The Lagos State Head of Service, Mr. Bode Agoro has appealed to stakeholders in public procurement to continue to support the Lagos State Public Procurement Agency to enable the Agency to sustain its outstanding performance.
The Head of Service appealed in an address delivered on his behalf by the Secretary, Lagos State Staff Housing Board, Mr. Abdul-Rafiu Fashola, at the opening ceremony of a three-day Procurement Planning Clinic organised for procuring entities in the State by the Lagos State Public Procurement Agency.
Mr. Agoro pointed out that the efforts of the Agency in aligning the public procurement process of the State Government with international best practices have not gone unnoticed, particularly in the area of institutionalisation of due process in the public procurement system in Lagos State.
He, therefore, pledged the continued support of the State Government to the Agency, adding that procurement personnel in the State would continue to benefit from opportunities in capacity development programmes of the State Government.
Mr. Agoro also urged procurement personnel of procuring entities of the State to actively participate in the review of the procurement plans so that they could properly guide their various procuring entities in effecting whatever amendments might be required by the Agency.
Earlier in his welcome address, the Director-General, Lagos State Public Procurement Agency, Mr. Fatai Idowu Onafowote promised that the Agency would continue to do everything within its power to ensure that procurement plans for procuring entities of the State are implemented in a manner that will guarantee the realisation of the objectives of the State Government as envisaged in the approved year 2024 “budget of Renewal”.
The Director-General, whose address was delivered by the Director, Monitoring, Enforcement and Compliance Department of the Agency, Mrs. Bola Adeniran, also pointed out that given the importance of the procurement plan to the actualization of the objectives of the approved budget of the State, Procurement Officers must ensure that the procurement plans of their procuring entities align with the approved budget.
Mr. Onafowote also disclosed that a total of 140 MDAs of the State have been onboarded on the e-procurement platform to facilitate the ease of doing business in Lagos, pointing out that with the huge investments, the present administration has made in the digitalisation of public procurement system of the State, the Agency would not allow any MDA to slow down the State Government in its determination towards ensuring prompt delivery of goods and services to residents of the State.
He hinted that procurement entities that have been onboarded on the e-procurement platform but are yet to commence the conduct of their procurement process through the e-procurement platform that, henceforth, the Agency will not process requests for approval instruments that are not submitted to the Agency digitally by such procuring entities.
He expressed appreciation to the State Governor, Mr. Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu, for his relentless support to the Agency and restated the commitment of the Agency towards enhancing the ease of doing business and ensuring value for the taxpayers’ money being expended on the provision of infrastructural facilities as well as goods and services for residents of the State.
Also speaking at the event, the Chairman, House Committee on Procurement, Lagos State House of Assembly, Hon. Samuel Olufemi Apata noted that the work being done by the Agency could be of immense benefit to the House in carrying out its oversight functions of procuring entities in the State.
Hon. Apata stated further that this is the reason why the Honourable Speaker and members of the House are always passionate about supporting the Agency in whatever way they can.
The lawmaker, therefore, enjoined the Agency to continue to guide the implementation of the approved budget of the State to guard against errors of omission or commission that could derail the successful implementation of the budget.
He also expressed the view that the State Government would save huge resources if sources of infractions were detected early and necessary remedial actions were promptly taken to forestall misapplication of the approved budget.
While expressing the commitment of the House to ensuring probity and accountability, Hon. Apata proposed that any MDAs that deliberately circumvent their procurement plans to undermine the good intentions of the State Government as indicated in the approved budget should, henceforth, be sanctioned to serve as a deterrent to others.
