Tinubu sacks NASENI boss, Bashir Gwandu, appoints 32-yr-old Khalil Halilu
Dr. Bashir Gwandu
By Emma Ogbuehi
Three months after assuming office, President Bola Tinubu, on Friday, sacked the Executive Vice Chairman of the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI), Dr. Bashir Gwandu.
No reason was given for terminating the appointment of Gwandu, who holds a PhD in Electrical Engineering and is a Chartered Electrical Engineer, and one of the Fellows of the prestigious Institution of Engineering Technology (IET) UK.
Dr. Gwandu also served as Acting EVC/CEO of the NCC in 2010 and was the Executive Commissioner for Engineering and Technical Standards.
In his stead, Tinubu approved the appointment of 32-year-old Khalil Suleiman Halilu as the new NASENI boss.
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A statement on Friday by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Ajuri Ngelale, said Halilu’s appointment, which takes immediate effect, meant the termination of the tenure of Dr. Bashir Gwandu, who has filled the office hitherto.
“President Bola Tinubu on Friday approved the appointment of Khalil Suleiman Halilu as the new Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI),” the statement read.
“By this appointment, Khalil Suleiman Halilu will serve for an initial term of five years in accordance with the relevant sections of the NASENI Act, 2014.
“Mr. Halilu, 32, is expected to bring his significant experience as an innovator and technology expert to bear in this important new national assignment.
“The tenure of Dr. Bashir Gwandu as EVC/CEO of NASENI is hereby terminated. By the directive of the President, this appointment takes immediate effect.”
Halilu studied at the University of Hertfordshire and obtained his Bachelor of Science (B.Sc) degree in Business Administration, as well as his Master’s degree in International Business.
Halilu is a tech innovator who has founded and invested in several startups.
In 2018, he launched Zabe, an election monitoring application that monitors election counts in Nigeria and provides detailed feedback on the election process to observers.
In 2019, he founded the first-ever eco-friendly technological hub in West Africa, best known as The CANs.
The hub grew very popular over a short period and has continued to attract fellow environmentalists and technology enthusiasts from all over the continent.
A community that encourages individuals to share ideas, host events, and become one with nature, The CANS is not only a technological platform but also serves as a center, where technology start-ups can connect, learn, grow and prosper.
Gwandu officially assumed office at the NASENI Headquarters, Abuja, on Monday, May 22, 2023. He was barely three months in office.
Gwandu took over from the Officer Overseeing the activities of the Agency, Mrs. Nonyem Onyechi, following his appointment as the new helmsman of the Agency by the then President Muhammadu Buhari, who doubled as the Chairman Governing board of NASENI.
His appointment on May 12, followed the expiration of a 10-year tenure of five years each by the former EVC/CEO of the agency, Prof. Mohammed Sani Haruna in April 2023.
NASENI’s mission statement reads thus: “To establish and nurture an appropriate and dynamic Science and Engineering infrastructure base for achieving home initiated and home sustained industrialization through the development of relevant processes, capital goods and equipment necessary for job creation, national economic well being and progress.”