The Lagos State Head of Service, Mr. Hakeem Muri-Okunola, has commended the State Governor, Mr. Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu, for supporting the Lagos State Public Procurement Agency as well as other MDAs towards achieving the successful implementation of the T.H.E.M.E.S. Agenda.
The Head of Service spoke at the Annual General Meeting/Stakeholders Forum organised by the Lagos State Public Procurement Agency and held at NECA House, Alausa, Ikeja.
He applauded the Agency for bringing sanity into public procurement in government, enhancing the confidence of stakeholders and protecting the State Government’s integrity, noting that activities of the Agency have assisted in ensuring cost effectiveness, increased transparency and accountability in government.
Muri-Okunola urged stakeholders to contribute useful opinions and ideas that could help the Agency perform better, adding that all stakeholders need to join hands with the State Government to evolve creative strategies for providing adequate public goods and services efficiently and in a sustainable manner.
He enjoined the leadership of the Agency to properly examine and review ideas that would be generated from the engagement with stakeholders for input in the formulation and execution of the Agency’s policies, programmes and activities.
Also speaking at the occasion, the Chairman, Governing Board of the Lagos State Public Procurement Agency, who is also the Commissioner for Finance in the State, Dr. Rabiu Olowo stated that the Agency was fully committed to the ease of doing business initiative, stressing that the Agency embarked on massive deployment of technology and automation of its procurement processes to get contractors registered on its database within 48 hours of application.
Olowo pledged the commitment of members of the Governing Board and the management of the Agency to continually work together to discharge the statutory functions of ensuring transparency, accountability, competitiveness and due process, thereby ensuring value for money in public procurement in the State.
In his welcome address at the occasion, the Director-General of the Agency, Mr. Fatai Idowu Onafowote, noted that a good number of stakeholders have not only accepted the reality of embracing the public procurement process, but have also become advocates of due process in the State, adding that others are yet to come to terms with the change which the Agency is empowered by Law to bring into the procurement process in Lagos.
The Director-General also disclosed that the Agency had onboarded a total of 56 Ministries, Departments and Agencies of the State Government on the e-procurement platform, adding that another 46 MDAs would also be integrated on the platform within the remaining two quarters of the current year as part of efforts to enhance transparency, openness, inclusiveness and the ease of doing business with the State Government.
Onafowote also disclosed that in line with its statutory mandate, the Agency carried out a post procurement review of MDAs to ensure their compliance with due process in their procurement while it also carried out an inspection visit to project sites to establish that contracts awarded to contractors were executed in line with the terms of reference, thereby ensuring value for money expended by the State Government.
He expressed appreciation to the State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, the Speaker and members of the State House of Assembly, the Head of Service as well as the Accounting Officers of MDAs of the State for their support and cooperation with the Agency. He commended other categories of stakeholders for working with the Agency, which has contributed immensely to the modest achievements recorded so far.
Also in a goodwill message delivered by the Chairman, House of Assembly Committee on Procurement, Mr. Rauf Olawale Sulaimon, urged stakeholders to familiarise themselves with the provisions of the law, noting that since the Law is not static, stakeholders should proffer ideas that could further enhance public procurement system in the State.
The highpoint of the event was the unveiling of the Year 2020 Annual Report of the Agency by the Head of Service, Mr. Hakeem Muri-Okunola.