…as Nigerians lose patience over economic hardship
- Express discordant tunes over ‘bloated’ cabinet
- President can fix pressing problems, give him time – APGA, others
BY TIMOTHY AGBOR, BENEDICT NWACHUKWU, FESTUS OKOROMADU, MAYOWA SAMUEL AND BRIGHT JACOB
Nigerians from all walks of life have again called on President Bola Tinubu to ensure that persons with relevant competences are assigned to oversee key ministries as ministers.
Some of those who spoke in separate interviews with our correspondents said they were already losing patience, owing to the excruciating hardship in the country and noted that they expect the ministers to restore their hope and trust in the ability of President Tinubu’s administration to turn things around.
According to them, it will not be business as usual for these ministers as they may not be able to withstand the criticisms that will follow their non-performance after 100 days in office.
The Senate had, last Monday, approved 45 of President Bola Tinubu’s nominees to cabinet positions after individually vetting them in the past week, paving the way for their swearing-in as ministers.
Senate President Godswill Akpabio said three names had yet to be approved as lawmakers awaited their security clearance.
The nominees are expected to be allocated their ministerial portfolios this week.
Tasking the ministers to hit the ground running immediately their portfolios are allocated to them, a don, Prof. Alex Chinwuba Asigbo, urged President Tinubu to ensure that people with commensurate competences man key ministries such as Works, Defence, Economy and Finance.
While reeling out Nigerians’ expectations from the members of the Federal Executive Council, Asigbo, in an interview with The Point, noted that citizens were already disenchanted and needed to be enlivened through the performance, actions and results from the ministers.
“Nigerians are already disenchanted and losing their patience, so, we expect the ministers to hit the ground running like their principal said. We expect that they actually restore hope to Nigerians and give them the reasons to smile. For now, we don’t know who is assigned to the Works Ministry, but we are expecting that the president will at least make an attempt to hire people who have relevant competences in the different ministries. We expect them to perform in the way that every Nigerian will have faith in the betterment of the country and have hope again,” said the Professor, who lectures in the Theatre Arts Department, Faculty of Arts, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Akwa.
He claimed that the cabinet put together by the President was a bloated one and that it was disappointing that Tinubu failed to run a lean government at a time he was telling Nigerians to sacrifice for his alleged harsh policies.
“The cabinet is bloated and it is against what we thought he was going to do which is to run a lean government made up of people who have the relevant competences. This one is appearing as if he is being used to settle political associates. I didn’t expect that we will have more than 37 ministers because of FCT, especially when he already has Special Advisers and all that. So, definitely, the government is over bloated,” he stated.
Echoing similar expectations from Tinubu’s cabinet members, another Nigerian, Kingsley Fidelis, tasked them to see to it that the economy grows and the naira stabilises.
He said, “The ministers should see to it that the economy of Nigeria grows better and they should stabilise the naira. Naira should be stronger in the international market during their time. Coming to the aspect of insecurity, the minister that would be given the Ministry of Interior to man should see to it that jailbreaks and other growing criminalities are brought to an end. We all know that before the economy can thrive, security has to be in place.
“We need to hit the ground running to be able to pacify the people. There’s anger and frustration in the land. The more we leave it to chance, the more it becomes very unmanageable”
“The person that will man the Ministry of Education should ensure that the common man can afford education. Already, there is food insecurity and the poor can no longer have three square meals again, so, great task awaits the would-be Minister of Agriculture. He or she should see to it that fertilizers and other necessities such as land that would bring about large food production are made available to farmers at subsidised rates so that they can go into mechanised farming. This will also open doors for employment because of the value chain that food production entails.
“The president should ensure that those who will head key ministries such as Health, Education, Economy and Security are people who can deliver so that Nigerians can have hope in the country again.”
A former Taraba South Senatorial candidate of the Peoples Redemption Party, Ilyasu Gadu, said the list was a mixed bag of experience and competence.
He urged the President to hit the ground running before Nigerians start to lose patience and trust in his sincerity.
Gadu said, “The President has the prerogative of choosing the people that he wants to work with. Some of them are known to him, some of them, he can vouch for their abilities and capabilities. Some were nominated for him by party bosses, both at the states and national levels, so he may not know them.
“Because he has to fulfill righteousness, by the constitution, he has to agree with them but I believe that those that he personally nominated and chose are people he believes he can work with and know they can deliver the goods.
