President Bola Tinubu has approved the appointment of 18 Special Advisers and Senior Special Assistants to actualize the agenda of the Federal Government across the different sectors of the economy.
The Director of Information, Office of the Vice President, Olusola Abiola, confirmed this in a statement Monday.
He said the team comprising six Special Advisers and 12 Senior Special Assistants will work in the office of the Vice President, supporting the “Renewed Hope” agenda of the Tinubu administration.
The appointments in the Vice President’s office include; Rukaiya El-Rufai, Special Adviser (SAD) to the President on NEC & Climate Change; Tope Kolade Fasua as Special Adviser (SAD) to the President on Economic Matters; Aliyu Modibbo Umar, Special Adviser (SAD), General Duties; Hakeem Baba Ahmed, Special Adviser (SAD) on Political Matters, and Jumoke Oduwole, Special Adviser (SAD) to the President on PEBEC & Investment.
Others include, Sadiq Wanka, Special Adviser (SAD) to the President on Power Infrastructure; Usman Mohammed, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Administration & Office Coordination; Kingsley Stanley Nkwocha, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media & Communications; Ishaq Ahmed Ningi, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Digital Media & Emergency Management; Peju Adebajo, Senior Special Assistant to the President, Investment & Privatisation; Mohammed Bulama, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Political/Special Duties; Kingsley Uzoma, Senior Special Assistant to the President, Agricbusiness & Productivity Enhancement; Gimba Kakanda, Senior Special Assistant to the President, Research & Analytics, and Temitola Adekunle-Johnson, Senior Special Assistant to the President, Job Creation & MSMEs.
Nasir Yammama, Senior Special Assistant to the President, Innovation; Zainab Yunusa, Senior Special Assistant to the President on NEC; Mariam Temitope, Senior Special Assistant to the President, Regional Development Programmes, and Bashir Maidugu, Deputy State House Counsel (Senior Special Assistant to the President), completes the list of appointments in the Vice President’s office.
The new Special Adviser on political issues to the Vice-President, Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, was the spokesperson of the Northern Elders Forum.
He is the elder brother of Datti Baba-Ahmed, the running mate of the Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, in the February 25 election.
Baba-Ahmed, who disclosed his new appointment in a post on his X handle on Monday, said he is honoured to be given the chance to help contribute to building the country.
“It is time to make it public that I have accepted the call to serve as Special Adviser (Political) to the VP.
“This is not the time for fence-sitting or criticism when you can be useful in turning the country around. I am honored and humbled. Please pray for me & Nigeria,” he said.
Baba-Ahmed was a former Chief of Staff to the former Senate President, Bukola Saraki, from 2017 – 2019.
