The Lagos State Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode, on Monday said 10,000 Close Circuit Television Cameras would be installed to boost security in the state .
The governor, who spoke during a ceremony at the Lagos House, Ikeja, to mark the signing of the N662.588bn 2016 Appropriation Bill into law, also promised that the budget would be faithfully implemented to make Lagos work for all, irrespective of age, gender, tribe or status.
G iving a breakdown of the budget, the Commissioner for Economic Planning and Budget, Mr. Akinyemi Ashade, who was with the governor, said the government had concluded plans to install 10,000 Close Circuit Television cameras across the state .
He said, “We will be expanding our ICT infrastructure statewide. Consequently, a budget of N9.6bn has been approved for this purpose in 2016. This will include Smart City project targeted at deploying technology to enhance security in the state. It will also aid our revenue generating efforts.
“We will be increasing coverage of CCTV installations in the state. Our goal is to have over 10,000 active cameras. The existing 1,000 CCTV cameras will be reactivated and these will be increased by additional 3,000 cameras after the completion of the first phase of this project.”
He added that attention would be given to improving disaster management, purchase of firefighting equipment, occupational, public safety and construction of new fire stations and relief camps across the state.
Ashade said the Geographic Information Systems and business solutions would be given special attention in the year 2016.
Ambode had earlier said, “The 2016 budget of N662.588bn will enable our government to focus on security, gridlock resolution, including physical and social infrastructural developments, which have thrown up new challenges.”
He noted that the falling crude oil prices had sprung up economic challenges and affected federal allocations, adding that the state’s budget would be driven by Internally Generated Revenue.
Giving a breakdown of the budget, the Commissioner for Economic Planning and Budget, Mr. Akinyemi Ashade, said it would promote massive investments in security, traffic management, in addition to enhancing job creation.
He said the Lagos Internal Revenue Service was expected to generate N300billion or 78 per cent of the total IGR.
He added that while the state government would not introduce new taxes, efforts would be made towards bringing more citizens into the tax net, especially the informal sector, as well as through the adoption of an automated process to block leakages
