Following the sacking of service chiefs by President Bola Tinubu on October 28, THE POINT has learnt that some ministers currently serving in the government may be relieved of their duty anytime soon.
Impeccable sources, close to the Presidency, who spoke to THE POINT on the condition of anonymity because of the delicate nature of the matter, said, despite confronting worsening insecurity and putting machineries in motion to halt the tide, the President desired to present a “good scorecard” to Nigerians before 2027.
They said the President was leaving no stone unturned in his efforts at revitalising the Nigerian economy and enhancing the standards of living of citizens.
“Just as he has rejigged the security infrastructure with the sacking of service chiefs and is still putting machineries in motion to nip the recent wave of insecurity in the bud, the names of ministers to be relieved of their duties soon is being prepared,” one of the sources said.
“The President will soon send the underperforming ministers packing from his cabinet.
They will go just like the former service chiefs.”
“These are ministers who are clearly not giving their best to the country and the President does not want his re-election bid to be affected by their underwhelming performance,” another top source stated.
Asked to mention possible ministers that would be shown the door, he said, “I cannot say for sure.
However, one thing you can take to the bank is that there will be no sacred cows this time around.”
“It will not matter now whether you have known the president since time immemorial.
It will not matter whose ox is gored.”
The call for the sacking of underperforming ministers has been a controversial topic in Nigerian politics.
When the president was swearing in ministers in August 2023, he said he had the power to hire and fire ministers, and would not hesitate to wield the big stick against those of them who did not live up to expectations.
After the ministers settled down to work, many disgruntled Nigerians were not impressed with the performance of some of them and they told the president that it was time he let them go.
In June 2024, Tinubu sacked five ministers.
They got the boot based on a performance review driven by public perception, though Nigerians felt more underperforming ministers survived the exercise.
The President also reassigned 10 ministers to new positions and appointed seven new ones.
Tinubu, at the time, also announced the scrapping of some ministries and realigned others.
Those who were affected included a former minister of Women Affairs, Uju-Ken Ohanenye; a former minister of Tourism, Lola Ade-John; a former minister of Education, Tahir Mamman; a former Minister of State for Housing and Urban Development, Abdullahi Gwarzo; and a former minister of Youth Development, Jamila Ibrahim.
A year after that reshuffling, many Nigerians are once again saying that non-performing ministers should be shown the way out in the interest of the Nigerian economy.
WHY SOME MINISTERS MUST GO.
A foremost constitutional lawyer and academic, Itse Sagay, told THE POINT, “I really don’t know why the service chiefs were removed, so I don’t know whether ministers should also join them.”
“But if we are talking about cabinet reshuffle, one of the ministers that definitely should not be in place is the Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu.”
“To me, he is an absolute disaster to all consumers of electricity in this country.
All he knows is how to create hardship and more expensive tariffs, and despair for us.”
“He hasn’t done anything favourably to promote power, and I think he should go.
He is of no use to this government or to the people of this country.”
According to the former chairman of the Presidential Advisory Committee against Corruption, apart from the Minister of Power, the other members of Tinubu’s cabinet are carrying on reasonably well given the context within which the country is operating.
“We are operating on the basis of a western capitalist economy — that is what this government has embraced,” Sagay clarified.
“And given that scenario, the ministers are all operating reasonably well.
So, given that choice, I don’t have too many complaints,” he noted.
Asked about his views on the Tinubu presidency, the 84-year-old Senior Advocate of Nigeria said, “I think he is earnest in the sense that he means well (for Nigerians).”
“But the hardship we are experiencing is too much.
The cost of living, the cost of food, housing — it is terrible.”
“And I don’t think that any type of philosophy can justify it, but I think that whatever philosophy they’re pursuing, they should just put that aside and bring down the cost of living immediately so that the people of this country can breathe.”
Sagay, however, said that Nigerians should not hold the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, responsible for the economic turmoil.
The senior lawyer explained, “The Minister (Edun) is operating within the context that he has been given.
Remember that they’re practising a western capitalist economy.”
“And if I may say so, the western capitalist themselves normally tone it down with a lot of incentives, including subsidy, which we have abandoned.”
“They do a lot of subsidies because they know that the strict economic principles of capitalism can be very harsh.”
“And I think that our government should seriously be thinking that way, too, to bring down the harshness of the policies they have introduced.”
On his part, a political analyst, Reginald Anene, said that the activities of certain ministries were not too obvious and they needed to be scrapped.
According to Anene, it is not because the ministers concerned are not doing enough there, but their impact is not being felt as much as other ministries.
He added that certain ministries could do the job of some other ministries.
“I believe there are certain ministries that can do the job of some other ministries.
We have about 42 Federal Ministries and it is just too much as it is making the whole federal setup too heavy and clumsy,” he said.
Anene also singled out the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola, for criticism, saying he did not know what the minister’s job description and Key Performance Indicators were.
He slammed the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar, for not seeing to it that ambassadors were appointed, and not properly handling the heat generated after Trump threatened to strike terrorists in Nigeria over alleged Christian genocide.
Anene also disagreed with Nigerians calling for the sack of the Minister of the FCT, Nyesom Wike, over his altercation with a naval officer at a disputed land in Abuja.
The land is allegedly linked to a retired Chief of Naval Staff, Awwal Gambo.
Soldiers there insisted that they were acting on instructions “from above.”
However, in Anene’s opinion, Wike has transformed Abuja.
He said, “The minister of the FCT has also performed very well.
Apart from his garrulousness and cantankerous nature, every single person living in Abuja I have interacted with will tell you that Wike is performing wonders despite being there for two years plus only.”
“A lot of people will tell you that he has even surpassed former FCT minister, Nasir El-Rufai, in terms of development in FCT.”
“And I have heard a lot of people say that based on performance alone, they are willing to vote the All Progressives Congress for the first time in Abuja.”
A social affairs analyst, Ibrahim Gbadegeshin argued that the performance of Tinubu would go a long way in earning him a second term.
For Gbadegeshin, if many Nigerians remain dissatisfied with ongoings in the country as regards worsening poverty rate, insecurity and general economic outlook, it would be difficult for Tinubu to lead beyond 2027.
“What I have discovered is that many of us Nigerians are getting better in terms of our expectations from government.
The major factor that will determine President Tinubu’s second shot in Aso Rock is his performance in office since 2023.”
“He still has some months to redeem himself and I strongly believe that the dedication and cooperation of his cabinet members will go a long way in fetching him victory in the poll,” the analyst told THE POINT.
He added that some of the President’s cabinet members were already struggling to retain their jobs, noting that President Tinubu might not think twice to send any underperforming minister packing.
“I feel that President Tinubu is going to do anything possible to ensure he gets a second term and he is also aware that his achievements will speak for him.
So, he wouldn’t want any Minister to spoil his chances,” the analyst noted.
