Assistant Politics Editor, DANIEL KANU, examines President Muhammadu Buhari’s recent assignment of ministerial portfolios and the expectation of Nigerians.
After accusing Nigerians of impatience, President Muhammadu Buhari on Wednesday, November 11, after five months without ministers, finally flashed the denouement of all the drama that had surrounded the appointment. He assigned portfolios to all the ministers-designate.
Contrary to the earlier reasoning by Buhari that not all the screened and confirmed ministerial nominees would be assigned a portfolio, TheNiche gathered that Buhari, after serious deliberations on the implication, jettisoned the jaded idea to do the needful: committing all of them to portfolio responsibility for maximum commitment, even if it is Minister of State (junior minister).
The team comprises investment bankers, economic experts, corporate players, ex-governors as well as federal character fillers.
While some laud Buhari’s choice and see them as the new breed that are poised to change the face of governance for good in the land, critics see the team as more of the same old stock with nothing fundamentally exciting about it.
Former presidential candidate of National Conscience Party (NCP), Martin Onovo, told TheNiche that there was nothing worth celebrating in the ministerial news.
In his opinion, “It is very unfortunate the way Buhari has assigned the portfolios. It is as unfortunate as when he raised their nominations. The compounding of irregularities and deviations by the current federal government is a serious threat to national development.
“Ordinarily, we will expect that people are selected on the basis of integrity, competence, patriotism and diligence; but all that we have seen are decisions that are based primarily on divisive, political and sectional considerations. But we are not surprised neither are we disappointed because we had clearly stated that the current All Progressives Congress (APC) leadership is not prepared for governance.
“Governance cannot run by propaganda. Effective governance will require integrity, excellent policies and efficient implementation of those policies. Propaganda will not be a substitute for good governance.”
That it was a long wait is just stating the obvious. For most political observers, there was nothing unfamiliar in the names he presented to the Senate to warrant not less than 130 days for Buhari to make up his mind.
This is because in the capacity of the ministerial nominees, a good number of them, to the knowledge of Nigerians, are already tested hands that have over the years left nobody in doubt of their capacity to function effectively in public office.
“I have continued to wonder that if the 36 ministers that have been given portfolio were the men and women the president wanted to help him administer the affairs of this country, then what was the long wait all about? Why heat up the polity and generate undue controversy?” Chioma George, a lawyer, questioned.
Buhari has acknowledged that in assigning portfolios to his ministers, he avoided his predecessors’ mistakes of allocating the wrong portfolios to the nominees.
He said he had been mindful of the need to constitute a cabinet that is all-inclusive and that would best deliver the expectations of a better country for all Nigerians.
After swearing in the 36 ministers at the Council Chambers of the Aso Rock Presidential Villa in Abuja that Wednesday, Buhari said: “I have also been conscious of the need not to repeat such mistakes of the past where the right people were allocated the wrong portfolios, which translated into their performing poorly to our collective detriment despite their obvious capabilities.
“Also, I have responded to the counsel to consult as widely as possible, given the need to build a stable and all-inclusive government by reaching across our various ethnic and political divides.
“We want to work towards a prosperous nation respected for the right reasons, and whose citizens can hold up their heads anywhere in the world. And we are optimistic that bringing this set of ministers into the service of our country today is a step in the right direction, a timely move towards realising our positive goals for our country.”
Great expectations
Now that the ministers have been assigned their portfolios, the emphasis has shifted to what is expected of them from Nigerians.
Although there is no ministry that should be neglected, it is not contestable that there are ‘A’ grade ministries. And these are the ministries where Nigerians’ expectations seem to be higher.
Going by the list released by Buhari, ministers occupying certain critical portfolios such as power, works, housing, petroleum, labour, finance, defence, justice, foreign affairs, education, health, science and technology among others fall within this category.
In contemporary global standards, most nations turn the spotlight on what happens in the power, housing and works sectors. And this is the ministry former Lagos State governor, Babatunde Fashola, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), has been assigned to manage.
Although most commentators see Fashola’s appointment as an overkill. But given his benefit of experience, doggedness and laudable track record as a governor, it is believed that he will excel if given all the expected support.
Fashola’s Independent Power Plant (IPP) project in Lagos was quite commendable and his efforts at transforming most Lagos slums into cities, despite the cries by the owners that they were shortchanged, were all inspiring.
The power sector seems to be capital-intensive, and given the nation’s priority on recurrent expenditure and massive corruption, there is fear that Fashola may be hamstrung.
The issue of security and increasing incidence of crime require serious attention. The insecurity challenge posed by the Boko Haram insurgency, political observers agree, calls for more proactive action.
Minister of Interior, Abdulrahman Dambazau, with the benefit of experience, is expected to rise up to the challenge.
The Ministry of Petroleum, with Buhari in charge, is another critical area. The Minister of State, Ibe Kachikwu, who doubles as the Group Managing Director (GMD) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), it is believed, will find the petroleum ministry a natural turf. He is said to have the clout to succeed in the ministry because he has been a big player in the oil industry for some decades. It was obvious his intimidating profile endeared him to Buhari to appoint him to take charge of the NNPC, the nation’s honey pot.
The Ministry of Labour and Productivity, which will be under the supervision of former Anambra State governor, Chris Ngige, is expected to rise up to the challenge ensuring that the teeming population of the youths joining the unemployment market is taken care of.
Experts have continued to express sadness that the nation’s graduates seem to take to criminal activities for want of useful ventures. But given the capacity of Ngige, observers contend that he has the ability to deliver if given a free hand to perform.
The battle against corruption, to most Nigerians, cannot be won if the justice ministry remained the way it is.
Some other critical sectors like education and health also deserve adequate attention. Just as the standard in the nation’s education seems to have nosedived over the years, the rot in the health sector is alarmingly unfathomable.
Stakeholders say there is need to be an overhaul.
The finance ministry seems to be another key sector to be strengthened, and with the Treasury Single Account (TSA) policy and competence of Kemi Adeosun, the Minister of Finance, economic experts postulate that there will be a turn-around.
Most observers who spoke with TheNiche contend that there should be determination among the ministers to diversify the economy to agriculture, to enhance employment and explore solid minerals being handled by Ogbonnaya Onu, as a major revenue-earner.
The challenge before the new ministers is that they must proceed to work speedily and do their best to justify the confidence reposed in them not only by their conduct but also by their performance in their various positions.
Bearing in mind that their job is a collective one, Nigerians expect all of them to give their best in terms of effective performance.