Babajide Sanwo-Olu has taken the oath of office to become the new governor of Lagos State.
The former Lagos commissioner was sworn in at the Tafawa Balewa Square (TBS) on Wednesday, May 29, 2019, to replace Akinwunmi Ambode.
Obafemi Hamzat, also a former Lagos commissioner, was sworn in as the state’s deputy governor during the inauguration ceremony.
Sanwo-Olu, on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC), scored the highest number of votes in the March 9 governorship election to emerge victor over his closest opponent, Jimi Agbaje of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and 43 other candidates on the ballot.
Even though the election had been expected to be a close contest between the two, Sanwo-Olu beat Agbaje with a margin of 533,304 votes. He won in all 20 local government areas of the state with 739,445 votes while Agbaje finished the race with 206,141 votes.
The Governor has also posted his first tweet in office. See below:
Executive Governor of Lagos state.
I share this moment with all of you.
The Babajide Sanwo-Olu you see today will remain true. I will not change unless it’s to a version that will serve Lagos better.
Today, we awaken a greater Lagos.#SanwoOluInauguration #ForAGreaterLagos
— Babajide Sanwo-Olu (@jidesanwoolu) May 29, 2019
He also addressed Lagosians in a series of Tweets, soliciting for support. He wrote:
By the grace of Almighty God and your votes, today marks the beginning of a new chapter in our journey to greatness. Today, I ask you to join me on this journey to awaken a Greater Lagos.
When we speak of a Greater Lagos, it is a deep and profound assertion.
Today, on this precious land we call our home, let us stand together in the very face of history.
Let us vow to ourselves, and to posterity that we shall not just dream of a Greater Lagos. Let us agree that we shall collectively rise up to build the Lagos of our dreams.
We need not be discouraged by the challenges that may be apparent. Today is an opportunity for us to forge ahead in our quest for a Greater Lagos.
It is possible!
No one should ever underestimate the spirit of Lagos and the resilience of its people. Yes, hard problems may confront us, but we will also confront them. Every problem will lose its potency to our unity.
Therefore, Lagosians, in this new chapter of our lives, we need not cry or fret. We are united by our common purpose of a Greater Lagos and a fulfilling future.
In Lagos State, our story has been of successes and achievements. Since 1999, our tradition of progressive governance has set Lagos apart and strengthened people’s belief in our ideology.
And that is the very reason I stand before you on this historic day as your Governor. While we celebrate the victory of progressive governance and democracy, tomorrow we must be ready to stand on guard and be fully vigilant.
Democracy and progressive governance hold only to the extent that we protect and nurture them. While Lagos glimmers as a beacon of progressive and quality governance, our nation now undergoes a historic battle to establish progressive and just governance.
Lagos must again rise and help lead this nation to fuller progress and to a closer realization of the greatness that exists within all Nigerians.
This inauguration symbolizes such an awakening.
Today, I stand before you as your governor, but also as your friend, brother; neighbour and your servant. I stand here to ask that you join me to script and fashion this greater Lagos with the creativity of our minds.
Let the ingenuity of our hands, the sweat of our labor and the compassion that resides in our hearts be committed to this common goal.
We are but human beings. Our time on this earth is finite, and shall one day pass. At some point, we shall all enter the book of history.
But we can choose how we walk into history. Shall we do so as masters of our fate, or as slaves to things that seek to suppress us?
When the history of our moment is written, let it not be told in tears of defeat, rather let it resound with the anthem of collective victory.
More photos below
