Gov Ambode Receives Lai Mohammed, Promises To Transform National Museum To World Standard

Lagos State Governor, Mr Akinwunmi Ambode on Thursday vowed to transform the National Museum in Lagos to a modern-day cultural edifice which would be of international standard, just as he pledged to partner with the Federal Government to give facelift to federal infrastructures in the state.

Governor Ambode, who spoke at the Lagos House, Ikeja when the Minister of Information, Culture and Tourism, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, paid him a courtesy visit, said he would collaborate with the Federal Government to ensure the speedy completion of the project which he said will enhance the cultural heritage of Nigeria.

He said considering the strategic importance of culture and tourism to the identity of people, there was no better time for Lagos and the Federal Government to collaborate in driving the essence of culture with the view to improving on the situation on ground and thereby improve on the economy and develop the nation.

The Governor said Onikan, where the museum is located, is a melting port of the cultural heritage of Lagos and Nigeria by extension, hence, serious efforts must be put in place to start to recreate the monument to adequately situate the history of the country.

The Governor, who lamented that some Nigerian languages are gradually going into extinction due to lack of preservation of cultural values, said that with the renewed commitment of the federal and state governments, issues of youth unemployment could be adequately addressed using culture, tourism, arts, sports and entertainment.

 Earlier, Mohammed said he was in Lagos to solicit the support of the Governor and State Government to collaborate in jointly moving the state and indeed the country forward in areas of culture and tourism.

He said Lagos remains the economic and financial hub of Nigeria, and that it was worthy to underscore the fact that the state is thriving under Governor Ambode, who he said is not only doing well but has greatly improved on all he met on ground.

He said the Blue Line Rail project being built by the State Government, when completed in December, would not only be the first in Nigeria, but also greatly boost the economy and tourism potentials of the state, as well as the 10-lane Lagos-Badagry expressway.