- State chairmen, scribes demand slots for loyal party members only
- Charge President to consult leaders at state level before appointments
- Akwa Ibom seeks two ministerial slots as Edo meets over nomination
Competence, integrity, credibility and commitment to the ideals of the All Progressives Congress (APC) are some of the core values leaders of the party in the states expect President Muhammadu Buhari to consider in picking the members of his next cabinet.
The party leaders, made up mainly of state chairmen and secretaries, told The Nation in separate interviews that the new cabinet should have no place for people who do not share the aspirations of the President for Nigeria and Nigerians, neither should it feature people who have no strong sense of character.
The Kwara State chairman of the APC, Mr. Bashir Bolarinwa, urged Buhari to consult with party leaders at the state level in picking his men and women.
He also said that those being considered for ministerial appointments should be armed with a letter of recommendation from the state chapters of the party.
Bolarinwa, a former member of the House of Representatives, said: “I wish the President well. But I still feel that even if he has some people in mind across the states, there is nothing wrong with him asking them to go back to their states and get recommendation letters from the party.
“It is important that the party is also allowed to be part of the decision making process.
“I feel that it is important that the President makes some consultations. That is still a way of making the party relevant.
“Of course, he is the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, but the votes that made him President were garnered from all the 36 states of the federation, including the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), and all the votes were added together for him to win the elections.
“For that reason, I think the party should be allowed to have some kind of say.
“But if you ask me, in a state like Kwara where I am the chairman of APC, if somebody like the former Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, is still interested, I think I will recommend him. Because the victory we are enjoying in this state today, he was a pillar.
“He was at the centre of the victory. He played a very significant role. I am saying this as the chairman of the ruling party and I am saying this as somebody who was at the centre of it and who actually knew all that happened.
“We should not forget that the victory that we lay claim to today in this state started with Alhaji Lai Mohammed’s federal constituency, because the bye-election we had in November last year served as an impetus and morale booster for party members and people of the state.
“That was when a lot of people in the state who were sitting on the fence and who did not give us a chance realised that truly, it was possible for APC to win elections in the state.”
Rivers APC: track record of appointees is key
The Rivers State chapter of the APC says appointment of ministers should be based on the track record and loyalty of nominees.
The Publicity Secretary of the party, Chief Chris Finebone, asked President Buhari not to change “what is working.”
“For us in the Rivers State chapter of the APC, we believe that nomination and appointment/reappointment into the cabinet of President Buhari should be based on track record, loyalty, equity, fairness and justice,” he said.
“We believe that our leader, Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, brought a new vista to the transportation ministry, such that there is no contention today that the Buhari administration can hold its head high and lay claim to initiating a revolution in the sector, especially railway transportation.
“The least the President can do should be not to change what is working. Amaechi has achieved the mastery of the transportation sector. Nigeria and Nigerians stand to gain from the verve and energy he (Amaechi) breathes into the sector.
“Definitely, if returned to that position, we all shall benefit from the wealth of experience, energy and performance of the former Governor of Rivers State.
“It is not proper to discuss publicly the interaction between the leader of the party and President of the nation with the party, except when considered necessary.
“In this case, it is highly unnecessary to discuss whether we have or are interacting with President Buhari on the ministerial nomination process.
“Such interactions always happen, but they are not for the consumption of the public.”
Integrity, strength of character should count —Cross River APC
Mr. Bassey Ita, the Publicity Secretary APC in Cross River State, said: “The President has always said “integrity counts and I think that is his body language and his character and position about what his government should look like.”
Ita added: “Considering he came out of a quagmire that had to do with governance for over 16 years when we had the major opposition party in the country having been in government and having failed in almost all spheres of governance, this time he needed to emphasize integrity.
“He had it right to say that those who make his cabinet would have it right in terms of integrity and sincerity of purpose and the political will to deliver along with him. He has set the example of integrity and political will to fix Nigeria. That is the issue.
“The President cannot be looking in a different direction. As he looks to constitute his cabinet, he has to be looking for integrity.
“He cannot be stressing integrity and his cabinet is looking elsewhere. All of them have to go together. He must be surrounded by people of integrity.
