The Director of Strategic Communication of the All Progressives Congress Campaign Council, Mr. Dele Alake, has refuted claims that Nigeria’s President-elect, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, is facing pressure to select his cabinet members just six weeks before his inauguration. Alake also dismissed rumors that Tinubu traveled abroad for medical reasons, saying that Tinubu was keeping abreast of events in Nigeria while working in a relaxed environment in Paris.
Bolaji Ahmed Tinubu
According to Alake, despite being away, Tinubu is in no rush to return home and is calmly working on his selections. Meanwhile, reports that the President-elect may appoint opposition members to his cabinet have generated mixed reactions. Former presidential aspirant on the APC platform, Nicolas Felix, disclosed on an Arise TV program on April 4 that Tinubu would look beyond party lines when choosing his cabinet members and ministers.
A source within the camp of the former Lagos State governor backed up Felix’s statement, adding that Tinubu would reward loyalty, commitment, and hard work, and that he may consider individuals like Senator Chimaroke Nnamani and Governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Wike, who contributed to his victory without compensation. The source also mentioned former Governor of Ekiti State, Ayo Fayose, and Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, who were said to have delivered their states for the APC in the presidential election, as possible appointees.
Reports have emerged that the president-elect, currently in Paris, may have started working on his ministerial nominees and other cabinet members with the aid of his trusted aides and close allies, including the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, Alake, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Public Affairs, Ajuri Ngelale, Minister of Youth and Sports Development, Sunday Dare, and key members of the APC PCC.
SKJ