Sanwo-Olu vows to descend hammer on Lagosians dumping refuse in drainages

Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has charged newly inaugurated cabinet members and Permanent Secretaries to ensure strict implementation and enforcement of all state laws for Lagos residents to live in a sane, safe and secure society.

He urged the new members of the State Executive Council to hit the ground running in delivering the campaign promises and dividends of democracy to Lagos residents in line with his administration’s THEMES+ Agenda for a Greater Lagos.

Sanwo-Olu spoke on Saturday during the ongoing four-day 2023 Onboarding retreat programme for members of the State Executive Council, the body of Permanent Secretaries and heads of some agencies and parastatals, held in Epe, Lagos.

The theme of the retreat which started on Thursday and will end tomorrow, Sunday, is “Navigating Government Excellence: Role of Leadership in Ensuring A Greater Lagos Rises.”

Sanwo-Olu said part of the takeaway from the retreat is zero tolerance for violation of laws, saying all cabinet members and Permanent Secretaries have been empowered to do the right thing.

“There is going to be zero tolerance. People cannot just assume that our laws will not be obeyed. That is the charge we are giving ourselves here. That is the charge we are taking away from this retreat to further energise our people to further ensure that we do what is right without fear or favour,” he said.

The Governor said the retreat has exposed the cabinet members to how governance is being run, urging them to cooperate and work in harmony with civil servants in their different ministries to get the desired results.

He said: “We have had conversations that bothered around everybody’s role, appreciating each other’s responsibility and fashioning a vision that all of us would be signing on to; a vision that would reflect what would be our mode of engagement and rules of engagement for the next three and half years.

“We had sessions with two former governors – Mr. Babatunde Fashola (SAN) and Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode. They shared their experiences and talked about things that we should be doing differently and we thanked them so very much for the time out here.

“We believe that at the end of the exercise on Sunday, all of us will not only be better equipped, energised, and be on the same page but we will be giving ourselves a sense of commitment that we will take back to our respective posts from Monday.

“Cabinet members and Permanent Secretaries will also share the vision and some of the things with the staff so that everybody in the civil service is further energised for quality service delivery to Lagosians and bring about all of the promises that we politicians have given to ensure a Greater Lagos Rising.”

Sanwo-Olu added that “the new cabinet members need to hit the ground running, understand and appreciate the enormous responsibility that the job brings to the table and let them feel that to whom much is given, much is expected and that Lagosians would be watching all of us and we cannot fail.

“We have done four years and we want to do the next four years. We want to do it quicker, faster and bolder, and that is what all of us have committed to and we believe that we are going to leave here better people, better managers, better leaders, better politicians and at the end, our citizens would feel the benefits of our four days exercise. ”

Speaking on the issue of flooding and failed portions of the road in Ikotun and Igando areas of Alimosho Local Government Area and other parts of Lagos State, Sanwo-Olu assured residents of prompt intervention.

He said there would be zero tolerance for indiscriminate dumping of refuse in drainages which he described as the major cause of flooding across the state.

Sanwo-Olu, who hinted that the new cabinet members have been equipped with the necessary training to ensure total enforcement of all Lagos State laws, called for the cooperation of all residents in achieving the Greater Lagos Rising mantra of the incumbent administration.

Also speaking, the Head of Service, Mr. Hakeem Muri-Okunola, said the theme of the retreat was in line with Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu administration’s THEMES+ agenda, adding that “it will help us get into the workplace on Monday and hit the ground running as seamlessly without any bottlenecks and ego, knowing that we are partners in the same journey.”

Speaking at the event, Lagos State Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr. Gbenga Omotoso, said the cabinet members and the Permanent Secretaries would work as a stronger team, act proactively to address issues, take charge and render quality service to Lagosians as the government enforces the law in order not to lose the environment to flooding.

The Commissioner for Tourism, Mrs. Adetoke Benson-Awoyinka, also said the State Government through her ministry would work together to promote Afrobeats Music as it makes Lagos a tourism destination in Africa and the world where hospitality is top-notch.|