A
major federal government shake-up which has been described as
'earth-shattering' because a few of the President's powerful aides and
prominent members of the APC administration would be affected, will
likely happen this week.
President Buhari
President Muhammadu Buhari has concluded plans for a major overhaul
of his administration, reliable sources in government told Sunday PUNCH
over the weekend.
The sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the
sensitive nature of the subject, said the changes were going to be
‘earth-shattering’ because a few of the President’s powerful aides and
prominent members of the administration would be affected.
Findings also revealed that the Governor of the Central Bank of
Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele, is likely to be affected by the changes.
A senior government official, who preferred anonymity said, “In the
next few weeks, we are entering the second half of this administration.
I can tell you that a major cabinet reshuffle is on the way.
Ministerial vacancies for Kogi and Gombe states would be filled, while
there would also be an exchange of portfolios.
“Some junior ministers, whose relationships with their senior counterparts are not smooth would also be redeployed.”
A source within the administration, who is privy to the details of
the planned changes, said the country would soon witness greater synergy
between the President and Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo. The source
added that under the new scheme of things, the President intended to
assign more important national duties to Osinbajo.
Buhari, who will resume duty on Monday after a 49-day medical
vacation in London, is said to have been very impressed by what a source
in government described as the ‘performance, competence and loyalty’ of the Vice President, who served as Acting President while he was away.
When asked why it took the President two years to synergise fully
with his deputy, the source replied that both men had always been
closer than the public knew.
“The President and the Vice President have always been on the
same page. They are close. He likes to delegate tasks to the VP.
However, not much could be done in the past because of the interference
of some people close to the President. The President is determined to
remove those who interfere so that his administration can build on its
recent strides,” the source, who is a senior government official, said.
It was learnt on Saturday that besides filling vacancies in his
cabinet, the President would redistribute some ministerial portfolios.
He may also divest the former Governor of Lagos State and current
Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, of one of his
portfolios.
The senior government officials who spoke to Punch newspaper were
however not forthcoming with the names of those likely to be affected by
the changes. They said the President liked to keep such things close to
his chest.
However, independent findings revealed that those to be removed may
include the Chief of Staff to the President, Abba Kyari; the Secretary
to the Government of the Federation, Babachir Lawal; and some ministers
who have been adjudged as under-performing. A former Governor of Edo
State, Adams Oshiomhole, is expected to join the cabinet.
The source explained the criteria the President would use in reshuffling his cabinet.
He said besides measuring the performance of each cabinet member,
the President would also examine the relationship between senior and
junior ministers.
Currently, two states, Kogi and Gombe, have no representatives in the Federal Executive Council.
Kogi State’s position became vacant following the death of a former
Minister of State, Labour and Employment, Mr. James Ocholi (SAN), in a
road accident on March 6, 2016.
The Minister of Environment, Amina Mohammed, who hails from Gombe,
left the Federal Executive Council last month when she assumed duty as
the Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations.
There has been speculation since late last year that the President would carry out a major cabinet reshuffle.
In Kogi State, it was learnt that already, there was intense rivalry among various groups to fill the vacant slot for the state
According to a report, the Kogi East zone, where Ocholi hailed
from, had expressed concern about the delay in picking one of them to
replace the late minister.
Also, the All Progressives Congress in Kogi West was reported to be interested in filling the vacant slot of the state.
Credits: Punch
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