Ministerial list: After about 56 days in office, Tinubu has until Friday to appoint ministers

President Bola Tinubu has until July 28 to send his ministerial candidates to the Senate for selection and confirmation in accordance with the Nigerian constitution.

The constitution, as amended by the last legislature, provides that the president and governors have 60 days from the date of their swearing in to appoint ministers and commissioners.

Section 42 of the constitution states that "(a) the appointment of any person for the office of Minister for confirmation by the Senate shall be made within sixty days from the date on which the President is sworn in;

(b) at least ten percent of those appointed as ministers must be women:

Provided that the president may appoint a minister at any other time during his term and that such appointment is subject to confirmation by the Senate. »

The document also calls for the president to appoint at least one minister from each of the federation's 36 states.

Mr. Tinubu, who was sworn in on May 29, has yet to appoint ministers 56 days later.

However, there is speculation that Mr. Tinubu may have submitted the ministerial list to the Senate last week, but the upper house is delaying the announcement due to some changes to the list.

Reports indicate that one of the changes made was that of former Kano State Governor Abdullahi Ganduje, who was originally on the list but is now being considered for the presidency of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

Mr. Ganduje is tipped to replace Abdullahi Adamu, who resigned last week alongside the party's national secretary, Iyiola Omisore.

The former governor of Kano would be preferred by the president to a former governor of Nasarawa state, Tanko Al-Makura, who had been positioned to succeed Mr Adamu. Mr Al-Makura was one of the party's presidential candidates last year.

PREMIUM TIMES could not reach Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele, Chief Whip Ali Ndume, Minority Leader Oyewunmi Olalere and Senate Spokesperson Yemi Adaramodu for comment because their cell phone lines were not connecting.

However, a senator from one of the Southwestern states, who does not want his name mentioned because he was not authorized to speak, told this newspaper on Monday that Mr. Tinubu had previously concluded the drawing up of the list of ministers and was about to send the list when some senior APC officials intervened and urged the president to drop out and replace some candidates with their choices.

"It's APC policy. You know everyone will want to contribute in some way," the senator said.

“The list had already been compiled. We had sat down to deliberate on the modalities of the screening but some actors rejected certain people on the list which the president is still trying to amend. That is why the list has not yet been submitted.”

The lawmaker, however, said he was "sure that the Senate will conclude the screening and confirmation before going on vacation. Even if the date needs to be extended, the Senate will."

Meanwhile, Mr Adaramodu told reporters last week that the president had not forwarded the list of ministerial candidates to the Senate.

The Senate announces...