“For some of them whose names were forwarded to him like at the party levels, there might just be question marks on some of them. That’s why they had to be changed, because the party bosses were not sure about some of them, also that they may not be competent or they may have issues with their parties.
“So, on that score, I can say it’s a mixed bag. Mixed in the sense that some of them are really competent, people like Wale Edun, whose hands are known very well and have a track record of achievements. There are new guys but I believe they are also good. It’s not necessarily because they are inexperienced, that they cannot deliver, they will deliver but for the most part, it’s a mixed bag, and it’s a combination of experience and new hands. We can only hope for the best.
“Maybe those who had question marks against them may learn on the job but it is good that they are given a chance to, at least, prove themselves.
Speaking on how large the size of the federal cabinet may look, Gadu said, “It is a paradox, really, the president told us to brace up for difficult times ahead. We all know the economy is going southwards. Some of the imperatives require that we take drastic steps. This issue of having 48 ministers is something that people have raised eyebrows about because it is going to be a bloated cabinet. You’ll want to believe that some of them may not even be up to the task.
“It is a very delicate situation, and Nigerians are giving the President the benefit of the doubt but the romance will not last too long if things are not done properly. One thing I’ve observed about the Tinubu administration is that he acts first without thinking. It’s all down to the fact that Tinubu is a politician that sees the need to pacify or carry people along. He needs to do that because of the situation we found ourselves in. But you also need to say we can’t be having all these ministries when we’re talking about economic belt tightening.
“I want to believe that with these 48 ministers, most likely, they’re going to create new ministries to take care of the presence of this bloated cabinet. Either way, it’s not about having a bloated cabinet, or not, it’s about hitting the ground running, especially for the fact that we have so many issues on ground, both local and foreign.
“We need to hit the ground running to be able to pacify the people. There’s anger and frustration in the land. The more we leave it to chance, the more it becomes very unmanageable.”
A Port Harcourt-based social commentator, Sylvester Enefeli, said he preferred to keep his fingers crossed because he didn’t want “dashed expectations” which could arise if the incoming ministers failed to perform.
According to Enefeli, a “siddon look” approach by him would suffice for now.
He also berated past Nigerian leaders for “putting round pegs in square holes” when ministers were being assigned their respective portfolios, blaming this for Nigeria’s “slow progress”.
“But if the President can carefully place these people in the ministries where they can hold their heads up high without sinking, I believe we will see positive changes, and I trust he will,” he said.
Enefeli added that those who would be given portfolios would determine whether the President would be able to deliver on his renewed hope mandate.
He also agreed that Tinubu’s cabinet was bloated, but added that such would be welcomed if it brought the change Nigerians were demanding.
“The president must also remember that these appointments will determine whether he will be able or not to deliver on his Renewed Hope Mandate. Nigerians want hope, and they want it fast. As for the President’s cabinet being bloated, I totally agree that it is. But as much as I hate to say this, if that will bring the change Nigerians are demanding, then so be it. I trust the President’s judgment. Let us allow him to do what he thinks is right. Hopefully, we will see the light at the end of the tunnel,” he said.
In his reaction, the National Publicity Secretary of Labour Party, Obiora Ifoh, said, “His cabinet is not just the largest in the history of democracy in Nigeria but its composition is one that has people who have baggage and some who have undermined democracy in Nigeria.
“This government that is still labouring to earn legitimacy, having forced its way into leadership, recently asked Nigerians to endure hardship it inflicted on them but it is not willing to come to terms with why it should cut the cost of governance. They are still encouraging affluence in governance and recruiting cronies as a thank you gesture after roles they played during the general election.
“Nigeria needs technocrats and eggheads that can help turn around the fortunes of this country. These are not the best Nigeria deserves but we are hopeful that in no distant time, a new government that is pro-masses will emerge and Nigerians can then heave a sigh of relief.”
The National Publicity Secretary of the All Progressives Grand Alliance, Ejimofor Opara, said the list was not bloated and that the interest of the party was to see the attachment of the portfolios to the individual nominees.
On the expectations of Nigerians, the APGA spokesperson said, “My expectation is very simple. I will tell our people to just be patient with this government. We also understand that what the Tinubu administration has done today was supposed to have been done 20 years ago. That is, the best time to have removed fuel subsidies and filter the naira. But there is no need to cry over spilled milk.
“I think the other best time to do what he is doing is now. I expect that they will be able to stabilise the economy of the country and navigate us out of the troubled water we are into. I believe it’s very temporary and we must make these enduring reforms to be able to arrive at a perfect stability, a place of much more growth and development of our economy which I am confident President Tinubu is capable of. His administration is barely two to three months old.”
