Tinubu jets off to UK amid lobbying for cabinet slots

• Don’t sacrifice competence, NISER ex-DG urges President
• Obioha: Onboarding new hands not solution to country’s challenges
• CDHR president seeks integrity, competence in cabinet selection

President Bola Tinubu, yesterday, departed Abuja for the United Kingdom to begin a two-week holiday amid pressure from some ministers to retain their positions in the impending cabinet reshuffle and intense lobbying from politicians to join the Federal Executive Council (FEC).

The Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, explained that President Tinubu would use the two weeks as a working holiday and a retreat to reflect on his administration’s economic reforms.

There are indications that the President will use the holiday period to make final decisions on the new team to work with him and study security reports on some politicians and technocrats, who will join the cabinet.

Onanuga hinted on September 25 that the President was considering reshuffling his council.

However, he declined to specify how soon the ministers appointed in August last year would be moved around or dismissed.

Many had expected that the President ought to have submitted the names of the appointees to the National Assembly for screening before the country’s 64th Independence anniversary, but that did not happen.

Some of the lobbyists and their godfathers will temporarily relocate to the United Kingdom to convince the President why they are competent to help him in implementing his Renewed Hope agenda. There are indications that the report from the President’s Special Adviser on Policy Coordination and the Central Delivery Coordination Unit (CDCU), which scored most of the ministers below average in terms of promises and what they delivered, will guide him in making decisions on the fate of the ministers.

The Guardian reported on September 26 that the reshuffle might affect 11 ministers and special advisers.

The National President of the Committee for the Defence of Human Rights (CDHR), Debo Adeniran, advised President Tinubu to prioritise key performance indicators, achievements, and public perception in making final decisions about his ministers and appointing new ones.

He highlighted the need for corruption-free appointments, stressing that only competent individuals with strong leadership qualities should be considered.

Adeniran said: “Those engaged in frivolous spending or corruption should not be reconsidered. Similarly, new appointees should have a track record of integrity, strong ethics, and a commitment to public service. The President should ensure that those appointed are not driven by personal gain or ambition but by a genuine desire to serve the people.

“By following these guidelines, President Tinubu can create a cabinet that truly serves the people rather than personal interests. Integrity in public service is very important. The need for a more effective, corruption-free administration cannot be overemphasised. By prioritising competence and integrity, President Tinubu can restore public trust and move Nigeria forward.”

According to Adeniran, ministers found to be corrupt should be dismissed without sentimentality. He stressed that Nigeria cannot afford to tolerate anyone lacking integrity in public office.

However, the National President of Njiko Igbo, Reverend Okechukwu Obioha, said introducing new members into the federal cabinet would not solve the country’s current challenges.

Obioha pointed out that the process that produced the country’s current leadership was flawed. He added that his administration will continue to falter until President Tinubu acknowledges these inadequacies and initiates processes to address them.

Obioha said: “If he likes, let him change two-thirds of his ministers. It will not make the needed impact. When the head is sick, the whole body is ill. The process that brought his leadership to power is faulty, and he has refused to acknowledge it. It is high time for him to apologise for the flawed process; this will enable him to have a direction for his government; otherwise, he will continue to fail.

“What we are practising now is not democracy. Tinubu was part of the call for democracy in this country through his activism with NADECO, but he has not done anything to show that he is a true democrat. So, anybody trying to talk about the internal organisation of this administration so that we can have meaning in our lives is wasting their time. The leadership of this country is sick and rotten, both in terms of the process that brought him in.

“He needs to make restitution. We don’t have a democracy. What we have is leadership by the people who care about themselves alone. If the head becomes healthy, it will trickle down. The head is not genuine, so there is no way you can put new wine into an old wineskin and expect it to work. Until there is restitution until he realises that so much is wrong with his leadership, things cannot begin to look good.

“He is talking about a youth confab, and that is because of the protests he has seen so far. The confab is not what will heal the country. Let him go to the confab report of 2014, dust it off, and put it to work. He has all the powers to change things, but he has chosen to play to the gallery, thinking that inflicting pain on the people is the way out. It is not.”

Former Director-General of the Nigerian Institute of Social and Economic Research (NISER), Ibadan, Prof. Olu Ajakaiye, and Head of Department of Politics and International Relations, Lead City University, Ibadan, Prof. Akeem Amodu, stated that President Tinubu’s upcoming holiday will not affect the anticipated cabinet reshuffle.

They stressed that reshuffling the cabinet is an administrative process that can be conducted anywhere and announced by any of the President’s aides.

Ajakaiye said: “Cabinet reshuffle is an administrative process. The President doesn’t necessarily have to make the announcement. He can give instructions to that effect. The Chief of Staff or the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) can also make the announcement. The decision is not solely that of the Federal Executive Council.

Commenting on the qualities expected in the new cabinet, Ajakaiye noted the importance of competence, stating that appointees must be competent to run the assigned ministry.

Amodu said the impending cabinet reshuffle is at the President’s convenience and does not have a constitutional timeframe. He also stressed the need for professionally qualified individuals in the cabinet, regardless of their political affiliations.

Bortus Porgu, President of the Middle Belt Leadership Forum (MBLF), highlighted integrity, track records, and capacity as crucial qualities that the President should prioritise when considering appointments in the planned cabinet reshuffle. Porgu also emphasised the importance of appointing individuals based on their ability to add value to the administration rather than on friendships or lobbying activities.

Porgu specifically mentioned the Minister of Works, David Umahi, as someone who has performed well in his role.