Africa-Press – Nigeria. Former Senate Leader, Ali Ndume has commended President Bola Tinubu over fresh appointments into Boards of key federal agencies.
However, Ndume urged Tinubu to accommodate more southeasterners in his next set of board appointments.
The new appointees unveiled during the weekend include Muhammad Babangida son of former military Head of State, Ibrahim Babangida, who was named the Chairman of the revamped Bank of Agriculture.
Others were Lydia Kalat Musa, Chairperson of the Oil and Gas Free Zones Authority; Jamilu Wada Aliyu, chairman of the National Educational Research and Development Council; Yahuza Ado Inuwa, Standards Organisation of Nigeria and
Sanusi Musa, named Chairman of the Institute for Peace and Conflict Resolution.
The list also includes Professor Al-Mustapha Aliyu as Director-General of the Directorate of Technical Cooperation in Africa; Sanusi Garba Rikiji as Director-General of the Nigerian Office for Trade Negotiations and Abdulmumini Aminu-Zaria, Executive Director of the Integrated Water Resources Management Commission.
Checks revealed that apart from Mohammed Babangida from Niger State in the North-Central, both Kano and Kaduna had three and two appointees, respectively.
Sokoto and Zamfara in the North-West region have a slot each while Oyo State produced Tomi Somefun as the Director General of the National Hydro-Electric Power Areas Development Commission.
Recall that Tinubu had last May appointed 12 individuals from northern states into significant positions in federal agencies.
Ndume commended Tinubu for taking necessary steps to calm frayed nerves in the North over his appointments.
He said: “This appointments and the one he did last May when he gave 12 key agencies to competent individuals from the North were assuring enough. It goes to show that he is a responsive leader who listens to criticisms and surrenders to genuine and legitimate agitation.
“These two appointments will reassure the North, particularly its elders, that President Tinubu isn’t a leader that will deliberately promote an agenda to alienate the region which stood with him during the last general elections.”
The senator representing Borno South however appealed to Tinubu to consider the South-East in his next appointments.
“The wrong narrative that the South-East has been abandoned and would not count in patronage distribution should not be allowed to fester for long.
“It is even a breach of the Federal Character Principle, as enshrined in the 1999 Constitution to strip an entire region of adequate representation.
“This is a big mistep that must be corrected. Every part of the country deserves sense of belonging in a federation.
“While I acknowledge Mr. President’s steadfastness with this appointments, we are hopeful that subsequent nominations will reflect broader national inclusiveness, by accommodating more individuals from the South-East.”
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