Beyond the minor cabinet reshuffle

IN April, President Bola Tinubu effected some changes in his cabinet. He replaced the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr. Wale Edun, with the erstwhile Minister of State in the ministry, Taiwo Oyedele. Also sent packing was the Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Ahmed Dangiwa. A statement by the Special Adviser, Media and Publicity to the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Yomi Odunuga, indicated that the development was contained in a memo signed by George Akume, the SGF. The memo also indicated that Dr. Muttaqha Darma had been named the Minister for Housing and Urban Development in place of Dangiwa, pending confirmation by the Senate. Dr. Darma has since assumed duties after his confirmation by the Senate.

Not a few Nigerians expected news of cabinet changes at the time it was released by Akume. Suffice, however, to say that the news did not go deep enough for many. Nigerians had expected the exit of Mr. Wale Edun, who was reported sick and flown abroad for medical attention earlier in the year. Government insiders had indicated that a search for his replacement had been ignited from very early this year. The fact that the changes affected only the duo of Edun and Dangiwa means that the massive changes Nigerians are expecting still remain in the pipeline for now. For an administration that is set to celebrate its third anniversary, no one can blame the people if they start getting impatient with unsatisfactory service delivery. The essence of democracy is the dividends it guarantees, If, in nearly 36 months of a 48-month tenure, the much-needed democracy dividends remain elusive through some government appointees, doing away with such persons may not be a bad idea, after all.

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There were conflicting reports as to what exactly happened to the ministers. While some reports indicated that they were sacked, the Presidency said that they resigned their appointments. Whatever truly happened, changes have been made, and it is ordinarily expected that those changes will energise the performance rating of the administration and enable satisfactory delivery of the much-talked-about democracy dividends. While we commend President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for finding the courage to relieve a close ally like Edun of his duties and also sacking a Minister of Housing whom many could not link to any housing initiatives in more than two years, we state that the changes are only a drop in the ocean. For an administration whose officials have always touted as having Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) tailor-made for every sector of Nigeria’s socioeconomic life, data should have been provided to vindicate performing ministers and expose non-performing hands, who would then have been shown the exit door.

For instance, it is a thing of surprise that the Presidency, which had been at the receiving end of Edun’s failure to manage the capital votes of the 2024 and 2025 budgets, leading to the government operating a difficult-to-imagine three-in-one budget, said nothing about his lackluster performance. The same is true of the Minister of Housing, whose poor performance was accentuated by the zero visibility he enjoyed while in office. It was also shocking to many Nigerians that the immediate past Minister of Power, whose tenure coincided with the worst incidence of grid collapse in the country, with attendant blackouts across the country, was allowed to retain his portfolio for as long as he wished.

Though having more hands could enhance effectiveness, the portfolios have not been justified by Tinubu’s ministers, who happen to be the largest assemblage in the history of the country. The top performers can actually be counted on the fingers. The case of the removed Minister of Housing is instructive. How many Nigerians even remembered that the country had a Minister of Housing all this while? This is actually true of many of his colleagues who only went mute after the mass confirmation by the Senate. If it is true that the administration maintains a KPI on its appointees, it has a bounden duty to make such a report public or use it as a tool to rejig governance. While those who have performed below expectation should be shown the way out, those who have engineered initiatives that oiled the wheel of governance in the right direction should be celebrated.

Public service is about the people. It is not an avenue to showcase fashion sense or any such inanities. Indeed, governance is fashioned as an avenue to polish the human capacity. Citizens are not expected to perpetually live in conditions that promote deprivation but in environments that continue to get better. It is only through effective service delivery by government officials and constant rejig of government systems that Nigerians can achieve the good life they so much desire. The Tinubu administration should satisfy their yearnings through quality service delivery by members of his cabinet.