President Muhammadu Buhari is gradually moving away from the toga of ‘Baba Go Slow’ to a proactive leader with rash of sacks and appointments last week, writes DGossip247
President Muhammadu Buhari took office a month ago on a wave of hope that he would quickly deal with a deepening financial crisis in the country that has left some states of the federation in a position of limbo, unable to pay workers’ salaries, and a surge in the activities of the Boko Haram sect in the North-East. As a result of high expectations from Nigerians and the promises by the new government, there is the belief that President Buhari is too slow in piloting the affairs of state. This view in some quarters comes apt especially when the administration continues to operate without a cabinet. The Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity.
Mr. Femi Adesina, has already explained that the seeming slow pace of governance by his principal is because the Augean stable being cleared by the administration requires ‘scrupulous and painstaking planning’. Last week seems to be the beginning of more actions coming in the days ahead.
The president announced major changes that would soon compell his critics to drop the title, which they have since used to mock him as a sluggish elderly man – ‘Baba go slow’. First, on Monday, was the sacking of the nation’s security chiefs and their replacement with new ones.
President Buhari had retained the service chiefs he inherited from former President Goodluck Jonathan since his inauguration on May 29, a decision which has earned some knocks. Air Chief Marshall Alex Badeh was replaced by Major General Abayomi Olonishakin as the new Chief of Defence Staff.
The President also fired Lt.-Gen. Kenneth Minimah and replaced him with Major General T.Y. Buratai as Chief of Army Staff Also affected was Vice Admiral Usman Jibrin who has been replaced by Rear Admiral Ibok-Ete Ekwe Ibas as the new Chief of Naval Staff while Air Vice Marshall Adesola Amosun was removed and replaced with Air Vice Marshal Sadique Abubakar as Chief of Air Staff. President Buhari did not spare the National Security Adviser (NSA), Colonel Sambo Dasuki (Rtd) whom he also inherited from the immediate past administration. He appointed Major General Babagana Monguno (rtd.) as the new NSA.
In order to ensure that the entire security architecture was completely overhauled, the President also appointed Air Vice Marshal Monday Riku Morgan as the new Chief of Defence Intelligence (CDI).There are already fillers that aside delay to get a comprehensive brief from the security chiefs before they are booted out, the President’s trip to the United States of America for extensive bilateral, economic and financial discussions with President Barrack Obama and the need to answer certain questions about the terrorism challenges as well as Nigeria’s military capability to tackle the menace conclusively, necessitated the sack of the service chiefs.
While the sack of the service chiefs took the centre stage of political discourse, President Buhari threw another missile relieving the Director General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Mr. Patrick Akpobolokemi of his appointment on Thursday July 16. Akpobolokemi was reappointed by former President Jonathan in October 2014 to serve a second term in office after the expiration of his the first tenure.
There are already indications that President Buhari is not happy with reports that under the leadership of the former university lecturer, NIMASA had allegedly become a major source of slush funds for carrying out discreet endeavours and initiatives at the behest of the administration of former President Jonathan. As expected by political observers, President Buhari also Thursday dissolved the boards of all federal parastatals, agencies and institutions.
The decision is likely to affect most of the last-minute appointments by the immediate past government. Among them is the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) where the former president appointed former Governor of Anambra State, Mr. Peter Obi, as chairman. One other agency that may be affected is the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) where President Jonathan had sacked the Executive Secretary of the NHIS, Femi Thomas, and replaced him with Olufemi Akingbade to serve in acting capacity.
The decision for the dissolution will also affect the board of the Nigerian Port Authority (NPA) where the former president also appointed Mallam Habib Andullahi, son of late Emir of Kano as its managing director. Chief Tony Anenih, former chairman, Board of Trustees (BoT) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) serves on the board as the chairman. The dissolution order may also affect the Petroleum Equalisation Fund (PEF). Before he left office on May 29, former President Jonathan appointed one of his ministers, Mrs. Asabe Ahmed as the Executive Secretary of PEF.
About 12 federal universities and four new polytechnics and Board of the National Library where the former president also appointed chairmen of their governing councils before leaving office will not be spared.Some of the universities and polytechnics are the Federal University Lokoja, Federal University Lafia, Federal University Kashere, Federal University Dutse and Federal University Gashua. Others are Federal University, Wukari; Federal University, Dutsin- Ma; Federal University, Ndufu- Alike; Federal University, Oye- Ekiti; Federal University, Otuoke; Federal University, Birnin-Kebbi; Federal University, Gusau; Federal Polytechnic of Oil and Gas, Bonny; Federal Polytechnic, Ile-Oluji; Federal Polytechnic, Ukana and National Institute of Construction Technology, Uromi.
The Ahmed Joda-led transition committee had while submitting its report to President Buhari recently, recommended the termination of all appointments made by the immediate past president in the last nine months of his administration. In the views of the committee, these steps are necessary and would help the new government sidestep the quality of ineptitude and waste associated with that administration and achieve moving up its revenue base. President Buhari may have been guided by the recommendations of the Joda-led committee which recommended that he must take a set of actions within the first three months of assumption of power if he must save cost and “enhance liquidity.”
While Christians had on Friday joined Muslim faithful in celebrating the Eid-el-Fitr signalling the end of the Holy Month of Ramadan, President Buhari announced the appointment of a new Commandant General of the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Mr. Abdullahi Gana Muhammadu.
The new NSCDC replaces Dr. Ade Abolorin who had held sway in the organization for 10 years. He was appointed in 2005 and served two terms of five years each. Apparently, President Buhari in the weeks ahead may soon disappoint those who have already given him the ‘Baba go Slow’ nick name as indications are rift that more heads would roll.
No comments:
Post a Comment