A federal lawmaker, who represented Kaduna Central Senatorial District in the Eighth National Assembly, Shehu Sani, has urged President Bola Tinubu to prioritise competence in his appointments.
Sani, who was a guest on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics, cautioned the President not to make the mistake of his immediate predecessor, Muhammadu Buhari.
The former lawmaker said during Buhari’s eight-year administration between May 2015 and May 2023, nepotism was at its peak yet results were not produced in all areas of governance, majorly security, economy, education and healthcare.
Sani said, “I will advise President Tinubu to be careful not to make the mistakes of President Buhari, and I believe he is experienced to understand this.
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“Under Presdient Buhari, you have ministers that were appointed into office for the whole of eight years; they were with him for the first tenure and the second tenure, and there was no cabinet reshuffle, no removal. Even if there was a removal, it takes three to four months to replace a minister. That was the way the country was governed.
“Under Buhari, we have seen nepotism at its peak where people were appointed into office and left there even if they did nothing.
“Service chiefs were retained in office despite their failures, and by retaining them, you destroyed the careers of those behind them. For many years, many officers were retired to appoint one person.”
He said if Tinubu is interested in results, competence should be his watchword.
“If this country has to move forward, we must treat the issue of competency as the qualification for appointment,” he said.
Some appointments of Tinubu, ex-Lagos governor, have been criticised as lopsided in the last couple of months. Tinubu, who took over from Buhari, a prominent northern figure and former military head of state, on May 29, 2023, appointed 48 ministers last August. One of the ministers resigned and joined the Senate last December while another was suspended in January.
