President Bola Tinubu has decided not to appoint a Principal Private Secretary (PPS) following the appointment of former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, as Chief of Staff and Damilotun Aderemi as Senior Special Assistant (private secretary) for his office, in keeping with his campaign promises to drastically reduce Federal Government expenses.
Tinubu’s decision was stated to be founded on the belief that, rather than duplicating roles and increasing government recurrent expenses, the administration would focus on capital projects that would stimulate the economy and bring development to the country’s nooks and crannies.
The position was revealed exclusively to The Guild on Wednesday by a close adviser to the President, following reports on several internet platforms that the Lagos state Head of Service (HOS), Hakeem Muri-Okunola, would be designated Tinubu’s PPS.
The aide, who did not want his name made public because he was not authorized to speak to the media, asked Nigerians to dismiss the news since it is false and does not reflect the president’s view on nominations.
He stated that at no point did the president discuss plans to select a PPS for his office, nor was Muri-Okunola’s name mentioned among those considered for positions as aides under the Tinubu-Shetimma administration.
According to the aide, even though Muri-Okunola was Tinubu’s assistant during his stint as Governor of Lagos between 2003 and 2005, the president is not considering him for a position because he is still serving the state government.
According to him, if the president had intended to appoint Muri-Okunola, also known as HMO, his name would have been among the 20 presidential aides recently selected. That, I believe, should alert everyone that the president is not on his side.
Meanwhile, the insider highlighted that the news making the rounds contained no reality and was intended to mislead the public into believing that the president intended to break his campaign promises.
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