Tinubu’s Cabinet: Presidency breaks silence

The Presidency has said President Bola Tinubu will release the list of his ministerial nominees when he is ready.

In line with the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution, which mandates presidents and governors to submit the names of their ministerial and commissioner-nominees within 60 days of taking the oath of office, Tinubu, who assumed office on May 29, 2023, has less than one month to unveil his cabinet.

However, there have been reports on some persons that will make the list.

In stories by different national dailies, some names have been mentioned as those being considered by Tinubu.

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Tokubo Abiru, senator representing Lagos East, and Prof Ali Pate, former Minister of Health, who declined a top global job, have been reported as Tinubu’s ministerial nominees.

According to reports, Abiru, former CEO of Polaris Bank, has been penciled down as next Finance Minister, while Pate has been nominated for the Health portfolio.

But addressing State House correspondents on Thursday, Dele Alake, Presidential spokesman, described such reports as “mere fabrications”.

“About the ministerial list, the simple truth is that, you know, this is an executive presidency, we’re not running a parliamentary system.”

“So the president, the bucks stops on his table, and he decides when it is fit and proper for him to make his cabinet list public.

“So, we are not unaware of all the speculations, and innuendos and rumours, all kinds of things in the media. Now, I as a media man, I chuckled to myself that people just want to sell, so they just fabricate.

“I can tell you all of those things you’ve been reading in the media are mere fabrications. There is no iota of truth in all of those things. When the president is good and ready, you will be the first to know about his intentions.”

Before Tinubu took office, Alake, who was part of his strategic team had said a month was enough for Tinubu to form his cabinet.

“It didn’t take Asiwaju more than three weeks to form his cabinet as governor. That was at that time. I think 60 days is even too much. A month, maximum, is enough for any serious government to form its cabinet and put a structure of government in place after the swearing-in,” he had said.

Also, the then Director of Media and Publicity for the All Progressives Congress Presidential Campaign Council, Bayo Onanuga, had given assurance that Tinubu’s cabinet would be ready within a month of the president’s inauguration.

He had said: “What I can assure you is that even if the list is not ready on the first day, it will not take Asiwaju more than one month to put his cabinet together. He definitely will not wait for 60 days to assemble a competent cabinet.”