A former ally of President Muhammadu Buhari and now Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) supporter, Buba Galadima, has advised Nigerians not to expect much from the ministerial nominees, saying Nigeria will not make headway under the present arrangement.
Speaking in a telephone interview with The Guardian in Abuja he said,“Well, you can only talk about proper ministerial screening in a civilized democracy, but in a militarized democracy where people use the military to elect themselves into power, you should not expect anything better than what has happened.
“If the screening was diligently done, we could have expected something better, but you know they did the sham because some of them were alleged to have bought the position with huge sums of money.
“So, the first thing they will do is to recoup their investments, and you know some of them have been members of the opposition. They just jumped ship and ingratiate themselves to the powers that be that took money from them and sent their names as ministers.
“I don’t expect anything, Nigeria will recede 100 years with these kind of characters in government. The opposition can do nothing because as far as parliamentary democracy is concerned, the minority can have their say, but the majority will eventually have their way.
“There is nothing they can do, they can speak just like I am speaking, but they will never give a damn about it. Senate President, Ahmed Lawan achieved balancing because he only paid those who voted for him.”
Besides, former House of Representatives member, Alhaji Nasiru Garba Dantiye, who also spoke in a telephone interview, said the issue of ‘taking a bow and go’ during screenings was becoming worrisome.
He argued that the kind of screening Nigerians witnessed was not the screening the constitution recommended, adding: “In my opinion, it is not just about taking a bow and go depending on the nominees’ relationship with the Senate leadership.
“One of their task is to find out if the nominees are qualified. If the Senate does a proper screening, there is no way former Minister of Finance, Kemi Adeosun, would have been confirmed as a minister without her NYSC certificate.
“Secondly, sending ministerial list without portfolios is fraudulent on the part of the Federal Government. That is like giving out a blanket cheque. “Ministerial nominees are supposed to be tagged with portfolios that tally with their areas of specialisation, otherwise there will be problems as such square pegs in round holes would not make any meaningful impact.”
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