I Will Appoint My Ministers By September – President Buhari

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President Muhammadu Buhari has revealed that he would be appointing his ministers by September. Since he was sworn in as the President, he has been working with the Permanent Secretaries of the various ministries. This has however drawn several criticism against the President for his seemingly failure to appoint his ministers.

He stated this in an opinion published by Washington Post before the meeting with President Barack Obama whom he later met at the White House where they both discussed cooperating to counter extremist group Boko Haram, among other topics.

“When cabinet ministers are appointed in September, it will be some months after I took the oath of office. It is worth noting that Obama himself did not have his full Cabinet in place for several months after first taking office; the United States did not cease to function in the interim.”

“In Nigeria’s case, it would neither be prudent nor serve the interests of sound government to have made these appointments immediately on my elevation to the presidency; instead, Nigeria must first put new rules of conduct and good governance in place.”

“I cannot stress how important it is to ensure that this process is carried out correctly, just as it has been crucial to first install the correct leadership of the military and security services before we fully take the fight to Boko Haram.”

He further stressed the importance of eliminating the Boko Haram scourge in the country. According to him, the new Service Chiefs who were chosen based on their track records and qualifications will be based in Borno State

“This month, the world moved a step closer to the defeat of Boko Haram, the jihadist group that has terrorized hundreds of thousands in the northern states of Nigeria. In one of my first acts since taking office as president six weeks ago, I have replaced the heads of Nigeria’s army, navy and air force. Our new military leadership has not been chosen because of their familiarity with those in government, as was too often the case in the past, but on their track records and qualifications alone.”

“These new military leaders will be based in Borno State in northern Nigeria, where the headquarters of the armed services has been relocated. This shift of resources and command directly to the front line, in addition to the replacement of the head of the State Security Service, Nigeria’s intelligence organization, and a new emphasis on working in partnership with our neighbours, has equipped us to take the fight directly to Boko Haram.”

Buhari left for US on Sunday after he won a March election hailed as Nigeria’s first democratic change of power since independence.

The trip is also expected to serve as an avenue to amend relations battered by his predecessor’s failures to effectively deal with Boko Haram’s bloody insurgency and corruption in Africa’s biggest oil producer.

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