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| Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, and his deputy, Bayo Lawal (R) |
A former Attorney-General of Oyo State, Bayo Lawal, has become the Deputy Governor of the State.
The Chief Judge of the state, Justice Mumtar Abimbola, administered the oath of office on him hours after his nomination for the post was approved by the State House of Assembly.
Lawmakers in the Oyo Assembly okayed him for the role shortly after impeaching Raul Olaniyan from the post on allegation of misconduct and abuse of office.
Until his appointment as Deputy Governor, Lawal was the chairman of the Oyo State Housing Corporation.
Governor Seyi Makinde, who was present for the administration of oath, called on his new deputy to use his position to deliver good governance to the people of the state.
The governor said, ”I want to start by welcoming our new Deputy Governor, His Excellency, Barrister Bayo Lawal, to the Oyo State Executive Council.
“I know you operated from this Exco chamber from 1999 to 2003 and I am sure a lot of things have changed between then and now.
“As we all know, you are already a part of this administration as the chairman of the Oyo State Housing Corporation.
“Your new position is evidence that you excelled in your role. But for us, as the saying goes, the reward for hard work is more work, and that is why we are giving you more work.
“The position is that of trust. Our masters are the people of Oyo State and our responsibility is to continue to serve them to the best of our abilities and deliver good governance to them.”
Governor Makinde expects Lawal to continue to supervise the Housing Corporation in his new role.
He is also to supervise the Oyo State Road Maintenance Agency, (OYSTROMA).
“Finally, you have operated as the Attorney-General of this state before. So, the Ministry of Justice will also be under your watch.”
The new Oyo Deputy Governor told journalists after he took the oath of office that he was grateful to the governor and would not abuse his position.
“I have to give my gratitude to His Excellency, the Governor of Oyo State, who nominated me as his running mate towards 2023. My debt of gratitude is limitless,” he said.
“As you have witnessed this happen, I did not notice he was monitoring my activities as the chairman of the Housing Corporation, but it was manifested today.”
“This is a challenge to me as a person and to all of us in Oyo State to cooperate, with the view of moving the government forward in all ramifications.
“We are already entering the campaign season but jumping into the season is not enough, we have to trace back to the last three years and see what has been achieved.
“So, this is what I have come on board to complement the already established achievements provided by this administration.”
The event was attended by the Speaker, Oyo State House of Assembly, Hon. Adebo Ogundoyin; Secretary to the State Government, Mrs. Olubamiwo Adeosun; Chief of Staff to the Governor, Hon. Segun Ogunwuyi and other top government functionaries.
Others who attended the event were former Speaker of the Oyo State House Assembly, Senator Monsurat Sunmonu, members of the House of Assembly, and some service commanders, among others.
