Hakeem Muri-Okunola Bows Out in Style

Perhaps there is something about being bespectacled, excellent and highly esteemed. Hakeem Muri-Okunola (alias HMO), former Lagos state Head of Service and current Principal Private Secretary to President Bola Tinubu fits these attributes. Recently, when he formally bowed out of the Lagos council of decision-makers with his former principal, Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, this bespectacled spectacle became more obvious.

Even though the ceremony came four months after his actual departure, it demonstrated HMO’s value in the eyes of subordinates, colleagues, and superior, Governor Sanwo-Olu. After all, it was the latter that insisted on the event to honour him.

During the event held at the Adeyemi Bero Auditorium, HMO enjoyed the salutations of all and sundry. With even the Chairman of the Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF) and Kwara State Governor, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, in attendance, it became evident that Sanwo-Olu was committed to letting all know that HMO served him well.

Referring to HMO as his “brother, worthy partner, and confidant,” Sanwo-Olu did not hold back from mentioning many of HMO’s accomplishments. With such gracious words, HMO officially stepped down from the position of Lagos Head of Service, moving to Abuja to serve President Tinubu as the chief of all his secretaries.

There is a sense of completion in HMO’s public service. Before he became a powerful force in the Lagos State government, HMO served as Tinubu’s personal assistant, starting him off on an adventure to greatness. Now, HMO is back at Tinubu’s table, ready to serve him to the best of his ability.

It is a golden ending for HMO in Lagos, but also the start of something new at Abuja. Perhaps, the future would see him return to Lagos in one public capacity or another. Until then, the good people of the Center of Excellence can only wave goodbye to an illustrious son.