• Friday, March 29, 2024
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BusinessDay

Old faces jostle for slots in Sanwo-Olu’s administration

Sanwo-Olu

If the governor-elect of Lagos State, Babajide Sanwo-Olu and the leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) give in to pressure, the incoming administration in Lagos, will sure be a convergence of old and familiar faces.

Sanwo-Olu received a total of 739, 445 votes to beat his closest rival, Agbaje, who secured 206, 141 votes in the March 9, 2019 gubernatorial election.

Investigations by BusinessDay show that in a gale of desperation to secure slots in the yet to be formed government of Sanwo-Olu, old timers, many of whom have served in previous administrations in the state, are making overtures to the power brokers in Lagos to return to government.

Some of the old appointees, whom a source described as ‘as professionals politics’, have served at one time or the other either in the administration of Bola Ahmed Tinubu (1999-2007) or that of Babatunde Fashola (2007-2015).

Checks reveal that the Awolowo Road, Ikoyi, campaign office of Sanwo-Olu and Bourdilon residence of Bola Tinubu, also in Ikoyi, have become a convergence point for the former appointees, who stick around most of the time to ensure nothing is left to chances.

The old appointees, according to a close source, are reaching out to persons they believe can influence their reappointments, including key members of the Governor’s Advisory Council (GAC), the highest decision making body of the ruling APC in Lagos.

The source further told BusinessDay that some of the politicians are also using Governor Akinwunmi Ambode’s perceived ‘misstep’ to sell themselves, as they complained that Ambode shut them out for four years, and that the incoming administration of Sanwo-Olu presents the opportunity to return to serve Lagos.

Among known faces regularly seen in the Ikoyi campaign office of Sanwo-Olu, are Ayo Gbeleyi and Jeje Bosun. Both served as commissioners for finance and housing respectively under the administration of Babatunde Fashola.

Others are Wale Edun, a former commissioner for finance, Kaoli Olusanya, Danmole Oyinola, Kemi Nelson and Musiliu Obanikoro, all former commissioners under the administration of Bola Tinubu.

Meanwhile, Sanwo-Olu is expected on May 29, to take over a state seriously plagued by absence of governance, resulting in high level indiscipline everywhere. The vibrancy associated with Lagos and which has been the attraction for other states of the federation has since taken a flight.

Infrastructure projects including the ongoing expansion of Lagos-Badagry Express into ten lanes, has been abandoned, as contractors had since left sites.

Checks also show that Ministries Departments and Agencies (MDAs) of government are heavily impacted, as tons of files are said to be awaiting approval while many others approved have not translated to funds to enable the MDAs execute their programmes and projects, even as the state’s 2019 budget size of N852.317 billion remains with the House of Assembly without passage.

On the roads, traffic enforcement has been relaxed, as private and vehicles; as well motorcycles and tricycles are seen driving traffic flow in different parts of the state. Many of the roads in the metropolis are also riddled with potholes with no relevant agency of government attending to them.

 

JOSHUA BASSEY