Gists
Why More Lagos Commissioners Are Losing Influence Under Sanwo-Olu
billed to leave office on May 29, 2027
Insiders say one of the most powerful sets of people in the present-day Lagos State government are Permanent Secretaries.
Occupiers of these positions are the administrative heads, while the Commissioners are political and overall leaders across the ministries.
Although a topmost career position, insiders disclosed that the usual play is for Commissioners to fashion the focus of every ministry in line with the general direction of governance provided by the Governor, with the Permanent Secretaries playing behind-the-scenes and complementary roles.
However, those in the know insist that Sanwo-Olu’s approach to running the state has caused a change.
“The Governor most times says the Permanent Secretaries run the ministry and that they should be reckoned with, right in their presence, and this has emboldened many of them to the point of conflicts with some Commissioners over this or that,” according to information filtering out.
There are claims that Sanwo-Olu took this position to make the Permanent Secretaries more invested participants in his administration but failed to consider the possible side effects in an environment filled with intense power play.
“Which is what is playing out, with certain Perm Secs leveraging the Governor’s body language to not just become more influential than some Commissioners, but making them work extra hard before getting things done in barely concealed ploys,” insiders say.
This development is said to be a far cry from the situation during the tenures of President Bola Tinubu as Governor (May 29, 1999, to May 29, 2007), Babatunde Fashola (May 29, 2007, to May 29, 2015), and even Akinwunmi Ambode (May 29, 2015, to May 29, 2019).
Sanwo-Olu took office on May 29, 2019, and is billed to leave office on May 29, 2027, after securing re-election in 2023.
And from the looks of things, the Governor, credited with landmark contributions, particularly for doing a yeoman’s job during the COVID-19 period and handling the EndSARS protests, will leave behind a culture in the state’s ministries different from what he met.
