WHY 98% OF SANWOOLU’S FIRST TERM POLITICAL APPOINTEES MAY NOT RETURN

An Investigative Report By Felix I.C. Igiebor

The grave silence surrounding the appointment of Commissioners, Special Advisers and other categories of state appointees, who will serve in the second term cabinet of the executive governor of Lagos State, Mr Babajide Olusola SanwoOlu, has become worrisome to many who had expected an expedited action by the state governor. Apart from the appointment of his Chief of staff, deputy Chief of Staff and the Secretary to the state government, no other major appointment has been announced by the governor.

Feelers from Alausa, the state seat of power, indicates that the problem, resulting in the delay of political appointments in the state, may not be unconnected with the dismal performance of the ruling party, APC, at the last presidential and governorship elections in the state.

A reliable source at Alausa, who spoke to CN News on the condition of anonymity, hinted that prior to the 2023 general elections, the governor had made all necessary preparations and had released all that was needed for the successful prosecution of the elections to political appointees and others but the greed of these self-serving appointees at all levels (apart from a negligible few), nearly jeopardized the chances of the governor for a second term in office.

It has been a well established fact that governor SanwoOlu’s first term appointees largely kept to themselves, hardly granting even press interviews, and refusing to see politicos from their constituencies so as to avoid giving handouts or honorariums. “The greed of those self-serving appointees”, according to our source, is at the root of the dismal performance of both the then presidential candidate of the the ruling party and even of His Excellency, the state Governor, at the last polls. Speaking further, our ever reliable source hinted that monies appropriated for entertainment, honorariums and other special contingencies, which were duly released to the appointees for the successful prosecution of the elections, were pocketed by them for personal aggrandizement.

The uproar arising from the actions of these political appointees, including Permsecs, was so high amongst the middle and junior staff of the state government especially, as at then, that they openly vowed to vote against the ruling party and their candidates at the polls. The APC largely lost the state to the Labour Party at the presidential election for this reason. Apart from the above, politicos all over the state also complained bitterly regarding the shoddy way they were constantly treated by these political appointees and also vowed to vote against the party.

According to our source, immediately after the presidential election, the governor had to take the bull by the horns himself and started campaigning on the streets and at shopping malls all over the state, otherwise, the story would have not been the same. “If the governorship elections had first come, before the presidential election, the governor would have most probably lost his bid for a second term in office woefully”, he said.

Our source also hinted that, for now, the process of selecting appointees for various political positions in the state, is very rigorous. “In fact, 98% of the governor’s first term appointees may not return. It is operation show your voter’s card and the results of elections at your polling unit before appointment. The governor has adopted this method in order to fish out those who played smart during the last elections”, he concluded.