KAYODE OPEIFA’S CHIEF OF STAFF AMBITION BUNGLED AS AMBODE TURNS HIM DOWN

By Kola Popson

As the incoming administration of Akinwunmi Ambode prepares to take over the mantle of leadership in Lagos State, the current Lagos State Commissioner for Transportation, Mr. Kayode Isiak Opeifa is pushing seriously for the position of Chief of Staff (CoS) to the incoming Lagos State Governor.
According to our reliable source, who has pleaded anonymous, the popular Lagos State commissioner for transportation is so much desirous to become the CoS to the governor-elect, Akinwunmi Ambode. This explains why Mr. Kayode Opeifa moves around from one place to another, imploring the leadership of the All Progressive Congress in the state to give him the required support to actualize his ambition.
However, all efforts made so far by Mr. Kayode Opeifa seem to have yielded no desirable result as we have reliably gathered that Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu has given the incoming Lagos State governor, Akinwunmi Ambode, the sole right to choose his own preferable Chief of Staff. In the same, the information has it that Akinwunmi Ambode has politely turned down the request by Mr. Kayode Opeifa to make him his Chief of Staff, noting that he has a better candidate for the position.
It is worth noting that the position of the Chief of Staff to the Lagos State Governor or any other state governor of the federation is a very vital one that enjoins so many privileges. Chief of Staff is the one who manages the cabinet of his principal and departments of the state as well as managing relationship with gubernatorial appointees. The CoS is a personal confidant to the governor who focuses attention on building loyalty of State Employees and pushes decisions down into the agencies. The person occupying this position also oversees the development of the Legislative Message and the Budget
In essence, the CoS to any state governor knows almost everything that governor himself might not know about the activities of the state, hence state governors don’t just appoint anybody for this vital position. They take their time to look for people who they consider close confidants and brilliant enough to occupy the position. The case of Akinwunmi Ambode is not an exception in respect to who becomes his Chief of Staff. This probably explains why he turned down the candidacy of Mr. Kayode Opeifa.