Lagos Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has broken the silence on his administration’s procurement record released by the Lagos State Public Procurement Agency (PPA).
Sanwo-Olu assured Lagosians of impactful governance, noting that his administration will continue to welcome criticism so as to further improve governance in the state.
While appreciating critics of the document, Sanwo-Olu said the State will continue to publish its spending and keep it open for public scrutiny.
The governor spoke at the commissioning of the Lagos State Building Control Agency (LASBCA) Building, PWD Ikeja.
In the footage shared by Jubril Gawat, Senior Special Assistant to the state governor on his “X” handle, Sanwo-Olu said: “We are committed, responsible and transparent. We don’t have a problem with anybody, or any individual. We acknowledge that these are ways we should be doing things.
“We appreciate criticism. We appreciate the fact that people can look at us in the face that we need to do well in the state.
“So we don’t have a problem with the originator of an open letter. In fact, we like it and we want to thank him, and that’s to say that indeed, to be a government that’s firm and responsible, we should not shy away from criticism.“But it is only when criticism is malicious, unintended and misrepresents the truth and that’s where there’s a problem.
“Some officers in Lagos have all come out to say that indeed we can make mistakes on some lines of items. I heard of a particular one that an item was meant to be N2M but it was written as N2bn.
“For me, I’m leading a team of very dedicated public officials; I’m leading a team of committed civil servants. I’m leading a team of self-motivated public officials who want to stand and say that they can be well recognised.
“All we want to do is to serve the people of Lagos, and serve the state with every iota of strength and commitment we have, and believing Lagosians can truly see the benefit of our service.
“I just want to make this point, and put it to rest. The website will continue to work. We’ll put all our numbers there and we’ll continue to pride ourselves at all times that indeed we can make mistakes but it is not any intention for us to be unmindful of what public goods are, and to ensure that public goods is what will continue to be respected.”