Quota system collapses as Northern Mafia takes control
Idowu Samuel, Abuja
Saturday, January 17, 2009
The burning desire by the founding father of Nigeria to forge a lasting unity for the country appears to have been subjected to progressive frustration now, against the background imposition of Northern agenda on the rest of the country by the government of Prsesident Umaru yar'Adua.






Indications are rife that the Yar’Adua government has opted to implement the Northern agenda crafted in the advent of democracy in 1999 and presented in form of a pact to be signed by first President of the Fourth Republic, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo as a guiding principle.

Survey conducted by Saturday Tribune on power distribution at the moment, indicated that the Yar’Adua government had been demonstrating lack of respect for the principles of federal character and balancing of power among the ethnic groups in Nigeria given its predilection for slanting the distribution of federal appointments heavily in favour of the North.

While the principle of Federal Character requires a balanced distribution of national opportunities among the ethnic groups in the country such that all the states of the federation should have equal representation in the federal cabinet, the appointments so far made by President Yar’Adua has rubbished such principle.

An overview of the composition of the Cabinet of President Yar’Adua has revealed that Kano, Kaduna, Niger, Kebbi and Adamawa States have started assuming the status of super states since each of them has been offered two slots in the federal cabinet at the expense of the other states of the federation, contrary to the principle of federal character and quota system.

This is coming as Kogi State has no representation in the cabinet since a year ago when its representative, Gabriel Adukwu, resigned as Minister of State for Health in the light of a N300 million scandal that rocked the ministry early in 2008.

Findings by Saturday Tribune have revealed that President Yar’Adua has gleefully relinquished all the ministries rated as super to the North and indeed, the core North, in the fulfillment of the Northern agenda being touted all along by the northern intelligentsia.

The nature of the cabinet composition including other appointments made by the president for federal government agencies and parastatals has indicated that the present government has destroyed the balanced equation in power distribution which the past government headed by Chief Olusegun Obasanjo put in place.

Shortly after Obasanjo won the presidential election in 1999, he was approached by some northern elders led by the then Chairman of Arewa Peoples Consultative Forum, Chief Sunday Awoniyi, with intent to arm-twist him to sign a pact for the purpose of promoting a northern agenda on resumption of office as President.

As revealed, the agenda presented to him at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Abuja under the watchful eyes of not less than 10 northern elders, specifically stated that Obasanjo should not bother to appoint anyone outside the north to head certain red-neck ministries and parastatals marked as critical to the interest of the north if he was to have peace in ruling Nigeria as President. The threats notwithstanding, Obasanjo refused to sign the pact.

The ministries listed for Obasanjo in a sheet of paper include Agriculture, Industry (because of NAFCON Superphosphate, Kaduna), Finance, Defence, Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Internal Affairs (with links to the Nigerian Customs Services), Power and Petroleum, a source who was part of the meeting revealed to Saturday Tribune.

Following consistent pressure, the then President had to concede the Ministry of Defence, Finance, Agriculture, FCT and Industry to the North by appointing General Theophileus Danjuma, Mallam Adamu Ciroma, Alhaji Sani Zango Daura and Alhaji Ibrahim Bunu, and Iyeorcha Ayu respectively as compromise ministers.

According to reports, Obasanjo in refusing to align with the northern agenda stressed that the country’s unity would seriously undermined in the event of other ethnic groups sending their own pressure groups such as Afenifere, Ohaneze Ndigbo, Egbesu and others to recognize their own agenda too.

From indications, the reality now is that all the super ministries marked as the exclusive preserve of the north have been yielded completely to the north by the government of Yar’Adua, not minding the feelings of the other ethnic groups in the country.

The core ministries now in the firm grip of the north include Finance, National Planning Commission, Petroleum, Defence, Agriculture, Transport, Works and Housing and FCT, with Dr. Mansur Muhtar (Kano), Shamshudeen Usman (Kano), Rilwanu Lukeman (Kaduna), Dr. Shettima Mustapha (Borno), Abba Ruma Sayyadi (Katsina), Ibrahim Bio (Niger), Dr Hassan M Lawal (Nasarawa) and Adamu Ailero (Kebbi) as ministers.

Other ministries exclusively reserved for the North by the Yar’Adua government include Justice, Culture and Tourism, Education (Minister of State), Foreign Affairs with two Ministers of State, Health (Minister of State), Information and Communication (Minster of State), Police Affairs, Power, Science and Technology, Sports, Women Affairs and Special Duties.

The ministers are Michael Aondoakaa (Benue) Senator Bello Gada (Sokoto) Hajia Aishatu Dukku (Gombe), Alhaji Jibril Maigari (Yobe) Ambassador Bagudu Hirse (Plateau), Dr. Idi Hong (Adamawa), Alhaji Aliyu Ikra Bilbis, Dr. I Y Lame (Bauchi), Nuhu Wya (Kaduna), Dr. A B Zaku (Niger), Engr S M Ndanusa (Niger), Mrs H S Sulaiman and Ambassador A Kazaure respectively.

It is glaring that 22 out of about 40 ministers that now constitute the cabinet of President Yar’Adua are from the North, the remaining 18 portfolios being left for the rest of the country to share.

The North under the Yar’Adua government also controls the office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation headed by Alhaji Yayale Ahmed (Bauchi) and that of the National Security Adviser headed by Major General Sarki Muktar.

The Economic Adviser to the President, Alhaji Tanimu Yakubu hails from Katsina State even as the newly appointed Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Mr Muhammed Sanusi Barkindo, is also a northerner.

For many years, the Nigerian Customs Service has been under the full control of the North whereas the just retired Comptroller General, Alhaji Hamman Ahmed, hails from Adamawa.

In the present administration, the North is also in control of the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) with Alhaji Sabo Brini as the head, just as the north keeps holding tight to the Petroleum Technology Development Fund (PTDF) with Engineer Rabe Garma as the head.

The Nigerian Port Authority (NPA) is headed by a northerner, while Engr. Sulaiman Bello who was removed from office by the past civilian administration has now found his way back to the office as the Vice Chairman of Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN).
http://odili.net/news/source/2009/jan/17/601.html