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Without A Cabinet, Nigeria Is Stuck 'On Hold' - Reuters / Letter From Africa: Does Nigeria Run Better Without A Cabinet? / Letter From Africa: Does Nigeria Run Better Without A Cabinet? (2) (3) (4)
Letter From Africa: Does Nigeria Run Better Without A Cabinet?-bbc by Okimski(m): 4:53pm On Aug 31, 2015 |
In our series of letters from African journalists, Mannir Dan
Ali looks at how Nigeria is coping without a cabinet.
It is now three months since Muhammadu Buhari was
sworn in as president of Nigeria and five months since he
won historic elections, the first time an opposition candidate
had won.
His victory generated huge celebrations and expectations of
a new beginning, with many anticipating dramatic changes
to follow, and analysts urging him to "hit the ground
running".
Most Nigerians expected President Buhari to shake up the
security services and make other key appointments in his
first few days - as former President Olusegun Obasanjo did
within hours of his inauguration in 1999.
But it took nearly two months for him to replace his security
chiefs and so far he has only made appointments in about a
dozen government offices.
When commentators began to get agitated about the lack of
a cabinet, a former newspaper editor and unofficial aide to
the president wrote an article entitled What is all the fuss
about?
He urged the press, social media and others to focus on the
"real enemies of Nigeria: poverty, ignorance, disease and
squalor" and not stand in the way of "the most popular
president in our history".
"The new government came into power through people's
power…. Therefore, its duty should be to constructively plan
and execute people's policies and not worry too much about
who gets what post," he said.
He is right up to a point - though the new democratic halo
around President Buhari does make it difficult for many to
publicly criticise him.
'State of decay'
A leak from the highest level then said there would not be a
cabinet before September.
The justification, according to the source, was that "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."
This was followed by an opinion article by President Buhari
published in the Washington Post to coincide with his visit
to the US last month, making further justifications about
why the task "should not be rushed".
"It is worth noting that [US President Barack] Obama
himself did not have his full cabinet in place for several
months after first taking office; the United States did not
cease to function in the interim," he said.
"In Nigeria's case, it would neither be prudent nor serve the
interests of sound government to have made these
appointments immediately on my elevation to the
presidency; instead, Nigeria must first put new rules of
conduct and good governance in place."
'Keeps things close to his chest'
The commentators are now learning to live with President
Buhari's pace of governance.
He has been dealing directly with the top civil servants, who
run the ministries.
Though it is not only the cabinet that is not yet in place.
Just after he took office in May, the senate said he was
allowed to appoint 15 special advisers.
Yet only a few have been appointed and there is currently
no adviser on the national assembly to serve as a link
between the executive and legislature.
This could be seen as a mistake given the current friction
between the presidency and the senate over the election of
the chamber's president, who was not the ruling party's
chosen candidate.
Meanwhile, it is the politicians who are suffering most from
the lack of a cabinet.
On a visit to a newspaper a few days ago, a spokesman for
the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Alhaji Lai
Mohammed, admitted that no-one in the party knew when
the appointments would be.
"The president I know has kept this thing very close to his
chest.
However, it is not only the politicians who are in a limbo.
Many sectors of the economy await policy direction.
Following Mr Buhari's pledges to make tackling corruption a
priority, they want clarity on how to proceed.
This is also making foreign investors wary.
So while it is clear that President Buhari has shown that
Nigeria can run without a cabinet, there may be an
unacknowledged cost.
On the bright side, with the briefings he is getting from civil
servants, the ministers, when they are eventually appointed,
will find that their boss knows more about their departments
than they do - and that should keep them on their toes. http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-34063362?ocid=socialflow_facebook |
Re: Letter From Africa: Does Nigeria Run Better Without A Cabinet?-bbc by DickDastardly(m): 4:54pm On Aug 31, 2015 |
bullharry |
Re: Letter From Africa: Does Nigeria Run Better Without A Cabinet?-bbc by ladyF(f): 4:59pm On Aug 31, 2015 |
Patience is key. Its not usually about how soon a cabinet is appointed, but how well they perform eventually. Sai Buhari 1 Like |
Re: Letter From Africa: Does Nigeria Run Better Without A Cabinet?-bbc by phyllosilicate(m): 5:00pm On Aug 31, 2015 |
. sdindan:. Bad belle people. That how Buhari achievement would make haters like you regretting. 2 Likes |
Re: Letter From Africa: Does Nigeria Run Better Without A Cabinet?-bbc by sdindan: 5:00pm On Aug 31, 2015 |
Paid article. I regret opening this trend. Trash 2 Likes |
Re: Letter From Africa: Does Nigeria Run Better Without A Cabinet?-bbc by benedictnsi(m): 5:02pm On Aug 31, 2015 |
sdindan: No be only you ooo..... Mtcheeew 2 Likes |
Re: Letter From Africa: Does Nigeria Run Better Without A Cabinet?-bbc by sdindan: 5:10pm On Aug 31, 2015 |
phyllosilicate:What you children of lair Mohammed don't understand is, Very soon the devil will sue you lairs. |
Re: Letter From Africa: Does Nigeria Run Better Without A Cabinet?-bbc by maajin007(m): 5:12pm On Aug 31, 2015 |
buhari will put everything in place.slow and steady 1 Like |
Re: Letter From Africa: Does Nigeria Run Better Without A Cabinet?-bbc by saintopus(m): 6:08pm On Aug 31, 2015 |
I feel Nigeria is a poor country. So long as the basic commodities in the market are still within reach. No wahala, high economics have nothing to do with a normal village life. But it will come to a time when things will collapse. The most affected will be bankers and SEC. |
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