President Tinubu Set To Reveal List Of Sacked And New Ministers Following Reshuffle

Strong indications suggest that President Bola Tinubu has finalized the list of names and designations for his upcoming cabinet reshuffle. Multiple sources within the Presidency revealed that the president has completed the selection process, determining which ministers will be retained and which will be dropped.

The official announcement is expected to take place on Thursday night, following Tinubu’s arrival in the United Kingdom for his two-week annual leave. This reshuffle follows a period of significant economic hardship and nationwide protests that occurred in August.

There has been increasing pressure on President Tinubu, both from within the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the general public, to remove underperforming ministers. Despite repeated warnings from the president about performance expectations, the cabinet has remained largely unchanged, apart from the suspension of Dr. Betta Edu, the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, in January 2024.

During a three-day retreat in November for cabinet members and presidential aides, Tinubu established the Central Delivery Coordination Unit, led by his Special Adviser on Policy Coordination, Hadiza Bala-Usman. This unit evaluates the performance of ministers and other senior officials, providing reports that inform decisions on cabinet membership.

“If you are performing, there’s nothing to fear. If you miss the objective, we’ll review it. If no performance, you leave us. No one is an island, and the buck stops on my desk,” the president emphasized during the retreat.

With the one-year mark approaching since his cabinet’s inauguration in August 2023, the reshuffle is expected to bring more than just portfolio changes. Sources suggest that some ministries, such as the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, may be abolished, while others could be restructured for greater efficiency.

Officials, speaking on condition of anonymity due to a lack of authorization to discuss the matter, confirmed that President Tinubu initially intended to release the reshuffle list on Thursday but decided to take additional time to finalize his decisions.

“We are just waiting for the go-ahead. All I know is that we are waiting for him to send the new names of those he wants to drop and those he wants to appoint.

We have been expecting them since yesterday (Thursday). I am not sure of any specifics regarding names for now. The last I know, he (the president) said he wants to sleep over the list again before he releases it. Maybe he still wants to change his mind about some names,” one source disclosed.

Another source expressed surprise that the list was not released as anticipated on Thursday, noting that “the thing is almost finalized already.”

Additionally, an official dismissed reports suggesting that lobbyists had crowded the president’s residence in the UK. “That’s not true. You know there would be speculations all over the place. Do they know where he is?

Even if they know where he is, can they access him? Some say lobbyists are just visiting him from left, right, and centre. But on this trip, he will likely undergo medicals, too. The way he is resting now, no one can see him just like that. They won’t allow people to access him like that. I can guarantee that,” the source said.