Headlines
APC Political Appointees Must Resign Today or Risk Disqualification
Ministers affected by the presidential directive to resign after declaring their interest to contest in 2023 general elections have today to turn in their resignation letters inspite of President Muhammadu Buhari’s directive giving an ultimatum ending Monday, May 16.
This is because, in the adjusted schedule of activities and timetable of the All Progressives Congress (APC), today is the last day for submission of completed forms and accompanying documents, while screening of aspirants for all the offices is scheduled for Saturday and Sunday and the publication of screening results to be done on Monday.
It was gathered that members of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) with political aspirations may have to appear before the APC screening committee with copies of their letters of resignation and acknowledgement as part of the additional stipulations aspirants are expected to comply with.
Hours after the presidential directive, the Federal Government, yesterday, released detailed list of categories of political appointees who are expected to resign from their positions on or before Monday. The latest directive was contained in a circular with Ref.No.SGF/OP/I/S.3/XII/173, signed by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, and dated May 11.
According to the circular, the affected persons include all ministers, heads and members of extra-ministerial departments, agencies and parastatals of government, ambassadors, as well as other political appointees, who desire to contest for elective offices.
The SGF directed that the concerned ministers hand over to ministers of state where they exist or to the permanent secretary, where there is no minister of state, for smooth running of the machinery of government and foreign missions.
According to Mustapha, “Ambassadors shall hand over to their deputy heads of mission or the most senior foreign service officer in line with established practices while heads of extra-ministerial departments, agencies and parastatals are to hand over to the most senior director/officer as may be peculiar to the organisation, in line with the service wide Circular No. SGF.50/S. Il/C.2/268 of December 4, 2017. The contents of this circular and the incidental directives take effect immediately.”
Some of the ministers and heads of agencies, who have indicated interest in contesting election but yet to resign are: Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr Chris Ngige; Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi; Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva; Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami; Minister of State, Mines and Steel Development, Uche Ogar; and Minister of Women Affairs, Pauline Tallen.
Others are governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele; Director-General of the Nigerian Security Printing and Minting (NSPM), Abbas Masanawa; Director-General of Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency (SMEDAN), Dikko Umar Radda among others.
Amaechi was said to have resigned on Wednesday night. However, a tweet from his aide, Israel Ibeleme, debunked the report. When contacted yesterday, the aide said his boss was in the office yesterday (Thursday), but would drop his resignation today or tomorrow.
Speaking last night on Channels TV’s Politics Today, the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, said the law supports the position of President Buhari on resignation order of political appointees and it is with immediate effect.
He stated that the President’s directive came at the appropriate time, noting that there is need for those who have signified their intention to run for political offices to concentrate on their ambition, adding that it is important that work of governance does not suffer setbacks.
He said: “There is nothing as good as an idea whose time has come. The President made the announcement at the right time. The FEC meeting had been held and we were closing, when the president addressed the gathering that some were interested in running for the position of the President, and he said it is advisable that those who have collected forms tender their resignations.
“This is so that those who have signified their intention to run could concentrate on their ambition. If they are running their ministry and also running their political campaign, they can’t concentrate, so it was in their interest that the President said that. It is also in the interest of government so that governance will not suffer.
“There is also the legal angle, though it has not been fully determined yet, but we know that there is the danger of everything being voided if APC is not careful. There is a popular Section 84(12) of the Electoral Act. It is not fully determined now but what if the highest court in the land determines it and it ruins the party, so it’s safer to be on the side of caution.
“When a President speaks, he has the force of law behind it, the president doesn’t have to bark. I am sure nobody will wait to be beaten over this, it’s law already and has taken effect.”
The Guardian
By Eric Elezuo
The Presidency has announce that President Bola Tinubu will be departing Abuja to (Wednesday) for Paris, France, on a ‘short working visit’.
A statement to the effect, signed and released by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Mr. Bayo Onanuga, was however silent on the shape of international relationship the working visiting the president was embarking on will take, but noted that Tinubu will use the ‘retreat’ to review his administration’s mid-term performance and assess key milestones, as well as review progress of ongoing reforms.
While acknowledging that the president will spend ‘about a fortnight’ on the trip, the statement added he would supervise administration while away.
The statement in details
PRESIDENT TINUBU TO EMBARK ON WORKING VISIT TO PARIS
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu will depart for Paris, France, today on a short working visit.
During the visit, the President will appraise his administration’s mid-term performance and assess key milestones.
He will also use the retreat to review the progress of ongoing reforms and engage in strategic planning ahead of his administration’s second anniversary.
This period of reflection will inform plans to deepen ongoing reforms and accelerate national development priorities in the coming year.
Recent economic strides reinforce the President’s commitment to these efforts, as evidenced by the Central Bank of Nigeria reporting a significant increase in net foreign exchange reserves to $23.11 billion—a testament to the administration’s fiscal reforms since 2023 when net reserves were $3.99 billion.
While away, President Tinubu will remain fully engaged with his team and continue to oversee governance activities.
He will return to Nigeria in about a fortnight.
President Bola Tinubu has sacked the Group Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, NNPCL, Mele Kyari.
Tinubu also dissolved its board, removing the Chairman, Chief Pius Akinyelure.
Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on information and strategy, announced this in a statement on Wednesday.
Onanuga said Tinubu invoked his powers under section 59(2) of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021 to carry out the sweeping reconstitution, citing the need for “enhanced operational efficiency, restored investor confidence, and a more commercially viable NNPC”.
He announced that Tinubu has now approved a new 11-man board, which has Engineer Bashir Bayo Ojulari as the Group CEO and Ahmadu Musa Kida as non-executive chairman.
According to the statement, “Adedapo Segun, who replaced Umaru Isa Ajiya as the chief financial officer last November, has been appointed to the new board by President Tinubu.
“Six board members, non-executive directors, represent the country’s geopolitical zones. They are Bello Rabiu, North West, Yusuf Usman, North East, and Babs Omotowa, a former managing director of the Nigerian Liquified Natural Gas( NLNG), who represents North Central.
“President Tinubu appointed Austin Avuru as a non-executive director from the South-South, David Ige as a Non-executive director from the South West, and Henry Obih as a non-executive director from the South East.
“Mrs Lydia Shehu Jafiya, permanent secretary of the Federal Ministry of Finance, will represent the ministry on the new board, while Aminu Said Ahmed will represent the Ministry of Petroleum Resources.”
He added said that all the appointments are effective today, April 2.
President Donald Trump claimed on Monday that Americans want him to run for another term, a step banned by the US constitution but which he continues describing as possible.
“People are asking me to run,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office when asked about the possibility of a third term.
“I don’t know. I never looked into it. They do say there’s a way you can do it, but I don’t know about that, but I have not looked into it,” Trump said.
Trump was asked about the prospect of a race pitting him against former president Barack Obama, who served two terms.
“That would be a good one, I’d like that,” Trump said.
“I’m not joking” about the idea of seeking a third term, Trump said Sunday in an interview with NBC News.
The 78-year-old Republican served from 2017 to 2021 and began his second term in the White House on January 20.
The first US president, George Washington, established a tradition by not seeking a third term after completing his second one in 1797.
But this tradition was not formally added to the US constitution until after World War II, with the ratification of the 22nd amendment in 1951.
It says no one can be elected president more than two times.
