Jonathan failed, not his generation – Fashola

Governor Babatunde Fashola

The Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, on Tuesday said President Goodluck Jonathan’s comment that his generation had failed Nigerians was personal to him.

He told the President to accept responsibility for his failure to address the challenges confronting the nation.

Fashola spoke at a town hall meeting organised by the State Ministry of Transportation which had transport unions, including the National Union of Road Transport Workers’ in attendance.

The governor said the president should summon courage and own up to his government’s failures in the last six years rather than point accusing fingers to past leaders.

He said, “He (Jonathan) said his generation has failed; he should account for himself. I refuse to be part of the generation the President is referring to.

“He is in his 50s, I am also in my 50s. But I don’t want to join that generation because my own generation has not failed; I have done well on my job and I am proud to say so. If he has failed, let him account for himself, he should not include us.”

The governor said the issues that would form the basis of debate for the elections would be how well the citizens of the nation had fared under the present administration.

Fashola said he was pained about the situation in the North East region of the country where citizens had become refugees in their country due to the inability of the government to tame Boko Haram.

He said, “Instead of telling you how he plans to secure the nation, our president was telling you they tried to kill him four years ago and we did not know. That is a serious national security issue because nobody wants our Commander-in-Chief dead. If anybody tries to kill him, we should have known. And if I was Commander-in-Chief, and the person who tries to kill me is in a South African jail, I will ask that he should be repatriated to Nigeria to face punishment.”

Fashola accused President Jonathan of looking for sympathy to woo voters ahead of the presidential election.

Earlier, the heads of the transport unions present took turns to endorse the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress, Akinwunmi Ambode, who was present at the occasion along with his deputy, Mrs. Oluranti Adebule.

Ambode assured the transport workers of his commitment to further growth of the transport sector if elected into office.