“At the level of the national leadership of the party, there is a strong collaboration within the Presidency to come up with a structure that would give Nigerians what it deserves. That consultation is strongly on the front burner.
“We are sure he will announce his cabinet from amongst members of the party in the states who have all of the characteristics that he would naturally want to appoint someone into his cabinet.
“We have a lot of members of the APC in the state who are competent, committed, have a sense of integrity and strong sense of character. “
Proven integrity should be paramount —Adamawa APC
For the Adamawa State Chapter of the APC, the President should look out for people with proven integrity and capacity to deliver.
According to the spokesman of the party in the state, Mohammed Abdullahi, Buhari should go for people of “proven integrity who have the interest of Nigerians at heart.
“They should also have the capacity to contribute their part effectively in the party’s endeavour to implement its next level agenda.
“They should be party men who will project the ideals of the party and be true ambassadors of the party and the President.
“They will be representing the President in their various ministries and should therefore possess all they will require to project all the honesty and steadfastness that the President is known for.
“We have more than enough party members who fit the bill and who could therefore effectively make the cabinet.”
Abdullahi said that for now, the state chapter has not been contacted to make an input into the constitution of the next federal cabinet.
What we expect of Buhari in choosing ministers, by Oyo APC
The Oyo State chapter of the APC said there should be no room whatsoever “for ministers who will start learning on the job, given the magnitude of work before the APC government at the federal level at present.”
Its Director of Publicity, Dr Azeez Olatunde, said: “What we believe that President Buhari should consider is that the change for which the APC was ushered in has not been fully met given the fact that we are our own enemy, courtesy of the Eighth National Assembly which turned itself into opposition.
“We feel that we have lost good grounds in meeting the yearnings of the people. As a result, the 2019 mandate is like a kind of respite to cover the lost grounds in the first tenure.
“By virtue of this, the President will need very experienced and seasoned personnel with a lot of accomplishments they can call on. This is because right now, we have a huge security challenge which has to be tackled immediately.
“Two, there can’t be any development without constant power supply. Three, we challenged ourselves as a government and nation to produce what we eat but insecurity on farmlands has hindered that somehow. So, it has to be tackled headlong.
“These call for people that are experienced and who have the wherewithal for the immediate need of Nigeria. We don’t have time for people that will start learning on the job. We need people who will hit the ground running immediately they are sworn in.
“The patience of Nigerians can’t be tasked for too long. We will soon be in another election campaign. So we need a lot of accomplishments in the first two years. Roads, rails, power and agriculture have to be fixed along with insecurity and spiral unemployment. That is what will cast the APC in a better reputation.”
We prefer a party man from Abia
The Abia State Chairman of APC, Mr. Donatus Nwankpa, said while the President is free to pick whoever he wants as minister, APC members in the state will prefer that he goes for a party member.
His words: “The appointment of ministers is the exclusive rights of the President. What I like may not be what the President will like.
“And the President being a man and leader who believes in hard work, we know he has his own criteria and we are all looking forward that the President will definitely make the best decision for Abia.
“The President is a member of a party and one of the constitutional qualifications is that for you to be a minister, you must be qualified to be a member of the National Assembly. For you to be a member of the National Assembly, you must be a member of a political party.
“For you to be a commissioner, you must be a member of the state Assembly, and for you to be a member of the State Assembly, you must be a member of a political party.
“The appointment of people who were not members of APC by the President must have been as a result of the exigencies of the moment which may have given rise to the situation. But right now, Mr. President knows what to do.
“I don’t want to pre-empt the President. We don’t also want to dictate to him. We don’t also want to prejudice or create some level of sentiments, but what we know is that Abia APC is looking up to the President for encouragement.
“The most important thing to us is that we want to build a party that will produce the governor of Abia State come 2023. So, if he brings a minister that is committed to that effort, it will be to our best interest, but if he brings a minister that doesn’t have the interest of the party at heart, it is going to be catastrophic.
“Everybody in the party is qualified to be a minister, so long as they have the requirements according to the constitutional provisions, ministerial appointment is not the exclusive right of any individual.”
