•Governor Sanwo-Olu and Miss Etiyemonu Esther
Lagos State governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu yesterday temporarily vacated his seat, as a 14-year-old pupil, Miss Esther Etiyemonu, assumed office as one-day governor of the state.
Miss Etiyemonu, a Senior Secondary School II (SSS II) pupil of Lagos State Senior Model College, Igbookuta, Imota, Ikorodu Division, emerged overall winner of the 2025/2026 Spelling Bee Competition organised for eligible public secondary schools across Lagos State, reports The Nation.
The One-Day Governor was received by Sanwo-Olu at the State House, Marina, alongside her two-member ‘exco’ comprising the One-Day Deputy Governor, Miss Dorcas Awoyemi of Ikosi Senior High School, and the One-Day Secretary to the State Government, Miss Salami Jumain Olaide of Angus Memorial Senior High School, Yaba.
They were accompanied by their parents and teachers.
Miss Etiyemonu, winner of the 21st edition of the competition, presided over a brief State Executive Council meeting, underscoring the vision of the Spelling Bee initiative pioneered by the wife of former Lagos State governor and current First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu.
She described the Spelling Bee as a “worthy education legacy” that continues to nurture academic excellence and leadership among pupils in Lagos State public schools.
She lauded Sanwo-Olu for what she described as a “remarkable transformation” across key sectors, saying the administration’s development programmes had positively impacted the lives of Lagosians.
“In education, Governor Sanwo-Olu’s achievements are highly commendable. We have seen improvements in the quality of education through reforms such as recruitment of teachers, establishment of technical colleges, digital skills training, upgrading of tertiary institutions, staff housing development and renovation of public secondary school libraries,” she said.
She also praised improvements in transportation, citing road reconstruction along the Gberigbe axis leading to Ikorodu, and the Lagos Rail Mass Transit Red and Blue Lines, which she said had enhanced mobility and efficiency.
According to her, the state’s security initiatives have also improved safety and stability.
Responding, Sanwo-Olu said the emergence of a One-Day Governor from Lagos State Senior Model College further justified his administration’s sustained investment in education, noting that the school was a beneficiary of government interventions.
He described Miss Etiyemonu’s performance as a reflection of improved academic standards in state-owned schools.
“You are a testament to the quality of education we are providing in our public schools. You embody excellence and the calibre of students emerging from our public institutions,” the governor said.
He added that consistent improvements in performance in external examinations such as WASSCE and NECO validated the government’s investment in upgrading learning environments, school infrastructure and teachers’ welfare.
Sanwo-Olu pledged continued support for public schools through improved health care, access roads, maintenance of facilities and provision of modern learning tools, noting that government would protect school environments from disruptions.
He described the Spelling Bee Competition as a lasting legacy bequeathed to Lagos by the First Lady and pledged sustained support for the initiative.
