Sanwo-Olu tasks new advisers to be committed to service for Lagosians

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3 years ago

Gov Sanwo-Olu

Lagos State Governor, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu, on Thursday, sworn in seven newly appointed members into the State Executive Council to revitalise the administration’s effort towards improving good governance and service delivery, charging them to hit the ground running in delivering more electoral promises of the administration to the residents as, according to him, Lagosians deserved their best.

The new members were appointed to the cabinet-ranked of Special Advisers.

Five of the appointees are newcomers, who filled in vacant positions, following the voluntary resignation of previous occupants, while the rest two, who previously resigned from the cabinet, were returned to take back their positions.

Sanwo-Olu, while performing the ceremony at the State Banquet Hall in Alausa, Ikeha, said his government considered seamless continuity in governance important, adding that the new cabinet appointment further reinforced the established tradition of diversity and inclusiveness.

The governor charged them to hit the ground running in delivering more electoral promises of the administration to the residents, who he said deserved their best, stressing that the choice of the appointees was informed by capacity, accomplishments, commitment and proven track record of hard work and professionalism in their previous endeavours.

“Today, we are bringing in new Special Advisers to replace those who voluntarily left the State’s Executive Council in previous months to pursue their political ambitions.

“As cabinet members, you join a small but privileged class of people whose ideas and decisions go a long way towards impacting the lives of millions of Lagosians on a daily basis.

“Your appointment is a testament to your capacity, your accomplishments and your track record of hard work, commitment, dedication and professionalism in your private and public endeavours.

“Your role, as you might have imagined, is a demanding one, requiring intense levels of hard work and dedication. You are expected to hit the ground running, especially considering that we are in the final year of our first term in office,” Sanwo-Olu said.

The governor reminded the new cabinet appointees of the need to get themselves familiarised with their assigned portfolios in order to sustain and improve on the tempo of their predecessors, noting that their entry into the Council came in the last lap of the administration’s first four-year mandate when the state was consolidating on the programmes across the T.H.E.M.E.S areas.

He lauded the state’s legislature, led by Rt. Hon. Mudashiru Obasa, for granting an accelerated approval for the appointment of the new members, even as he urged the newly sworn-in cabinet members not to see their appointment as an opportunity for self-service.

He further charged them as they discharged the responsibilities of their various offices, to “imbibe our culture of transparency, accountability, fairness and value for money, among others. ”

“Let me remind you all that this appointment must not be seen as an opportunity for self-service. While you discharge the responsibilities that will be assigned to you, you must imbibe our culture of transparency, accountability, fairness and value for money.

“You must show exemplary leadership as the necessary virtues needed to achieve the greatness we desire for our State and to deliver the prosperity our people deserve,” Sanwo-Olu said.

Sanwo-Olu, thereafter, assigned portfolios to the new cabinet members, appointing a former member of the eighth Assembly in the State’s legislative arm, Hon. Sola Giwa as Special Adviser on Transportation.

Until his new appointment, Hon. Giwa was the Senior Special Assistant in Central Business District (CBD) to the Governor.

The governor reappointed Princess Aderemi Adebowale as Special Adviser on Civic Engagement, the position she previously occupied.

Also, Mrs Toke Benson-Awoyinka was reappointed as Special Adviser on Housing.

Other appointees are Dr Olajide Babatunde (Special Adviser on e-GIS and Planning Matters), and Engr. Abiola Olowu (Special Adviser on Commerce and Industries), Mr Robert Bolaji (Special Adviser on Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs) and Mr Olufemi Martins (Special Adviser on Tourism).

Benson-Awoyinka, who delivered the acceptance speech on behalf of the new appointees, appreciated Governor Sanwo-Olu for his faith in the appointees’ ability, pledging to work with him to deliver the Lagos of citizens’ dream.

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