Buhari should carry party along -Imo APC
All Progressives Congress (APC) stakeholders in Imo State want the President Muhammdu Buhari to give all the six geo political zones a sense of belonging by forming a government of inclusiveness.
Besides, the President should carry the party along in constituting his cabinet.
Party chairman, Mr. Daniel Nwafor, told The Nation that sidelining the party would end up discouraging members.
“Mr. President should not allow the process to be hijacked in the states by those that are not members of the party but should allow the party leaders in the different states to have input on who will be nominated from their state”.
Another party chief, Hon Declan Emelumba, said: “The President should appoint people who have followership and who will not betray the party. He should also ensure that those he will appoint are those that will carry the party members in their respective states along.”
A former woman leader in the party, Mrs. Mma Ijezie, urged the President to include more women in the cabinet and to also bypass godfathers in reaching his decisions.”
In her words, “the major problem has always been the godfathers who foist their choices on the Federal Government without consulting with the party faithful and this has often resulted in situations where total strangers to the party are rewarded at the detriment of party faithful.”
Edo APC to meet on ministerial nomination
The All Progressives Congress in Edo State plans to meet soon for the purpose of considering possible nominees for ministerial appointment from the state.
The State Chairman of the APC, Barr. Anselm Ojezua, said though it was yet to be asked to do so, it would meet as soon as Abuja asks for nomination from the state.
But Ojezua noted that President Mohammadu Buhari would decide what he wants.
Taraba APC beats others to nomination, forwards names to Abuja
The Nation gathered in Jalingo that the Taraba State chapter of the APC has already dispatched to the Abuja National Secretariat of the party a list of nominees for appointment as minister.
Spokesman for the APC in Taraba, Aaron Artimas also said APC leaders in the state have been holding talks with the party hierarchy in Abuja on the matter.
“The party (APC) has submitted a list which has the names of those who have been working for the party, especially those who worked for the president and the party during the 2019 general election,” Artimas said.
“The list is not just for ministerial appointments. The names may be considered for other positions such as ambassador, adviser, Senior Special Assistant and board member, among other posts.
“On which criteria the president should consider in his ministerial nomination, I have nothing to advise him. Apart from the fact that the president will pick nominees on the basis of merit.
“He, being the boss, is free to appoint any person from any state for any position,” Artimas said.
Enugu APC: ‘we can’t afford to have ‘outsiders’ as ministers this time around
Enugu state chairman of APC, Dr. Ben Nwoye advised President Muhammadu Buhari to shun the temptation of appointing outsiders into his next cabinet.
Nwoye said those to be appointed as ministers must be strictly committed party members.
He said the president should consider those who sacrificed in promoting the party.
Nwoye said: “We have within the APC, technocrats and administrators who committed their time and resources and sacrificed a lot to promote the party. The president should look towards that direction.
“He should not make the mistake of the past where all sorts of people who do not know much about APC were appointed.
“It is one of the reasons the party could not make a headway in the Southeast particularly Enugu. It gave rise to rancour and misgivings.”
Nwoye was also of the opinion that the party should be carried along in choosing appointees as they (the chairmen) were not being consulted before making appointments from their respective states, particularly the non-APC states.
New ministers should be able to deliver dividends of democracy —Benue APC chairman
The chairman of All Progressive Congress (APC) Benue state chapter, Comrade Abba Yaro is of the view that only those who can deliver the dividends of democracy should make it into the next federal cabinet.
A’Ibom APC demands two ministerial slots
The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Akwa Ibom expects President Buhari to give two ministerial slots to the state because of its vast contribution to the national purse.
Mr. Etim Etim, a member of the APC media team said Akwa Ibom needs the two ministers from the state as one will represent the state statutorily while the other will fill the slot of the South-South region.
But Etim said the state working committee (SWC) of the party is insisting that one of the ministers to be appointed from the state must be a core politician who is in tune with the interest of the party.
He said: ”As far as Akwa Ibom is concerned we have a stake in the Nigerian project. It won’t be out of place if the party here writes to make some demands one of which we need two ministers from the state as it was during the administration of Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, Late Umaru Musa Yar’Adua and Ex-President Goodluck Jonathan.” (The Nation)
