Don’t run parallel govt, FG tells Buhari

The federal government yesterday asked the president-elect, General Muhammadu Buhari, not to form a parallel government.
The government made the demand at the end of the weekly cabinet meeting presided by President Goodluck Jonathan at the Aso Rock Villa in Abuja.
Briefing State House journalists Minister of National Planning Abubakar Sulaiman said the government felt that Buhari’s transition committee’s terms of reference was aimed at stampeding the administration.
He said the cabinet maintained that Jonathan remained the president and warned that the incoming government should avoid creating a parallel government.
“We did receive from the incoming government’s transition committee some terms of reference which we looked at critically.
“And the council did agree that Dr Goodluck Ebele Jonathan remains the current president of this country.
“The incoming government should avoid creating a parallel government while the (Jonathan’s) government is still on.
“We take exceptions to some utterances, to some of the terms of reference that look as if the current government is being stampeded or intimidated.”
The minister declined to say what aspect of Buhari committee’s terms of reference the government frowned at. He asked journalists to go and find out.
Buhari’s committee is among others “saddled with reviewing and making preliminary assessment of the balance sheet of government with particular emphasis on the status of assets and liabilities of government.”
President Jonathan set up his own transition committee over two weeks ago, and council members were advised yesterday to work in line with the terms of reference given to them.
“The council members were also told that the terms of reference, as formatted by our transition committee, should be strictly complied with. “When the incoming government takes over government, they can come out with their programmes, they can come out with their own agenda, they can decide to come out with policies the way they feel like.”
Sulaiman put the progress of work of the federal government’s transition committee at 80 percent, saying most of the ministries, departments and agencies had submitted their handover notes.
He said as of Tuesday almost all the MDAs had submitted briefs and handover notes except for one or two ministries.
“The committee is having on ground right now, two versions of presentations; we’ve the executive summaries of all the MDAs handover notes and the entire handover notes from almost all the MDAs.”
The cabinet warned that the president’s magnanimity should not be taken as cowardice and that he remained the president till May 29 when Buhari would be formally sworn in.
“The magnanimity of Mr. President should not be taken to be cowardice and that is why Mr. President and indeed, council members enjoined Nigerians to see the olive branch extended to Nigerians and international community as a way of keeping this country intact, as a way of ensuring peace in Nigeria and as such, whatever the outcome of the election, what is important is Nigeria’s national interest. And that national interest should be protected, enhanced and promoted at whatever level we are,” he said.
Sulaiman further disclosed that Jonathan enjoined ministers to come up with projects and programmes that needed to be commissioned.
The minister, however, noted that Jonathan and Buhari’s transition committees had a robust discussion on Tuesday.
“I want to tell you that as at yesterday (Tuesday), the chairman of the incoming government’s transition committee, Mallam Ahmed Joda, conferred with the chairman of the transition committee of the current government, Vice President Namadi Sambo.
“They had a very robust discussion and they’re working together as a family, and I want to believe for the good of this country, things will work”, he said.