Nigeria's President Goodluck Jonathan has just sworn in former Junior Minister of defence, Musiliu Obanikoro along with seven others to serve as ministers in his cabinet.
The appointed minister and their portfolios are: Senator Musiliu Obanikoro to serve as Minister of State, Foreign Affairs II, Senator Patricia Akwashiki to oversee the Ministry of Information, Prof. Nicholas Ada; State, Foreign Affairs I, Col. Augustine Akobundu (retd.), State, Defence, Mr. Fidelis Nwankwo; State Health, Mrs. Hauwa Bappa; State Niger Delta Affairs, Senator Joel Ikeya; Labour and Productivity, and Mr. Kenneth Kobani; State, Industry, Trade and Investment.
The President also announced the replacement of Professor Onyebuchi Chukwu with Khaliru Alhassan as the substantive Minister of Health.Prof Chukwu resigned late last year to pursue his gubernatorial ambition.
The President Jonathan is likely to effect a minor reshuffling in his cabinet in the Next Federal Executive Council Meeting slated for Wednesday (today). This is coming on the heels of confirmation of eight ministerial nominees by the Nigerian Senate.
The Nigerian Senate last Wednesday confirmed Musiliu Obanikoro as a federal minister, appointed by President Goodluck Jonathan. The Senate approved Mr. Obanikoro’s nomination as a minister, Wednesday, after repeated deferments, despite protests from senators from Lagos State, Mr. Obanikoro’s home state, and other opposition All Progressives Congress, APC, who had vowed to stop the clearance over the Ekiti scandal.
As a former senator himself, the Senate allowed Mr. Obanikoro to “take a bow and go”, without answering questions, a privilege reserved for former federal lawmakers. APC lawmakers responded by walking out of the session in protest. Obanikoro,, a former junior minister for defence, allegedly played a key role in election fraud in Ekiti State.
Mr. Obanikoro was named recently in a leaked tape as a principal actor in the state’s governorship election rigging in 2014, sparking national outrage.
Previously, the lawmakers deferred the Ministerial screening of Obanikoro, to last week. Obanikoro's eligibility for a comeback as minister became more controversial when he got entangled in an audio leak by Capt. Sagir Koli of the Nigerian army over how he deployed military might to tilt the election in favour of PDP's candidate Governor Ayo Fayose.
Indicted in the audio leak are Governor Ayo Fayose of Ekiti State, Sen. Iyiola Omisore, General Momoh, and the Minister of Police affairs.
Dahiru Mohammed, Abuja, FCT
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