MONARCH:OBA GBOLAHAN LAWAL RECEIVED STAFF OF OFFICE, HAS PRESENTED BY GOV. SANWO-OLU TO BECOME 15th ONIRU OF IRU KINGDOM

The Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has presented staff of office to the 15th Oniru of Iru kingdom, Oba Gbolahan Lawal and charged him to sustain the peace and harmonious relationship that had existed in the land.Lawal received the staff of office barely three days after the Kingmakers and elders of Iruland selected him among the lists of prince vying for the throne that became vacate last year after the 14th Oniru, Oba Idowu Oniru, joined his ancestors.At the ceremony held within the kingdom on Sunday, the governor, who described traditional institution as the first systems of governance, stated that it would forever remain a strong link to Nigeria’s heritage at all times.“Our traditional rulers are playing very strategic roles in contemporary society, not only as symbols and custodians of our traditions and cultures, but also as rallying points for all of society; agents of stability and development”, he added.Sanwo-Olu stated that due to this importance, his administration would continue to support every monarch in the state to realize their vision for the land.“Your Royal Highness, I pledge the full support of the State Government towards the realization of your vision for Iru Kingdom. It is heartwarming to see how the Kingdom has grown in leaps and bounds in the last few decades, rising to become one of the economic nerve-centers of Lagos State.“Our administration will continue to accord this part of the State, like all others, the attention you deserve, in terms of infrastructure, economic empowerment, human capital development, and security.“There is no doubt that the future of Iru Kingdom continues to be bright and promising, and that the ascension today of His Royal Majesty, Oba Abdul-Wasiu Omogbolahan Lawal, Abisogun II, marks the start of the next phase of the journey into that future”, the governor said.After assuring the traditional institution of his unflinching support, Sanwo-Olu task the monarchs including Lawal to sustain the development in their kingdoms“I enjoin His Royal Majesty to build on this foundation. There is no better way to ascend to this worthy throne than in this atmosphere of goodwill and harmony. “As the father of all of Iruland, you have an important responsibility to strengthen the existing bonds of unity for the overall development, peace and progress of this historic kingdom”. thepresstv.com.ng Gbolahan Wasiu Lawal born on July 24th 1970 to late Chief T. A. Lawal- Akapo, the Ojora of Lagos (1977-1993) and Olori M. A. Lawal-Akapo. Gbolahan is a Lagos Prince from the Ojora, Aromire, Shokun and Abisogun branch of Oniru Royal families of Lagos State.
He is a seasoned administrator with over 25 years postgraduate experience with an in-depth knowledge of the workings of the Public Sector. He is driven, focused, steadfast and passionate. Prince Lawal’s excellent leadership, communication, collaborative and organizational skills have over the years sharpened his ability to identify, analyse and proffer strategic transformational change.
Prince Lawal holds an Executive MSc in CITIES (LSE, Cities) from the London School of Economics and Political Science. He also obtained an MSc in Violence, Conflict and Development from the School of Oriental and African Studies [SOAS], University of London in 2008; a BSc Hons. in Botany from the University of Port-Harcourt in 1992 and a product of the famous St. Gregory’s College, Lagos.
In addition, he has completed several courses and programmes amongst which are the International Housing Finance Program (IHFP) in 2018 and Advanced Management Programme (AMP) from The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, USA in 2015. He is also a product of the Harvard Kennedy School of Government and the World Bank Institute, Washington D.C. In the last 8years, he has been on the board of the Lagos State Security Trust Fund.
Prince Lawal started his career as a Scientific Officer with the Raw Materials Research and Development Council at the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology in 1994. He later joined The Nigerian Police Force and was commissioned as a Cadet Assistant Superintendent. While in the force, he held several duty posts amongst which was serving as an Aide-de-camp [ADC] to the former Governor of Lagos State, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu. He retired voluntarily from the Nigerian Police in 2008 as a Superintendent of Police.
Prince Gbolahan Lawal was a Senior Special Assistant on Special Projects to a former Governor of Lagos State, Mr. Babatunde Raji Fashola (SAN). In this capacity, he coordinated the Agriculture-Based Youth Empowerment Scheme (AgricYES). The success of the innovative Agric-Yes paved way for his appointment as the Honourable Commissioner for Agriculture and Cooperatives in Lagos State in 2011.
His impeccable public service record and his ability to address urban challenges also led to his appointment as the Honourable Commissioner for Housing by former Governor Akinwunmi Ambode of Lagos State in October 2015, a position he held until May 2019.
A lot of programmes and landmark projects were achieved under his watch as the Honourable Commissioner such as the Rent-to-own home ownership program, Master Craftsman program, Lagos Affordable Public Housing (LAPH), and The 4-IN-14 days bungalow housing development.
In 2019, Gbolahan Lawal was reappointed as the Honourable Commissioner for Agriculture in Lagos State by the current Governor of the State, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu essentially based on his sterling performance and quality leadership he provided in his first stint in the office. Suffice it to say that during his first reign as the Commissioner for Agriculture and Cooperatives in Lagos State, Gbolahan was the brain behind programmes and projects such as the School Agric programme, the Agric-YES summer school for senior secondary schools and the Eko Rice Mill, Imota.
During his second spell as the Honourable Commissioner, he has brought to bear his previous experience and expertise in the field. He came up with the idea of an Agricultural Stakeholders Summit in furtherance of the efforts of the State Government to make Lagos a 21st century economy with the agricultural sector playing a vital role in sustainable food security and diversification of the economy. Essentially, the Summit developed strategies that will ensure the State attains sustainable food security, improved nutrition, generate employment and create wealth through a combination of business and development platforms in partnership with the private sector.
As an offshoot of the Summit, he also saw to the development of a five-year Agricultural Roadmap for the State (2020-2025). The roadmap focuses on the development of agricultural value chains where the State has competitive and comparative advantages including the provision and availability of improved inputs, increased productivity and production. Suffice it to say that he was similarly instrumental to the organisation of a roundtable discussion on the implementation of the Roadmap in order to ensure adequate planning to circumvent risks and uncertainties in the sector.
Prince Lawal is also the brain behind the reforms and development of the Red Meat Value Chain in Lagos State; Agricultural Value Chains Empowerment Programme, a programme targeted at farmers, service providers, transporters, input manufacturers and suppliers within the system whose services are required for the successful implementation of increase productivity in Agriculture; an appraisal of Farm Estate and Settlements in the State; Lagos Agriprenuership Programme; the very popular Lagos Seafood Festival and the EKO City Farmers’ Market.
Lawal also successfully midwifed and superintended the State Government’s food security and palliative efforts during the COVID-19 public health emergency. Suffice it to say that to curtail the spread of the disease, the Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu declared a lockdown in the state and initiated various interventions in the areas of health, food and security to ameliorate the pains that the lockdown had on the citizenry. And it was Lawal’s Ministry of Agriculture that successfully coordinated and to the admiration of all, the twin efforts of the Emergency Food Response and the Temporary Food Markets.
He also has several awards in recognition of his outstanding performances in both sectors he served as Honourable Commissioner.
He is happily married with children, a sports, music and arts enthusiast.
SIGNED
GBOYEGA AKOSILE
CHIEF PRESS SECRETARY