Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo has disclosed that he is not against the use of Federal Character Principle for employment and appointments into Federal Government positions as has been reported but insists on the need to put merit first.
Reacting to the reports which emanated from his Thursday’s keynote address at the 10th memorial anniversary of the first High Court judge of the defunct South Eastern State, Justice Peter Odo Effiong Bassey, in Calabar, Cross River State, his media office at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, maintained on Friday that his remarks had not been accurately reflected.
Osinbajo was quoted to have said: “Let us de-emphasise this issue of federal character and place more emphasis on merit.
“Where you come from should not be a criterion. Merit should be the watchword. Employment and appointment should be based on merit, not where one comes from.”
The Vice President’s spokesman Mr. Olaolu Akande said in a statement that Prof. Osinbajo certainly agrees that in the end, there should always be fair and equitable representations that reflect the nation’s geo-political diversities in appointments and other instances including in the public educational sectors.
“It is therefore inaccurate to say that the Vice President criticized the setting up of the Federal Character Commission and misleading to link his views to the appointment of political office holders into the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari,” Akande said.
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