President Goodluck Jonathan on Wednesday sacked four ministers from his cabinet.
Those affected were Aviation Minister, Stella Oduah, Police Affairs Minister, Caleb Olukolade (rtd), Minister of Niger Delta, Godsday Orubebe and Minister of State for Finance, Yerima Ngama.
The Minister of State for Trade, Industry and Investment, Samuel Ortum, has been mandated to supervise the Aviation Ministry, also the Minister of State for the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Olajumoke Akinjide is to oversee the Police Affairs Ministry, the Minister of State for Niger Delta, Darius Ishaku, while the Coordinating Minister of the Economy and Minister of Finance, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, will over see the functions of the Minister of State for Finance.
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| Stella Oduah |
Suleiman Ajadi, as well as a member of Independent Corrupt Pratices and other related offences Commission (ICPC), Bako Abdullahi, at the Council Chambers of the Presidential Villa.
Shortly after the swearing in of the new public officers before the commencement of the Federal Executive Council (FCT), President Jonathan had requested for 30 minutes break.
Briefing State House correspondents at the end of the meeting, the Minister of Information and Supervising Minister of Defence, Labaran Maku said, “also today the President announced further changes in the federal executive council. He said a number of ministers have been asked to step out of the federal executive council to further their own interest, some in politics others in their own private focused.
“Clearly, what the President did today was to allow ministers who have indicated interest in pursuing further goals in the polity, in the economy and in the life of the country to be allowed to go.
“Those asked by the President to go include the following: The Minister of State for Finance, Dr. Yerima Ngama, Minister of Police Affairs, Navy Capt. Caleb Olukolade (rtd), Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Elder Godsday Orubebe and Minister of Aviation, Mrs. Stella Oduah.
“In announcing their acceptance in their decision to participate in the polity, the President thank them very sincerely for the great job they have done, in helping the government realise the goals that have been achieved under the transformation agenda. The President believes that they have done so well for this administration and was generally happy with what they have done, particularly in their various sectors to help the administration realize the goals we have seen today in the results we have arrived at under the transformation programme of the government.
“The President also further explained that contrary to some insinuations in some quarters, that our colleague, the former Chief of Staff, Chief Mike Ogiahdomhe, was asked to go because of alleged involvement of NNPC alleged fraud. The President explained that contrary to these insinuations which came from the social media and were also replicated in some regular media, Chief Ogiahdomhe left to pursue further interest in politics.
“The office of the Chief of Staff does not supervise the NNPC, it has no direct correlation with the NNPC and he said if Chief Ogiahdomhe left because of the NNPC alleged fraud, then it will suggest that they would have been people that were involved with him and those people too would have gone.
“So contrary to these speculations, the President asked him to go when he offered to resign to pursue interest in politics. Politics is very verse so the President made it very clear that the resignation of the former Chief of Staff has anything to do with alleged misdemeanor in NNPC but rather purely the decision of the former Chief of Staff to withdraw his services to participate in politics.
“Today, the President asked the following ministers to take charge of the ministries. The Ministry of Aviation, the Minister of State for Trade, Industry and Investment, Samuel Ortom, to supervise until the substantive appointment of a Aviation of Minister.
“The Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs, already has a Minister of State, Darius Ishaku, in the Ministry of Finance of course the CME is already in charge. For the Ministry of Police Affairs, the President asked the Minister of State for the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Olajumoke Akinjide is to take charge of the Ministry”.
On if the ministers would be asked to go in batches since many others in the cabinet have political ambition, Maku said, “that is left for the President to decide. I am not the President but I believe sincerely that it depends on what they have communicated to Mr. President. He does not just take those decisions in isolation”.
Asked to clarify if the ministers resigned or were asked to step down, he said, “the President said he has asked them to do go because of their interest. They have indicated interest in pursuing higher and deeper interest in the polity and so he has decided to allow them go and pursue those interests. You have to get that correctly so that you won’t go and say something like it was said in the case of the former Chief of Staff”.
On if the President asked Oduah to go based on the report on the N255 million car scam of the committee he set up to investigate or not, Maku said, “I have just reportedly exactly what the President said. Also don’t forget allegations doesn’t necessarily mean guilty and I think the press should always take sometimes to be patient. But the truth of the matter is that they left because they indicated interest in playing deeper roles in the politics of the country and the President has decided to let them go”.
Asked why the government of being mute about the allegation from the Central Bank of Nigeria Governor, Sanusi Lamido Sanisu, on the missing funds, he said, “I will caution that we be patient for the institution of government to respond. You will recall that the CBN governor claimed $49 billion or there about was missing and inquery shows that that was not so. Now he has been making further claims and NNPC has been responding and I believe that I do not have the facts now to answer your questions. I believe the Minister of Finance, the NNPC will be in a better position to provide answers. You know when you deal with figures, we cannot be responding flippantly. NNPC has been explaining it’s position and I think you should listen to its explaintion. What I have heard the NNPC say which I believe you too have heard is that there appears to be lack of understanding by the CBN governor fo the actual work they do and how monies are remitted. And they have continued to make that point repeatedly in response to the CBN. Because last time it was $49 billion but overnight $29 billion was no longer missing. So when you look at this kind of allegations and the outcome, I am not a financial expert but I think there some level of misunderstanding that needs to be carefully looked into.
“These institutions in my opinion can resolve those problems rather than making it an issue of newspaper statement which continues to give the impression that they are not working together, when they should be working together. They should in my opinion coordinate their activities in such a way that they have full understanding operations of the matter”.
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