Ministerial Appointment; Real Reasons Stalling President Muhammadu Buhari's Decision

According to latest reports, President Muhammadu Buhari may not appoint ministers “in the next two months".. A Presidency source, who had a confidential briefing with some journalists in Abuja, said the mess Buhari inherited was “sickening”.

The source said: “You cannot even begin to imagine the situation we have met on the ground. ”Almost everything is in a state of decay. There is absolutely no way the new government can hope to achieve anything long-lasting without first building a new foundation.” 

 The source dismissed suggestions that the activities of government had been crippled on account of the failure to appoint ministers as a blackmail by politicians keen to get into the pie. He said President Buhari’s plan of action could be compared to that of “a doctor who first has to break a poorly set bone afresh, before resetting it to allow for smooth and proper growth”.

On the National Assembly crisis, the source said it was “yet one more excuse why forming a cabinet will be impossible until further notice”.“Look at how they are fighting among themselves. “The Senate has now adjourned till July 21. That means no one to scrutinize or approve any ministerial list until the end of July.” 

The source debunked the insinuations that the delay in appointing ministers had stalled the government. He said  civil servants had been “supervising the day-to-day running of ministries and that permanent secretaries of the various ministries have access to the President”.

He added: “All these reports and agitations are being fuelled by politicians who want to put pressure on the President. “They have tried doing it other ways and those haven’t worked. Now, they are trying to use the media. They only want their cronies appointed to ministerial posts anyhow and they are fuelling the agitation through newspapers.”He advised the media not to fall for the “old tricks and shenanigans” of politicians.

Buhari is set to reduce or merge some ministries and parastatals to make the size of the civil service manageable for efficiency. The exercise will, however, not lead to retrenchment of workers.

The source added:

“The President plans to cut down the number of ministries and parastatals.“He wants to cut down the cost of running government. He wants to make sure that all the loopholes that enable corruption to thrive are blocked. All these are procedures that require time and careful planning. You cannot do it in a rush.“Remember that he has to make sure that all this is done without any job losses or mass retrenchments. All this is not a day’s or one-month job.”