By Elizabeth Chukwuma
Those who had expected that Sale Mamman, an Engineer, who was relieved of his ministerial appointment by President Muhammadu Buhari a retired army General, would be disappointed.
Barely 24 hours after being dropped, as the minister of Power and who is from Taraba, home state of Theophilous DDanjuma, a retired army General and former minister of Defence, during Olusegun Obasanjo , Presidency, Mamman, has told those that cares to listen that he ‘’will continue to support the Nigerian President in any way possible’’ despite being sacked from his government on Wednesday, September 1, 2021.
The Taraba state born former minister of Power, who could not hide his feelings had said that he is ‘’still ‘’committed to the agenda of the Katsina state born Nigeria President’’. The sacked minister, who has continued to express his Appreciation to Buhari for giving him the opportunity ‘’to be part of his government in the last two years, noted that he has contributed his quota to the development of Nigeria.
Hear him: I am grateful for the confidence , belief and trust he placed on me , most especially the support he gave me during my tenure at the Power House and his Leadership direction. The question on the lips of most people was that if the Nigerian President so much trusted and gave him support to succeed in the ministry of Power as he has made Nigerians to believe, why did he sack him instead of rejigging the entire Cabinet as Nigerians had expected him to do.
Recall that the retired army General had said that Mamman and Mohammed Nanono, the minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, from Nasarawa state, were dropped to reinvigorate the government and consolidate on the legacy of performance and projects of the Administration, which was an indication that the duo may have performed below expectation in office and needed to be replaced with more competent persons from their respective states.
Yusuf Yila, Central Bank of Nigeria Director, Development Finance Department may have opened up on the sins of Mamman that may have warranted his sack as the Power minister when he revealed that the apex bank had disbursed N312 billion to the ministry for power infrastructure support through the national ‘’Mass Metering Programme, MMP’’, which many believed had turned out to be a failure under Mamman, the former minister of Power.
The MMP was said to have been Launched by the Buhari led All Progressive Congress, APC, government , ‘’to accelerate the mass metering of electricity consumers by providing loan facility to the 11 Distribution Companies, DISCOS, across the country and the Local Meter Companies for Manufacturing and assembling Meters.
Many see the sacked minister of Power expressions of Appreciation to Buhari, over ‘’the confidence put on him as well as the support he had received from him while serving as Power minister , as a smoscreen ’. In what looked like a farewell address, he has thanked Yemi Osibanjo, the Nigerian Vice President and the Leadership of the Power sector Supervisory Working Group as well as the entire Cabinet for the Coordinated and robust Working Relationship he had with them.
Nanono, the former minister of Agriculture and Rural development may have kept mum, because his removal from office may have come to him as a surprise.
In a related development, Dave Umahi, an Engineer, and governor of Eboyi state who had decamped from the Opposition People’s Democratic Party to the ruling APC in November, 2020, because of his Presidential ambition may have read the handwriting on the wall that the party may not zone the Presidential ticket to the south east geopolitical region in the 2023, general elections which has thrown his political Camp into a state of confusion.
The Eboyi state governo,r who has never hidden his Presidential ambition had told those that cares to listen that he will feel bad if the APC does not give the south east a chance at the Presidency during the 2023 ,general elections.
Although , he is no longer a card carrying member of the PDP, he would want the Opposition Party and the ruling APC, which are the two main parties in the country , to present Igbo Presidential Candidates in the 2023, general elections’’ for the reason of equity, fairness or justice’’.
Appearing on Channels Television on Friday, September r3, 2021, he had said that he decamped to the APC, because the south east had supported the PDP, since the return of Democracy in the country in 199, and now, but the region have never been given any opportunity to produce a Candidate to run for the country’s Presidency. This may have informed why he had said, ‘’ If I follow the ruling APC for this length of time and the party fail to give the south east an opportunity, I will feel bad’’.
There is no gain saying the fact that neither APC nor the Opposition PDP, would field an Igbo person in the 2023, general elections. This is because of the Political Conspiracy between the two major parties political Chieftains in the south west and north west, to ensure that the country’s Presidency rotates between the two regions and occasionally allow someone from the south-south geo-political region to run aas Compensation for being an oil bearing region.
Political analysts believe that Umahi, the south east state of Eboyi state governor, ought to have read the body language of the retired army General know that where his support lies in order to stop deceiving himself that he stands a chance of being thrown up as the ruling APC Presidential Candidate in the 2023, general elections.
In a recent interview with Arise Television, Buhari had said that ’’APC decision making process regarding its Leadership and 2023 general elections would be bottom- up’’. He had kept mum on power shift to the southern part of the country, meaning that the south east do not stand any chance of producing the ruling party 2023 Presidential Candidate.
Babtunde Fashola, a former governor of Lagos state and now minister of Works, who is not happy over the political maneuvering in the APC, in selecting the party 2023, Presidential Candidate, has cautioned the party Leadership ‘’to respect the gentleman Agreement that had made it clear that the south west will produce the next Presidential Candidate of the party after the expiration of Buhari’s second term in office’’.
Already , Bola Ahmed Tinubu, popular, Jagaban, a former governor of Lagos state and APC, National Leader, who is currently in in London, over his failing health and Fashola, the minister of Works, believed to have the backing of the Nigerian President , are being rumoured to have indicated their interest to run for the Party Presidential Ticket in 2023.
Femi Adesina, Special Assistant to Buhari on Median and Publicity, had made Nigerians to believe that that the President cannot ‘’support any body jostling for the Presidency in the 2023, general elections at this time’’. The Media Aide has told Nigerians who are desperate to know who, his Principal is supporting among those rumoured to be jostling for the party Presidential Ticket, had said that he will do so at the appropriate time.
He may be right. The Nigerian President still have about 20 months in office and for him to start supporting somebody now will just be like ‘’jumping the gun’’, a Cheftain of the party remarked. As at the time he appeared on Channels Television to speak on the 2023 Presidency last June, he had said that Buhari still have two years and three months to the expiration of his second term in office. But many believe that his recent visit and meeting with Tinubu, in London, over his failing health, was a tacit support for the APC Leader possible Presidential ambition.
However, Adesina. The Presidential Media Aide thinks differently. He had said that ‘’the meeting was all about ‘’goodwill and best wishes’’, for the APC Leader to recover quickly and return back to the country.
