to the new chamber, which is believed to be the best among chambers of the various Houses of Assembly in the federation, the Chairman, House Committee on Information, Security and Strategy, Olusegun Olulade, said the old chamber would now be used for the purpose of public hearings and other matters.

Olulade, who refused to mention the actual cost of the structure, said it was less than N1 billion, adding that the actual cost would be made public in due course.

He added that the need to construct a more befitting legislative chamber for the Lagos state House of Assembly arose as the old chamber which was built and commissioned in 1980 by the administration of Alhaji Lateef Jakande, the first civilian Governor of Lagos State, became inadequate

“With the arrival of a new democratic dispensation in 1999 and the consolidation of civil rule and best practices of governance in Lagos State, more institutions and individuals became more conscious of the critical roles of the legislature especially in the crucial business of law making, budget appropriation as well as oversight functions over the affairs of other arms of government.

The lawmaker said apart from the pressing need for a more spacious and befitting legislative chamber, “there was also a very compelling need to ensure that more sophisticated information and communication facilities as well as more seats and offices are provided to meet the growing demands of contemporary legislative and administrative practices.”

He said the newly completed chamber had met all the needs and given the Assembly a new lease of life as well as a new face making the state retain its status as a role model for the other State Assemblies.

Olulade praised the executive arm of the State Government saying that the success of the completion of the new chamber was the result of the cooperation between the arm the State legislature.

The session that has been marked the last in the old chamber was on as the time of filing this report.

—Eromosele Ebhomele