Since his appointment as the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume has shown that he has the experience to help President Bola Tinubu achieve the ‘Renewed Hope Agenda.’
He has shown capacity for the smooth running of affairs in the Presidential Villa in the first 100 days of the administration.
Akume’s organisational capacity, which was mainly visible during the inauguration of 45 ministers last month, is a testament to his professionalism.
He ensured that the swearing-in was well organised, to the point that many observers and even critics of the administration described it as seamless.
The organisation was world-class, which is an indication of the man, Akume. Even his coordination of President Tinubu’s activities in and out of the country in the first 100 days of the administration is top-notch.
Even Vice President Kashim Shettima has praised Akume for his political sagacity. He described the SGF as a politician who is worthy of being emulated by other political officeholders. Speaking at a reception to celebrate the appointment of Akume as the SGF, Shettima described him as a beacon of unity, loyalty, and integrity in the country.
Akume’s appointment presents an opportunity for him to contribute to strategies aimed at addressing insurgency, banditry, and communal conflicts, fostering peace, and ensuring the safety of all Nigerians.
The appointment is a significant step towards effective governance and socio-economic development in Nigeria, recognition of the support and long-standing agitation of the people of North Central Nigeria, and reward for their electoral support.
Akume, during his inauguration in June, said, “It is an honour to be chosen to serve in this exalted position out of over 200 million Nigerians. It is a challenge to serve in line with the oaths I have taken today. I assure Nigerians that I will do my best and that I will not disappoint the President. I will not disappoint this country; I will not disappoint my party. I believe Nigerians will find fulfilment in my responsibility as I discharge my duties.”
Traditionally, the role of the SGF has been crucial, as it serves as the coordinating link between the presidency, ministries, departments, and agencies of the government. That office is also saddled with the responsibility of facilitating effective coordination among the different arms of government. SGF is one of the most influential offices in the federal government’s leadership organisation.
Apart from being the secretary to the Federal Executive Council, chaired by the President himself, the SGF heads many government agencies and commissions and runs supervisory roles on all the organs of the federal government and leadership.
Akume, a native of Guma, Benue State, in the North Central geopolitical zone, was said to have come at a crucial time when Nigeria needs capable leaders to navigate the challenges faced by the nation. Apart from rising to the pinnacle of his career as an astute politician, Akume has been a close ally of President Tinubu.
Both of them were in the Upper Chamber, whose tenure was abruptly ended by a coup d’etat led by the late General Sani Abacha. It is on record that Tinubu, alongside others at the time, championed the restoration of democracy in Nigeria through the instrumentality of the defunct National Democratic Coalition (NADECO).
Upon the return of democracy in the country in 1999, the President joined a conservative liberal Pan-African party that was called the Alliance for Democracy, AD.
Consequently, he was elected governor of Lagos, and due to his superlative performance, he was reelected in 2003, and he completed his maximum constitutionally allowed two terms of four years in 2007. Despite leaving the Alausa House, the Jagaban continued to build bridges to cooperation, understanding, and, above all, progressive ideologies that were orchestrated to move Nigeria forward.
This culminated in the formation of the Action Congress (AC), which transmogrified into the Action Congress of Nigeria (CAN). In 2011, the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria (CAN) became a force to reckon with in Nigeria.
Many progressive ideologues in Nigeria embraced it. In north-central Nigeria, one of the proponents of this progressive ideology was Akume. It was on this platform that he was elected a senator for the second time as a member of the seventh Senate.
He was also made the Senate minority leader, a position he held till he became a minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. In Benue State, where Senator Akume hails, in 2011, he not only delivered his senatorial district to the ACN, but through his influence, the party won many seats in the House of Representatives and Benue State House of Assembly. By this time, he was not only the leader of the party in Benue State but also in north-central Nigeria.
In 2013, Senator George Akume was one of those who sacrificed their ambition to join hands with the immediate past president, Muhammadu Buhari, and the incumbent president to form the All Progressives Congress, APC, a merger that is seen by many as the best political decision ever taken in the political sphere of Nigeria.
It was this merger that gloriously wrestled power away from the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) after 16 years, beginning from 1999 to 2015.
While the party won at the centre, Senator Akume was reelected for a third term. In addition, Akume delivered Benue State to the APC. Out of the three senatorial districts in Benue, APC won two, and out of the 11 House of Representatives seats, APC won seven.
Out of the 30 constituencies of the Benue State House of Assembly, the party won the majority of seats. Even in the face of daunting challenges, Senator Akume continued to provide the leadership needed to keep the party intact, especially in Benue.
Even after the party lost some positions in the state in 2019, Akume was not deterred, as he gathered the remnants and painstakingly built them into a virile opposition that has never been experienced in Benue State, as evident in the just concluded election in 2023.
The APC reclaimed its governorship position through Rev. Fr. Hyacinth Iormem Alia, who won the election by a landslide. The party also won two senatorial districts, ten seats out of the 11 House of Representatives seats, and 21 seats out of the now 32-member Benue State House of Assembly. Apart from the excellent state result in favour of the APC, Benue State, also through the influence of Senator George Akume, gave Asiwaju Ahmed Bola Tinubu more votes than any political party during the presidential election.
Akume, an alumnus of Nigeria’s premier university, the University of Ibadan, has demonstrated camaraderie with the president by providing the desired support to nurture, shape, and advance progressive politics in Nigeria. Akume, who since 2019 has been a minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in charge of Special Duties and Intergovernmental Affairs, has unambiguously demonstrated that he is a team player, reliable, and has consistently had his eyes fixed on moving Nigeria forward through progressive politics.
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