Why The 2027 Lagos Governorship Conversation Matters To Students

For students across Lagos State, politics is not an event that happens only during campaigns. Government decisions directly affect classrooms, lecture theatres, laboratories, transportation, access to technology, skills development and opportunities after graduation.

As Lagos moves toward the 2027 governorship election, students therefore, have a legitimate interest in examining the records, ideas and priorities of those seeking to lead the state. One of the names already prominent in that conversation is the current Deputy Governor, Dr. Kadri Obafemi Hamzat.

In September 2026, as the new academic session commenced, Hamzat described education as the foundation of a stronger and more prosperous Lagos and called for collaboration to deliver quality, technology-driven and future-ready education.

For students, future-ready education goes beyond access to a classroom. It includes functional infrastructure, laboratories, digital resources, competent teachers and lecturers, research opportunities and a system that prepares young people for a rapidly changing economy.

Lagos currently has several state-owned tertiary institutions serving different areas, including Lagos State University (LASU), Lagos State University of Science and Technology (LASUSTECH) and Lagos State University of Education (LASUED).

The question for students is straightforward: What should the next phase of Lagos’ education policy look like?

A university or polytechnic certificate remains important, but students are entering a labour market where additional skills increasingly matter.

Technology, artificial intelligence, entrepreneurship, technical and vocational training and digital literacy are now central to youth development. Hamzat has publicly emphasized education and skills acquisition as key pillars of youth development, with engagements that have also focused on technology and innovation.

This is particularly relevant to students in technical and professional institutions. The broader objective should be to graduate not just with a certificate, but with the ability to create value, solve problems and compete meaningfully.

Artificial intelligence is already changing how students learn, how lecturers teach and how employers work. It creates both opportunities and challenges.

Any administration that wants to prepare Lagos youths for the future will need to address digital literacy, responsible use of AI, technology infrastructure and access to modern learning tools.

Hamzat has spoken about the need for education to respond to technological change and for technology to be deployed responsibly in learning.

For students, the key question is how Lagos can move from merely consuming technology to becoming a state where young people use technology to create solutions, businesses and opportunities.

Education policy is also about infrastructure. Recent government interventions have touched institutions like LASU, LASUSTECH and LASUED, and such projects matter because the quality of learning is shaped by the environment in which it happens.

Students need functional lecture halls, equipped laboratories, standard libraries, reliable transportation and safe campuses. The 2027 conversation should therefore examine not only what candidates promise, but what they propose to do about the practical conditions under which Lagos students learn.

Students are tomorrow’s professionals, entrepreneurs, civil servants and political leaders. Young people should not be seen merely as campaign crowds, but as stakeholders whose ideas and concerns are factored into policy design.

Meaningful participation should include opportunities for leadership, entrepreneurship, innovation and civic engagement.

As the 2027 election approaches, Lagos students can assess every candidate and platform on key issues:

– What is the candidate’s record on education?
– What are the plans for tertiary institutions?
– How will students access modern technology and digital skills?
– What is the plan for technical and vocational education?
– How will graduates transition into employment or entrepreneurship?
– What policies address student transportation and campus safety?
– How will research, innovation and entrepreneurship be supported?
– How will young people participate meaningfully in governance?

These questions apply to every candidate, including Dr. Hamzat.

The conversation around Lagos’ next governor is ultimately about the future students want to build — one that includes quality education, relevant skills, innovation, opportunity, safe transportation, youth inclusion and an economy that can absorb talents from tertiary institutions.

While Dr. Hamzat’s public emphasis on education, skills, technology and youth development gives students issues to examine, the decision rests with the students themselves to study the records and programmes of all candidates and make informed choices.

The future of Lagos will be shaped in government offices, but also in classrooms, laboratories, workshops, lecture theatres and innovation hubs. Lagos students are not just observers of that future; they are among those who will live it, build it and lead it.