By Atieme Ogbolosingha, PhD
Former Governor El-Rufai was among the two batches of 48 ministerial nominees that were sent to the Nigerian Senate for screening and confirmation. President Tinubu, in a manner that appeared unplanned, hurriedly submitted a list containing 28 ministerial nominees. Apparently, the constitution, following amendments by the last parliament, stipulates that the president and governors shall make nominations within sixty days after taking their oath of office. President Tinubu was constitutionally required to submit at least one ministerial nominee from the 36 states and the FCT by the 28th of July. Although the president sent his first batch of 28 ministerial nominees less than 48 hours before the deadline imposed on him by the constitution, he could barely comply fully with this constitutional provision, as 11 states had no nominees by the end of the sixty days window. The brazen disregard of the constitution is not the focus of this article (Nigerians should watch out many of such abuses), however, it is useful to state this fact, especially as the President had claimed to hit the ground running. His supporters have also applauded him for the ill advised manner he announced the removal of fuel subsidy on the day of his inauguration as evidence of hitting the ground running. Also, it is interesting to note how the President struggled to compile a list of ministerial nominees within the deadline, despite having been declared elected since the wee hours of 1st March 2023; ninety days before he took the oath of office as President.
The above background which provides only limited detail about the democratic credential of President Tinubu (his election is still disputed at the court), suggests when it is convenient he may not follow the letters of our constitution. It is on this basis that I was surprised to read that the immediate past governor of Kaduna State was not confirmed by the senate headed by Godswill Akpabio. Senate President Akpabio is widely known as an advocate of the obnoxious principle that, “what money cannot do, more money can do”. A cursory look at how Akpabio has handled the screening of ministerial nominees shows a man that is enjoying himself and boisterously asking nominees to “take a bow and go”, a phrase that excuses the nominees from being scrutinised by Senators. Like most nominees, former governor El Rufai was asked to take a bow and go.
Interestingly, a mild drama ensued where a Senator drew the attention of the Senate President to a petition written against the nomination of El Rufai. In a simplistic manner, Akpabio acknowledged he is aware of several petitions against other nominees and the nominee (El Rufai) and insisted the nominee should be screened and when it is time for confirmation, they will make a decision based on further consultation, obviously with Mr President.
It is now public knowledge that El Rufai and two others were not confirmed. And this is the issue. Why was El Rufai not confirmed? I am not convinced Mr President has the democratic credential to kowtow to any petition or security report made against El Rufai. President Tinubu will do all within his power to ensure El Rufai gets confirmed as a minister if he desires so, and having heavily influenced the selection of principal officers of both the Senate and The House, it is illogical to expect the Senate not to confirm El Rufai, no matter how damning any report or petition has been written against the nominee. Suffice to say that petitions were written against other nominees aside from the three nominees that were not confirmed, however, this was not acknowledged publicly by the Senate President. It is my reasoned opinion that Mr President does not want El Rufai to be in his government and had only nominated him as a face-saving measure due to the contribution of El-Rufai in his questionable ascendency to the Presidency. Do I believe that El Rufai is innocent of the petitions levelled against him? No. Do I believe it is justifiable that he is dropped as a ministerial nominee if those petitions are factually accurate? Yes. Also, do I believe among the 45 nominees confirmed by the Senate there are others that are in the same category and are as culpable and undeserving to be Minister? Absolutely, yes. So why is the case of El Rufai different? It is purely a case of political expediency. Now, this brings us to the next question, what did El Rufai do to warrant this Machiavellian style deployed by the President and his accomplices? Obviously, this is a question that only El Rufai and Mr President can answer.
The opposition political parties should be celebrating this barefaced maltreatment of El Rufai by the Tinubu presidency. El Rufai is a vocal, smart and vociferous politician who in the coming months will speak truth to the President he helped install. Perhaps, he will join millions of Nigerians in calling out the President for his flaws. Nigerians should be cautious of a man who said, “power must be grabbed and snatched at all cost” to follow the dictates of the Nigerian constitution. He will align with the constitution when it benefits him, and discard constitutional stipulations when it does not align with his political calculations and manoeuvrings. I wish former governor El Rufai all the best in his quest for knowledge acquisition and study that will culminate in the award of a doctorate. At least, at that level, I would be able to say El Rufai and I are colleagues and we will welcome him into the fold of intellectuals! It is also a good time for former governor El Rufai to reflect on how he might have infuriated President Tinubu in recent past.
