Yar’Adua fails to name Finance, N’Delta ministers

President Umaru Yar’Adua on Wednesday inaugurated 37 ministers with a warning for them to meet set targets or get fired.

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President Yar’adua.

Yar’Adua, who, however, failed to name ministers for the minstries of Finance, Niger Delta, and Commerce and Industry, also cautioned the new Federal Executive Council members against all forms of corruption.

He redeployed Dr. Shamsudeen Usman from the Ministry of Finance to the National Planning Commission as Chairman/Minister, in a move considered as a surprise by political analysts.

The NPC had been without a chairman/minister since October 29, 2008 when Senator Sanusi Daggash was dropped alongside 19 others as cabinet members.

In the case of the Niger Delta Ministry, the President named Mr. Godswill Orubebe as the minister of state. Prior to his new post, Orubebe was the minister of state for Special Duties.

Analysts said the President might have decided to put a hold on the appointment of a substantive minister for the Ministry of Niger Delta to enable him make further consultations.

There has been intense disagreement among stakeholders on who should and should not head the new ministry.

It was unclear as at 9pm on Wednesday if Yar’Adua had opted to scrap the Ministry of Commerce and Industry as the name did not even feature on the list of portfolios.

Chief Charles Ugwuh, who headed the ministry last, was among the 20 ministers that were dropped.

Another surprise in the new cabinet was the appointment of the former Director-General of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, Prof. Dora Akunyili, as the new minister for Information and Communication.

Akunyili’s nomination as a minister, alongside the Director-General of the National Agency for the Control of AIDS, Prof. Babatunde Osotimehin, had pit the Nigerian Medical Association against the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria on who should be the minister of Health.

However, Osotimehin, a professor of pathology, eventually emerged as the Minister of Health.

Former Minister of Information and Communication, Mr. John Odey, was moved to the Ministry of the Environment where Hajia Fatima Alao headed before she was dropped.

The longest serving minister, Dr. Hassan Lawal, who as at Wednesday morning was the supervising minister of Health, was redeployed to the Ministry of Works and Housing.

Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke, whose portfolio as minister of Transport included such sectors as Works, Aviation and Maritime, was moved to the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development.

Yar’Adua seemed to have demerged the Ministry of Transport by naming Mr. Babatunde Omotoba as the Minister of Aviation and Alhaji Ibrahim Biu as the Minister of Transport.

Mr. Oluremi Babalola, who was posted to the Federal Capital Territory Administration as supervising minister, returns to the Ministry of Finance as Minister of State.

The former governor of Kebbi State, Sen. Adamu Aliero, was named the FCT Minister.

He will be assisted by the Progressive Peoples Alliance representative in the ‘Government of National Unity,’ Chief Chuka Odom, who was formerly in the Ministry of Housing and the Environment.

As expected, four-time minister, Dr. Rilwanu Lukman, was named Minister of Petroleum. Mr. Odein Ajumogobia (SAN), who was in charge of the Energy sector in the Ministry of Petroleum, remains the Minister of State.

Newcomers — Dr. Sam Egwu and Prof. Yakubu Lame — got senior positions as Ministers of Education and Police Affairs respectively.

The Defence portfolio also went to a newcomer, Dr. Shettima Mustapha. Former Minister of State in the Ministry and later Supervising Minister, Mrs. Fidelia Njeze, was redeployed to the Ministry of Agriculture and Water Resources. She will assist Dr. Abba Ruma, who retained his position.

Others that retained their positions were Chief Ojo Maduekwe (Foreign Affairs); Godwin Abbe (Interior) and Chief Mike Aondoakaa (Justice and Attorney-General of the Federation).

The Ministers of Finance and Niger Delta Affairs are expected to be named during the next FEC meeting on Wednesday.

A former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Chief Ufot Ekaette, and the erstwhile Governor of Imo State, Chief Achike Udenwa, were tipped to fill the two slots.

Ekaette was cleared by the Senate on Tuesday, while Udenwa, who was earlier reportedly dropped allegedly due to a negative security report, has been brought back into the picture.

Before announcing the portfolios, Yar’Adua warned the ministers against all forms of corruption.

He said, “I must reiterate our administration’s total abhorrence of corruption in all its ramifications and our insistence on absolute compliance with established rules, regulations and procedures in the conduct of all government business.

“Any proven case of corrupt practices or non-conformity with the rule of law and constitutionality will be visited with the strictest sanctions.

“In this period of stark economic realities at home and unprecedented global economic challenges, we all must begin to think out of the box, recommit to the ideal of prudent and judicious application of resources, and stay faithful to the principles of value for money, transparency, accountability, and the rule of law.”

He said his administration had entered a new dispensation that demanded proactive measures from each of the ministers.

The President added that their continued membership of the FEC depended on their abilities to live up to the targets he would set for them.

Assuring the ministers of his “full confidence, support, and guidance at all times,” the President said even as the ministers were expected to meet their individual targets, they must work as a compact team.

He said, “In the days ahead, you shall be fully acquainted with the detailed mandate which each of you will be expected to meet as dictated by your portfolio.

“Ultimately, I expect that this Council will function as a compact, effective, efficient, and focused team of patriots committed to the repositioning and transformation of our nation.”

Yar’Adua admitted that serious challenges lay ahead for his administration.

He said, “Nineteen months into the life of our administration, it is with a deep sense of appreciation of the challenges that lie ahead that I welcome on board the newly sworn-in members of the FEC this morning.

“In the same breath, I welcome the old Executive Council members to a new dispensation – one which scrupulously demands pro-action, establishes definitive performance benchmarks, and insists on effective service delivery, strict adherence to due process, and unwavering focus on the policy objectives of this administration as encapsulated in the Seven-Point Agenda.

“These are the minimal standards that will guarantee continued membership of the Executive Council of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

“While congratulating you all, I would like to admonish that you see your appointment at all times as a sacred call to national service and not an opportunity for self-aggrandisement or the pursuit of narrow, selfish interests.

“The task of nation building and national transformation calls for honesty of purpose, sincerity, consummate diligence, and unmediated commitment to the national cause.

“The people of this nation demand no less from each and every one of us. Our every act must be guided by the highest standards of integrity and the fear of God.”

A scheduled group photograph between the President and the ministers was shelved until the next FEC meeting, when the full cabinet is expected to be constituted.