President Muhammadu Buhari, who began a two-day visit to Lagos State yesterday (Thursday), has inaugurated the Ikeja Bus Terminal built by the state government. President Buhari was accompanied by Governor Akinwunmi Ambode; a member of the House of Representatives for Ikeja Federal Constituency, Hon. James Faleke, and the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, during the ceremony yesterday.
It is the first time the President would be in Lagos officially since his inauguration in May 2015.
A presidential spokesman said during the visit, President Buhari would also attend the colloquium to mark Chief Bola Tinubu’s birthday as well as conduct the flag-off of the construction of the Lekki Deep Sea port.
The Lagos state government declared yesterday (Thursday) as work-free day in the state while shutting some roads to ensure smooth traffic for the presidential entourage.
Reports said the nation’s economic hub, was on a lockdown Thursday for the President’s first official visit to the city of 22 million inhabitants as many businesses including banks, shops and markets were shut down.
Hundreds of commuters and workers were stranded at bus stops to allow for a hitch-free visit, with many forced to trek several kilometers to their destinations as commercial buses were off the roads.
There was heavy security presence in the city as police and para-military forces patrolled the streets which have been painted in Nigeria’s national colours of green, white and green, and flags of the ruling party, the All Progressives Congress, APC, adorned all the routes where President Buhari’s motorcade would pass through.
Banners and billboards with the president’s photographs were also put up along the roads.
According to the State Police Commissioner, Imohini Edgal, “Security engagements are in top gear, as we are working with the Federal Road Safety Corps, Nigerian Navy, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, Lagos State Traffic Management Authority and the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency”.
An earlier planned presidential trip to Lagos in May 2016 was aborted at the last minute, with a brief statement from the presidency to the effect that President Buhari had an ear infection.
