No way can coordinator function with full powers of president ―Afenifere

Pan-Yoruba socio-political group, Afenifere, said on Wednesday appeared not to be surprised by the outburst of Minister of information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, that the FEC is yet to conclude on who to sign the 2017 Budget proposals into law in the absence of President Muhammadu Buhari, declaring that there was no way a coordinator could function with full powers of a president.

The president is out of the country currently for medical treatment.

Afenifere in its reaction said there was no way a coordinator can function as Acting President with the full powers of the President, contending that Nigeria had a coordinator who was not an Acting President if the Minister of Information, Mohammed could tell the whole nation that they were not yet sure who would sign the budget into law.

Spokesperson of the group, Mr. Yinka Odumakin, said this while speaking with Tribune Online on phone, pointing out that the situation suggested that Nigeria was currently “rudderless” and showing that power had been deregulated.

“Well, when you say somebody is a coordinator, it means there are many people of equal authorities. He (Acting President) is just a premier inter peres. He is one among equals, so maybe they want to decide which of the coordinators would sign the budget. I think people are now beginning to get the full imports of that insertion, ‘he shall coordinate the activities of government while I am away,’” Odumakin said.

“If Section 145 of the Constitution had been complied with, there is no way a coordinator could have been mentioned, a coordinator is not the same thing with the Acting President with the full powers of the President. So if ‘your’ Minister of Information can tell you that there is an Acting President but they don’t know who would sign the budget, that tells you have a coordinator who is not an Acting President,” he added.

To further highlight that Afenifere was least surprised or shocked by the outburst from the Information Minister on the non- signing of the budget, the group recalled that even the Ministers- designate who had passed Senate screening were still there two weeks after and were yet to be sworn in.

“Of course, the Ministers designate who have passed screening are still there two weeks after and have not been sworn in. So it is clear that that insertion, ‘coordinator,’ has changed the whole equation, and the full authority of the President is on suspension at the moment.”

“The VP has said that the President is treating him as his son, maybe they have to have a father and son talk, so that he can have the authority to function well until the father returns.”

“It means the country is rudderless. So if you say an Acting President cannot sign a budget, so if there is a war at our border tomorrow night, does he have the authority to order the military to go and fight? It shows that power is deregulated in the country,” the Afenifere said.