Hamzat Urges South-West States To Harmonise Budgets For Regional Development

Lagos State Deputy Governor, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat, has called on South-West states to synchronize their budget planning, warning that individual states cannot achieve meaningful development in isolation.

Speaking at the centennial 100th birthday lecture of elder statesman and Afenifere leader Pa Reuben Fasoranti, Hamzat responded to a proposal by a scholar, Professor Ropo Sekoni, who had suggested that Afenifere design a constitutional framework allowing South-West states to pursue growth at varying paces. Hamzat argued that independent economic models are unsustainable for the region’s long-term goals.

Hamzat stated that South-West states must coordinate their budgetary priorities to drive true regional integration, adding that progress will remain difficult without collective planning. He emphasized that rather than focusing primarily on constitutional restructuring, the priority should be practical steps to link South-West states together.

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To illustrate the necessity of joint planning, the Deputy Governor cited the Lagos Rail Mass Transit (Red Line) project. He noted that because the rail line terminates near the Lagos border, Ogun State must now construct an interconnecting rail line to ensure seamless interstate transit and maximize public benefit.

Recalling that the old Western Region established television broadcasting before Belgium, Hamzat urged South-West leaders to leverage the Development Agenda for Western Nigeria (DAWN) Commission and function as a unified team rather than operating independently to achieve the vision of the region’s founding leaders.