Some Nigerians, especially members of the governing All Progressives (APC), political associates and cronies of those close to the new administration, have started intense lobby to secure Board appointments for positions that would become vacant any moment from now.
This followed reports that board appointees of former President Muhammadu Buhari will be replaced by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
The motive behind this comprehensive restructuring is said to be the harmonisation of government’s direction in the Renewed Hope agenda of President Tinubu.
It was gathered that several overtures are also being made to President Tinubu’s men by some serving members of the boards to be reappointed.
A top presidency source also hinted that there had been frantic consultations and fearless discussions within government circle over the distribution of appointments to supporters and stakeholders who have been scrambling to be recruited in the Tinubu administration.
LEADERSHIP gathered that the jostle for appointments into different Boards of federal government agencies and parastatals gathered momentum hours after reports suggesting the disolution of the boards, with individuals and various interest groups viying for key positions.
The office of the secretary to government of the federation (OSGF) however feigned ignorance of the development despite being a pivotal entity involved in the decision-making process.
While the OSGF has chosen to remain aloof from the ongoing maneuvers, observers closely monitoring the situation said they anticipate a series of political realignments and power shifts as the lobbying begins.
The competition for the board appointments is expected to shape the future direction of Nigeria’s governance and influence its policies in the coming years.
A breakdown of figures of former President Buhari’s appointments of heads of parastatals and agencies reveals interesting patterns and distribution of the boards across the country, with the North having 289 slots, a slightly higher number of appointments compared to the South with 278.
LEADERSHIP confirmed yesterday that President Tinubu is set to announce the heads of agencies and parastatals.
The announcement, it was learnt, will also lead to the dissolution of board appointments made by the former president, including those of boards of federal government agencies and parastatals.
Sources told our correspondent that the list of the appointees have been compiled to man the various boards of the agencies and parastatals.
It was gathered that an approval has been given to secretary to government of the federation (SGF), George Akume to proceed with the selection process.
“The list has been compiled. All those manning these agencies will have to give way for Tinubu’s team.
“The president is set to make radical changes because he knows that every performance of any public officer will be attributed to him and the list is almost ready for announcement through the office of the SGF,” one of the sources who did not want his name innprint said said.
Responding to the rumoured moves by President Tinubu to dissolve Boards of Parastatals and agencies, the executive director of a Civil Society Organisation, Committee for Protection of Peoples Mandate (CPPM), Nelson Ekujumi, said if the boards as currently constituted cannot deliver in line with the mantra of his administration, the president is free to dissolve the boards.
He said, “The move by the president to dissolve boards of government parastatals and agencies, whether rumoured or not, must be in line with the mantra of his administration. Don’t forget that those boards, parastatals and agencies are the vehicle through which he will achieve his manifestoes for the country.
‘’It is apt for him to reconstitute and overhaul the vehicle through which he wants to arrive at his destination. If he feels the boards and agencies will not move at the pace he wants, that they will not work in tandem with the mantra of his administration, he can dissolve it.
‘’People need to be educated on the ethos and workings of government, they need to know the rationale for such moves, so that they know the reasons behind such actions. For President Bola Tinubu, if he wants to achieve anything within the security circle, he must work with the security agencies and if he feels that the nation’s security architecture, as it is currently constituted cannot key into his vision in line with his constitutional responsibilities to reconstitute them, he can as long as he is not violating the nation’s constitution.
‘’To me his decision to dissolve and reconstitute the various boards is apt and timely so that he can achieve his plans and manifesto for the country.’’