A retired civil servant who preferred anonymity berated the government for being hypocritical and insensitive to the sufferings of Nigerians.
He said, “First, I want to say that there is an irony created in this new government of President Bola Tinubu as I observe that the EFCC Chairman is in jail while all the people he is to go after are in government. We the citizens are now forced to ask ‘who is fooling who?’
“Second, the bloated list of ministers by Tinubu speaks of his insensitivity towards forming a lean and inexpensive government in a time of austerity staring millions of Nigerians in their faces. Third, for a government that used the speed of light to remove subsidy on petrol with pump price jumping from N184 per litre to almost N900 and failed to provide quick palliatives to cushion the pains of Nigerians going through hardship, a bloated cabinet is hypocritical and insensitive to the feelings of the Nigerian people.
“Any government that is indeed serious and determined to cut down the cost of governance does not need 45 ministers. President Bola Tinubu indeed has set the record for the highest number of ministers in Nigeria since 1999 when democracy returned to the country.”
The General Overseer of Gospel City Ministry, Apostle Prosper Ezekiel, in his reaction, concurred that the cabinet was bloated.
He said, “At a time when everybody is asked to be patient, there is hunger, there is starvation, deprivation in the land, having over 40 ministers, you can imagine how many hundreds of aides, uncountable political hangers-on and so on feeding on the already damaged economy. To me, it’s a no, no. It does not show transparency.
“How many former governors with baggage are in this cabinet and we say we want to grow? I don’t see sincerity, though he might have a good agenda but he is trying to service those that helped him during the election that brought him there. I think we still have a very long way to go. We are patient people that is why all the mess happen without challenge from the people. I don’t have any expectations from them. Our redemption is only in God’s hands. God bless Nigeria.”
A civil servant in Abuja, Maureen Obong, said the ministerial list was an assembly of the good, the bad and the ugly.
She stated, “Going by the list of nominees, I do not expect too much as I would have preferred having more women and technocrats on the list. In the past, we have seen women manage key ministerial positions and deliver excellently – Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Dr. Oby Ezekwesili, and Amina Muhammed – who have gone ahead to take up roles on the global stage.
“I just expect that the few technocrats in the team will distinguish themselves in whatever ministries they are appointed to serve. They must bear in mind that the country is facing a lot of challenges. The masses are suffering so they must work hard to deliver the dividends of democracy.
“But on a serious note, I don’t expect so much from the list, which is dominated by ex-this and ex-that. The dominance of politicians like former governors who some Nigerians consider to have failed during their tenures in their states to deliver value for the citizens, how can one expect that the same people will do better as ministers?
“My expectation is very simple. I will tell our people to just be patient with this government. We also understand that what the Tinubu administration has done today was supposed to have been done 20 years ago”
A clergyman, Pastor Israel Michael, said, “Looking at the list of nominees approved by NASS, I have a few observations. First, this is going to be the largest cabinet since Nigeria returned to democratic governance in 1999. The implication is that more ministries will be created, thus the cost of governance is expected to increase.
“Second, a few of the persons nominated are technocrats and have made some remarkable impacts in their fields of endeavour. I do hope that sensitive portfolios will be assigned to those with proven track records.
“Finally, I think the President realises the challenges of the time. His performance will be judged by the deliverable of his appointees. The size of the cabinet will not ensure efficiency and effectiveness but what they have to offer.
“As for expectation, I don’t see anything changing as it seems we are recycling the same politicians who failed at the states as governors. They can only offer what they have. I would have been more positive if the President had brought in some Nigerians in the diaspora who are doing well in different fields to come and contribute to our national development.”
A businessman, Adeyemi Adebanjo, said, “The President initially gave an impression of preparedness to hit the ground running. Unfortunately, he resorted to recycling politicians who will further worsen the situation.
“Some unexpected names still made the list. Under former President Muhammadu Buhari, we saw a minister who said after eight years he didn’t know anything about that portfolio before being appointed.”
“I would have preferred some sensitive portfolios advertised using some criteria. The applicants should have been told to bring a proposal stating the problems and proffering solutions. Then they would be told to sign that they would resign and refund their salaries if their plan doesn’t work out with verifiable proofs in two years.
Whoever qualifies only needs to be a Nigerian. Until this is done, we’ll continue to use sensitive posts as compensation for political patronage,” Adebanjo said.
