Nigerians are worried that nine days after the Nigerian Senate confirms 45 ministerial nominees, President Bola Tinubu is yet to assign portfolios to the nominees and get his government underway.
The citizens waited for two months before Tinubu unveiled the nominees and it was expected that he would get down to work immediately after their confirmation by the Senate. Still, worrisomely the President is yet to form his government amidst a struggling economy.
He transmitted a list containing the first batch of 28 ministerial nominees to the Senate on July 27. The second batch containing 19 names was forwarded to the upper chamber on August 2.
The Senate on August 7 announced the confirmation of 45 out of the 48 nominees; and the list contained at least nine former governors from different states across the nation, former ministers and lawmakers who were part of the presidential campaign.
The confirmation of Nasir El-Rufai, former governor of Kaduna State, along with two other nominees, Senator Abubakar Danlandi from Taraba State and former managing director of Nexim Bank, Stella Otekete, has been delayed by the Senate. The delay is pending clearance from security agencies.
Tinubu may be following in the footsteps of his predecessor, former President Muhammadu Buhari who did not only spend time before transmitting his ministerial list to the Senate but failed to form his government immediately after the clearance from the upper chamber.
Upon his ascension to power on May 29 2015, Buhari sent the list of his ministerial nominees to the Senate on September 30, 2015, and the Senators completed the scree ing on October 29. The then President waited until November 11 to form his government and allocate portfolios which were about 13 days after the Senate confirmation.
It was a similar scenario that played out when he returned for the second term in 2019, he sent the list on July 23 with the Senate clearance coming on July 30 but he didn’t assign portfolios until August 21 which was 22 days after the Senate confirmation.
The list of the cleared ministerial nominees included Nyesom Ezenwo Wike. (Rivers State), Mohammed Badaru Abubakar (Jagawa), Mr David Umahi. (Ebonyi), Mr Bello Matawalle (Zamfara), Mr Adegboyega Oyetola (Osun), Mr Simon Bako Lalong (Plateau), Mr Abubakar S.Kyari (Borno),
Aliyu Sabi Abdullahi (Niger), Abubakar Eshiokpekha Momoh. (Edo), Engr. Prof. Joseph Terlumun Utsev (Benue), Sen. John Owan Enoh. (Cross River), Mr Bello Muhammad. (Sokoto), Mr Dele Alake. (Ekiti), Dr. Betta C. Edu (Cross River), Amb. Yusuf Maitama Tuggar. (Bauchi), Barr. Uju-Ken Ohaneye. (Anambra), Mr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo (Ondo) Nkeiruka Onyejiocha (Abia), and Imaan Sulaiman Ibrahim. (Nasarawa).
Others are Mr Adebayo Olawale Edun (Ogun), Mr Ahmed Musa Dangiwa (Katsina), Mr Uche Geoffrey Nnaji. (Enugu), Mr Tahir Mamman (Adamawa), Mr Zephaniah Jisalo (FCT), Mr Adekola Adebayo Adelabu (Oyo) Mr Muhammad Idris (Niger), Professor Ali Pate (Bauchi), Dr. Doris Anite Uzoka (Imo), Mr Lateef Fagbemi SAN. (Kwara), Hon. Ekperikpe Ekpo ( Akwa Ibom), Ms Hannatu Musawa (Katsina), Mr Heineken Lokpobiri (Bayelsa), Alkali Ahmed Said (Gombe), Yusuf Tanko Sununu (Kebbi), Atiku Bagudu (Kebbi), Mr Bosun Tijani @bosuntijani (Ogun), Mariya Mahmoud Bunkure. (Kano), Mr Isiak Salako (Ogun), Tunji Alausa. (Lagos), Ms Lola Ade-John (Lagos), Mr Ahmed Tijani Gwarzo (Kano), Mr Festus Keyamo, SAN (Delta).
