Former Lagos State Governor, Babatunde Fashola, has referred to as for the preservation of Lagos’s wealthy historical past to forestall distortions and uphold societal values, amid the continuing controversy surrounding the renaming of streets within the state.
Fashola made the decision on Tuesday through the public presentation of “Uncover Lagos State: A Historical past Puzzle E book (Quantity 1).” held on the Civic Centre, Victoria Island, Lagos,
Referencing historic information preserved on the College of Glasgow, Fashola underscored the importance of correct documentation in fostering historic consciousness and shaping collective reminiscence.
“For example, the Glasgow College archives service provides fascinating insights into the affect that the college, its workers and college students have had within the historical past and improvement of many international locations, together with Nigeria,” he stated.
He cited the case of Dr. Isaac Ladipo Oluwole, a Nigerian who studied on the College of Glasgow between 1913 and 1918.
“Dr. Ladipo Oluwole returned to Nigeria to turn into the primary African medical officer of well being within the Lagos colony,” Fashola stated.
“He pioneered college well being companies, with college inspection and vaccination of youngsters of their colleges, and began the primary Nigerian college of hygiene at Yaba in Lagos in 1920.”
Drawing consideration to a road named after Oluwole in Ikeja, Fashola stated, “So these of us who drive via streets comparable to Ladipo Oluwole Road in Ikeja will in all probability now perceive and contextualise the contributions of such a person and why it was thought of such a excessive honour to immortalise him by naming a road in his reminiscence.
“However it’s maybe instructive that we’re discussing road naming and road unnaming, and I preserve my gunpowder dry.
“Right now I reiterate these phrases about road naming and Dr Oluwole with a better conviction to bolster my message that the preservation of our historical past and the documentation of our progress ought to be taken severely,” he stated.
Fashola additionally emphasised the necessity for strong assist for the Lagos State Information and Archives Bureau (LASRAB), the company behind the event of the puzzle guide.
“The work of LASRAB extends past instructional books,” he stated.
“The last word objective is to create a central hub of a reliable and complete repository of Lagos State reminiscence. Mr Governor, LASRAB should be well-funded.”
Representing Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu on the occasion, Deputy Governor Obafemi Hamzat lauded the guide as an revolutionary mix of training, creativity, and cultural preservation.
He stated, “This undertaking is an revolutionary studying software designed to stimulate younger minds, particularly.
“It can additionally promote curiosity, deepen our pleasure as Lagosians and our collective understanding of the historical past and heritage of our pricey state.”
Hamzat additionally hailed Fashola, whose administration established LASRAB.
“I recall very clearly that he wrote an govt order directing that each one documentation, after we construct colleges, after we construct bridges and something, we simply have 5 copies, one within the Ministry of Science and Know-how and one in LASRAB, and throughout.
“This foundational act was not merely administrative. It was an intentional effort to institutionalise, protect, doc, and disseminate Lagos’s narrative for posterity.”
“It will be important that we don’t solely perceive ourselves, however we should perceive our historical past so we don’t lose ourselves.
“This guide is a artistic methodology of crafting historic consciousness that informs whereas it additionally entertains. That approach, we don’t distort our historical past and we don’t misunderstand our being.”
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