Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has challenged opposition parties to present credible alternatives to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) rather than seeking change for its own sake.
Sanwo-Olu spoke on Tuesday while delivering the centenary anniversary lecture of the Yoruba Tennis Club in Onikan, Lagos, titled, “Democracy, Governance, and the Lagos Spirit: A Century of Excellence.”
The event was attended by the First Lady, Ibijoke Sanwo-Olu; Deputy Governor and APC governorship candidate, Obafemi Hamzat; political and traditional leaders, public office holders and members of the Yoruba Tennis Club.
The governor, who is also the South-West Zonal Coordinator of the APC Presidential Campaign Council, said Lagos had benefited from continuity in governance and should not embrace untested alternatives.
He said, “Our challenge to the opposition remains the same – to put forward credible ideas that are able to compete with ours, instead of seeking change for the sake of change.
“Untested novelty is no longer an option for a Lagos State that has tasted and felt the superiority of continuity.”
Sanwo-Olu also defended the continuity of the Lagos development model since the return of democracy in 1999, saying successive administrations had built on the blueprint initiated by former Governor Bola Tinubu, now President of Nigeria.
He identified four principles underpinning what he described as the “Lagos Playbook” — vision, self-reliance, partnership and measuring governance by its impact on ordinary citizens.
According to him, Lagos’ tradition of self-reliance was demonstrated when the state responded to the withholding of its federal allocation by strengthening its internally generated revenue system and fiscal architecture.
He also cited the state’s role in the June 12 pro-democracy struggle and its history of civic activism as evidence of what he called the “Lagos Spirit” of courage, self-belief, openness and continuous improvement.
Speaking on his administration’s seven-year record, Sanwo-Olu said the THEMES+ agenda had delivered projects and reforms across transportation, health, education, technology, the economy, tourism, security and governance.
He highlighted the establishment of two public universities, the Imota Rice Mill, investments in submarine cable infrastructure and data centres, the construction of a major children’s hospital and the development of the Lagos Central Food Security System and Logistics Hub at Ketu-Ereyun.
On the Yoruba Tennis Club’s 100-year history, the governor described its establishment as a bold response by indigenous Lagosians to racial segregation during the colonial era.
He urged the club to preserve its founding values while adapting to changing times, and called for greater youth inclusion, better documentation of its history and high standards in admitting new members.
The Chairman of the Yoruba Tennis Club, Chief Olawunmi Gasper, reaffirmed the club’s commitment to preserving its cultural heritage, promoting fellowship and contributing to Lagos’ social, economic and civic development.
Gasper commended Sanwo-Olu’s administration for its infrastructure and development initiatives, describing the governor as a progressive leader, public-sector reformer and advocate of people-centred development.
The centenary celebration featured the anniversary lecture, the launch of a history book, the groundbreaking for a proposed Legacy Building and an exhibition of 100 years of historical and archival materials.