I refrained from commenting before now on the list of ministerial nominees President Muhammadu Buhari sent to Senate President, Bukola Saraki, penultimate Wednesday because I was buffeted by a sense of incredulity.
Even when it became apparent that what was published in the media was authentic, particularly after the All Progressives Congress (APC) apparatchik hailed the president for his nominees, I still could not believe it was true.
Then on Tuesday, October 6, Saraki reeled out the names at plenary and lo and behold, there was no surprise.
Before he called out the names, I had the uncanny feeling that Buhari and his media handlers had played a fast one on the media, selling a dummy to journalists by leaking a fake list to create the maximum impact of surprise when the authentic list was made public.
My astonishment and disbelief had nothing to do with the capacity of the ministerial nominees. A good number of them are tested hands who have over the years left nobody in doubt that they have what it takes to function effectively in public office.
My dilemma was that if these 21 people were indeed the men and women Buhari wanted to help him superintend the affairs of the Nigerian state, then what was the long wait for? What was the four-month drama all about?
When he hinted in an article in the Washington Post on July 20 that he would not appoint ministers until September, he predicated the decision on his resolve to instill good governance and tackle the scourge of corruption that has held the country back for too long.
“As I meet with President Obama today – the first time a president of the United States will encounter a Nigerian counterpart following the peaceful transfer of power in a contested election in our history – I will be discussing my plans for critical reforms.
“So, too, will I discuss why the formation of my administration is taking time and, crucially, why it must,” Buhari wrote.
Accusing Nigerians of impatience, a familiar refrain of this Presidency, Buhari noted that “already there are voices saying these changes are taking too long – even though only six weeks have passed since my inauguration. I hear such calls, but this task cannot and should not be rushed.”
Then announcing his decision not to have a full-fledged cabinet until four months into his Presidency, he pontificated further: “When cabinet ministers are appointed in September, it will be some months after I took the oath of office.
“It is worth noting that Obama himself did not have his full cabinet in place for several months after first taking office; the United States did not cease to function in the interim.
“In Nigeria’s case, it would neither be prudent nor serve the interests of sound government to have made these appointments immediately on my elevation to the presidency; instead, Nigeria must first put new rules of conduct and good governance in place.”
Many of the Buhari apologists would rather argue that those appointed are qualified.
Perhaps!
But as I noted earlier, the issue is neither the qualification nor the capacity of the nominees to deliver in public office.
No!
The issue is that the starry-eyed new converts to the Buhari phenomenon – like the self-acclaimed Ijaw leader, Edwin Clark, who just woke up from years of venality-induced slumber last week to discover that former President Goodluck Jonathan lacked the willpower to fight corruption – don’t get it.
The issue is not whether the 21 men and women waiting to be screened by the Senate this Tuesday are qualified to hold public office or not but whether Buhari actually needed 130 days to make up his mind on these very people.
What did he not know about Rotimi Amaechi – former Governor of Rivers State, the man who single-handedly marketed him in the South South, served as the director general of his campaign organisation, personally drove him around during the campaign – that he needed extra 130 days to discover?
The same goes for Babatunde Fashola and Kayode Fayemi, former governors of Lagos and Ekiti States respectively.
Or is it Chris Ngige, former Anambra State Governor, and Ogbonnaya Onu, former Governor of old Abia State and Chairman of the defunct All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP), the party on which platform Buhari made a failed attempt to clinch the country’s highest political diadem.
Did Buhari need 130 days to make up his mind on Lai Mohammed, his party’s spin master?
What measure has he put in place in the last 130 days to ensure henceforth no Nigerian public official will be found in the cesspit of corruption?
What new rules of conduct and good governance has the Buhari presidency put in place in the last four months which gave him the confidence that it is now time to appoint ministers?
Truth is that he simply wasted everybody’s time. If he wanted to, he could have announced these names on May 29, the same day he was sworn in, and it couldn’t have made any difference.
My worry is that Buhari is beginning to take Nigerians for granted.
It is because of political shenanigans such as this that I admire Matthew Hassan Kukah, Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese. His clear-headedness in dissecting critical national issues is refreshing.
In an interview with The Punch after the Buhari lynch-mob went after him for daring to advise that the president should not sacrifice governance on the altar of the vaunted anti-corruption war, Kukah said: “[Buhari] can take all the time in the world; it will never be a guarantee of the quality of his choice.
“Jesus prayed before choosing His disciples; He knew every man’s character, but Judas was in the crowd.
“I hear Nigerians harping on choosing the right people. How do you measure the right people? Is my ability to write a good article, the fact that I went to Oxford, Cambridge, and Yale, all evidence that I am a good material?
“I think all the president should do is appoint people, read the riot act, lay down the minimum of what is tolerable, and sack people when they fall short. But there will always be traitors.”
Looking at the 21 names. Shouldn’t have Buhari hearkened to Kukah’s voice of wisdom? Are these men and women the “right people” that will help Buhari run the affairs of the country?
What makes them the right people? What were the criteria used in measuring their suitability for public office other than the fact they were people who helped Buhari actualise his decade old ambition of becoming president through the ballot box?
Nigerians have to be careful how they idolise and hero-worship President Muhammadu Buhari. He may well be the messiah this country desperately needs now but he is by no means infallible.
He has integrity, no doubt, and may well be incorruptible. Those are unassailable leadership qualities but no nation has been lifted to greater heights by the so-called body language of its leader.
Buhari does not possess any special governance skill sets that I know of. He is neither a great thinker nor a “Philosopher King” in the real sense of the word. So, he needs help from fellow Nigerians.
Branding those who disagree with his style or the lethargy that has befallen government business the “wailing wailers” is a disservice to the country.
Painting anybody who dares to present alternative views with the brush of corruption may serve immediate and narrow goals but ultimately Nigeria will be the loser.
Buhari is beginning to manifest the very negative leadership traits of impatience and intolerance he is known for.
He becomes edgy when put to task. You could sense how irritated he was when he was told to fulfill his pre-election promise of publicly declaring his assets.
He was piqued that Nigerians reminded him that he could not run the country all alone for four months. For him, ministers are noisemakers and he may well govern Nigeria without them.
Nigerians must be eternally vigilant even as they support their president to deliver on his promises.
