Sanwo-Olu swears in seven new Permanent Secretaries

Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu on Friday appointed seven new members into the Lagos State Body of Permanent Secretaries, making the total number of Permanent Secretaries appointed by the current administration to 129.

The new Permanent Secretaries were sworn in alongside the new members of the recently constituted Health Service Commission at the Banquet Hall of the State House in Alausa.

The Governor charged the Permanent Secretaries to establish clear performance benchmarks as they assumed responsibility as accounting officers in the respective ministries.

Sanwo-Olu told the new appointees that their appointment should not be seen as a ceremonial title, but one which carried higher expectations from the public. 

He emphasised that governing Lagos was a significant responsibility that required an absolute focus on efficiency and service delivery. 

Aside from being the accounting officers, Sanwo-Olu said Permanent Secretaries served as institutional memory of the government and the crucial link between envisioned policies and implementation. 

He noted that the integrity of government programmes, the quality of public expenditure and the efficiency of service delivery depended on the quality of the Permanent Secretaries overseeing them.

He said: “Permanent Secretary is not a ceremonial title; the position serves as an institutional memory of the government. 

“It is the linchpin between policy as envisioned and policy as delivered. 

“Commissioners and Special Advisers will come and go with electoral cycles, but Permanent Secretaries carry on the duties. 

“Lagos is not a small assignment. 

“We are a State with an economy that rivals sovereign nations. 

“We are home to over 20 million people whose expectations of the Government are constantly high. 

“As Permanent Secretaries, you are now part of the answer to those expectations. 

“I expect each of you to establish clear performance benchmarks on assumption of duty.

“As an administration, we have remained committed to the THEMES+ agenda, every aspect of which flows through the ministries and agencies that you will now oversee. 

“I expect you to not only understand these priorities but to internalise them, to become their fiercest advocates and most disciplined implementers within your MDAs.”

Sanwo-Olu told the new Permanent Secretaries that their selection from the pool of qualified candidates was not done by accident.

Rather, he said it was through rigorous screening that did not only test their competence, but also their character. 

In Lagos public service, the governor said technical ability alone was insufficient, stressing that the State residents usually looked forward to at a combination of intellectual depth, institutional knowledge, personal integrity, and the temperament to lead under pressure.

“You were assessed on all of these dimensions. Your presence here today affirms that you met the standard,” Sanwo-Olu told the Permanent Secretaries before deploying them to their new areas of duty.

Addressing the newly appointed chairman and members of the Lagos State Health Service Commission, the Governor said the Commission was set up to ensure merit underpinned the recruitment process for health professionals employed to render life-saving services across the State’s healthcare facilities.

Sanwo-Olu highlighted that improving healthcare quality in the state-owned facilities would depend on the quality of workforce, emphasising that the quality of the workforce quality would be determined by the Commission’s performance.

He said: “I expect you to approach your mandate with seriousness, independence, and a clear understanding that the lives of ordinary Lagosians are ultimately in the balance. 

“The era of government officials confusing stewardship with ownership is over.