*Reassigns Four Others
PRESIDENT Muhammadu Buhari, on Wednesday, July 5, 2022, swore in and immediately assigned portfolios to seven newly appointed ministers, charging them to serve diligently and maintain unalloyed loyalty to the country and office of the President.
Buhari also announced the reassignment of portfolios in his cabinet, saying the new redeployment was aimed at reinvigorating certain sectors where the government desires to accomplish improved results.
At the ceremony held shortly before the virtual Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting, the President stated that as his administration winds down its second term, more work still needs to be done in diverse areas of the economy and national life.
The newly appointed ministers and their portfolios are Ikechukwu Ikoh, Minister of State, Science and Technology; Umana Umana, Minister of Niger Delta Affairs; Udi Odum, Minister of State, Environment; Ademola Adegoroye, Minister of State, Transport; Umar Ibrahim El-Yakub, Minister of State, Works and Housing; Goodluck Opiah, Minister of State, Education and Nkama Ekumankama, Minister of State, Health.
The ministers re-assigned include Senator Adeleke Mamora, Minister of Science and Technology (formerly Minister of State, Health); Mu’azu Jaji Sambo, Minister of Transportation (formerly Minister of State, Works and Housing); Sharon Ikeazor, Minister of State, Niger Delta (formerly Minister of State, Environment) and Senator Gbemisola Saraki, Minister of State, Mines and Steel Development (formerly Minister of State, Transportation).
Buhari urged the new cabinet members to consult and collaborate with older colleagues and focus on driving key programmes already initiated by his administration, warning all cabinet members against corrupt practices, just as he reiterated that public officers must be above board and those caught in corrupt practices would face the full wrath of the law.
President Buhari urged the newly appointed ministers to be conscious that time is of the essence as they assume office, adding: “As I assign you portfolios, therefore, I expect you to carefully study your sectors, take wise counsel, reach out to key stakeholders, consult and collaborate with older cabinet colleagues and focus on driving key programs already initiated by this administration. Above all, be loyal to your President and your country.”
He stated the need for the old and new members to work with common objectives of leaving indelible legacies for Nigerians and ending strongly with verifiable accomplishments, warning: “You must resist bad counsel, resist temptation and be circumspect in your utterances and conduct. You must totally eschew corruption and be above board, because if caught, there will be no sacred cows.”
Buhari told the newly appointed ministers to await further communication on their appropriate Ministerial Mandates from the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF).
The appointment of the new ministers was necessitated by the resignation of seven ministers to enable them to contest the recent presidential primary of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and in line with the provisions of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, which prescribes that the FEC shall be made up of members from every state of the Federation.
