This Was How President Buhari Arrived At Choosing Portfolios For Ministerial Appointees

Buhari shocked his ministers-designate with the announcement of portfolios during their swearing-in ceremony which took place in Abuja as the assigned portfolios were kept in utmost secrecy. President Muhammadu Buhari did not assign key portfolios to some ministers following security reports, it was learnt yesterday. He placed priority on expertise and performance in assigning portfolios to ministers, sources told The Nation. The President was also said to have disappointed some of those who lobbied for “strategic” ministries. Ministers may be placed under watch and anyone who gets into trouble will be dropped, it was learnt. All Progressives Congress (APC) National Leader Asiwaju Bola Tinubu yesterday urged them to be creative. According to sources, until the inauguration time, the list of portfolios was known to only Buhari and members of his “kitchen cabinet”. The list was kept under wraps in such a tidy manner that even the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation and the President’s aides were unaware. Six factors, which informed the assignment of portfolios were; security reports, less exposure to politics, priority on expertise and performance, ongoing investigations of some appointees and distaste for lobbying and media profiling by some appointees ; and Buhari’s military background which sent signal to ministers that no one is assured of any position in his cabinet. Investigation revealed that after the nomination and confirmation of the ministers, Buhari still asked relevant agencies to conduct a more discreet investigation of the would-be ministers. The outcome of the “surveillance” was presented to the President and his kitchen cabinet in deciding the choice of portfolios. A source, who spoke in confidence last night, said: “Most of us, including the ministers themselves, were shocked when the portfolios were announced. In fact, some ministers were just unstable. The President and his inner cabinet kept the list secret. They didn’t allow it to leak at all.