The Lagos House of Assembly has summoned the former Commissioner for Tourism, Arts and Culture, Olufunke Adebolu, to appear before the House over the failed 2019 Greater Lagos Fiesta.
The House passed the resolution during the plenary on Tuesday after a motion was moved by the Chairman, House Committee on Tourism, Arts and Culture, Saka Solaja, under Matter of Urgent Public Importance.
Gov. Babajide Sanwo-Olu had in January sacked the former Commissioner over the flop of the Greater Lagos Fiesta.
The House in its resolution also called the Special Adviser and Permanent Secretary in charge of the Ministry to join the former commissioner in appearing before them.
They also called on the present commissioner in the Ministry, Uzamat Akinbile-Yusuf, to come and brief them on the itinerary of the ministry for this year.
The House expressed sadness at how the event failed woefully in 2019, noting that the ones organised previously, earned the state huge revenue.
Solaja, representing Oshodi Isolo II, explained to the House by giving a detailed account of the money allocated for the 2019 Greater Lagos Fiesta.
He informed the House how the 2019 Greater Lagos Fiesta failed despite the huge budget allocated for the successful execution of the programme.
The lawmaker noted that the past Fiesta held in the state, were well organised with Lagosians and artistes commending the government on the initiative.
He expressed regrets that the last Fiesta apart from witnessing a low turn out compared to previous years, also had many flaws due to poor planning and improper organisation.
“We allocated huge sums of money to the Ministry for this yearly programme to hold but we were surprised with how the programme went in 2019.
“So, many Lagosians complained bitterly and some artistes also expressed their displeasure at how the event failed,” he said.
Mr Tunde Braimoh, representing Kosofe Constituency II, noted that “Tourism is the future of Lagos.”
Braimoh noted that a public servant was a public trust, adding that the former commissioner should be brought to account for all the budget that has been disbursed to her.
The Majority Leader, Mr Sanai Agunbiade, explained that the intention of the Fiesta was to raise the bar of tourism in the state.
Agunbiade, representing Ikorodu I, lamented that the 2019 Fiesta had a porous publicity.
The lawmaker said people were asking questions to know if the Fiesta was going to hold or not, but eventually, there was nothing.
“Those who were meant to grace the occasion were not carried along and the event ended up failing.
“The fact that someone is or no more in government does not mean he or she can’t be summoned to explain some grey areas,” he said.
Other members also complained that the failure of the programme in 2019 led to loss of revenue generation.
