From Fred Itua, Abuja
Twenty four hours after President Bola Ahmed Tinubu submitted 28 names of ministerial nominees to the Senate for confirmation, political gladiators have returned to the trenches in 10 battleground states where ministerial nominees have not been announced.
It was gathered that some strong political actors within the ruling party in the states that have not been accommodated in the list, have intensified lobbying through some current or past governors, as well as some presidential aides and others believed to have the president’s ears.
According to the letter announcing names of the ministerial nominees from the President which was read on the floor of the Senate on Thursday by Senate President Godswill Akpabio, more nominations are expected in the coming days and a full cabinet expected to be inaugurated in another two weeks.
Akpabio, while reading the letter, listed the names as Abubakar Momoh, Yusuf Maitama, Architect Dangiwa, Hannatu Musawa, Chief Uche Nnaji, Beta Edu, Doris Aniche, David Umahi and Nyesom Wike.
Others are Mohamed Badaru, Nasir El-Rufai, Ekperikpe Ekpo, Nkiru Onyejiocha, Olubumi Ojo, Stella Okotekpe, Uju Kennedy, Bello Mohammed Goroyo, Dele Alake and Lateef Fagbemi.
Also in the list are Mohammed Idris, Edu Muhi, Wahid Adebayo, Imma Suleiman, Ali pate, Joseph Usev, Abubaka Kyari, John Eno and Sani Abubakar Damladi.
While states like Cross River and Katsina got two nominees each, Lagos, Osun, Adamawa, Bayelsa, Gombe, Kano, Kebbi, Kogi, Yobe and Zamfara got no nominees.
In Lagos, sources told Saturday Sun, that President Tinubu seems to be in a dilemma on who to settle for among too many contending interests. Some of the names that have been mentioned are former Governor Akinwumi Ambode, immediate past Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, among others.
It was gathered that Tinubu and some of his close aides as well as some powerful forces in his family are not on the same page on his ministerial preference in the state.
The source, however said the issues will be resolved in the coming days and a compromise reached to enable the President send a nominee from the State to the Senate for confirmation.
In Ogun, the President’s choice is a notable member of his campaign team who played a key role during the presidential elections.
But the controversial statements made by the APC chieftain, unnecessary face-offs with party stakeholders as well as what some termed his indecorous use of language on some ethnic nationalities during the election are among reasons his nomination is facing a stiff opposition, Saturday Sun has gathered.
In Bayelsa, the perceived loggerheads between former President Goodluck Jonathan, who was believed to have supported Tinubu during the election, and the APC governorship candidate in the November election in the state, Timipre Sylva, has been cited as one of the reasons for the delay in announcing the ministerial nominee from the state.
Sylva on the other hand, is the APC leader in Bayelsa State, who also played a key role in Tinubu’s victory.
“But both parties will soon reach a compromise. Otherwise the President would make his choice,” a source told the reporter.
It was further gathered that the case of Kano is even dicier and has so far defied solutions. Sources told Saturday Sun that a former governor in the state and Presidential candidate of the New Nigeria People’s Party, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso might have struck a deal with President, but the immediate-past governor of the State, Abdullahi Ganduje, is opposed to the arrangement.
Ganduje served as Kwankwaso’s deputy while the latter was governor of the state, but the two became bitter political enemies shortly after Ganduje succeeded Kwankwaso as governor.
As part of the ongoing negotiations, it was gathered that Kano State might get two ministerial slots, to enable Tinubu accommodate both Kwankwaso and Ganduje’s interests.
In Kebbi State, former governor Abubakar Atiku Bagudu, who worked for Tinubu’s emergence as President, is facing a stiff opposition over his inability to deliver the state to Tinubu and secure key National Assembly positions, is believed to have hampered his chances.
“If President Tinubu insists on him, the coast may be clear for the embattled former senator, who seems to have exhausted all his political cards,” a senior APC chieftain from the North West told Saturday Sun.
It was also gathered that the ministerial nominee from Kogi State was not in the 28-man list as a result of disagreements between Governor Yahaya Bello and Hon James Faleke, both of who are said to be involved in a tug of war.
Faleke, a Yoruba man from Kogi West, is scheming to serve in Tinubu’s administration, but Governor Bello, who also gave Tinubu maximum support during the campaign to be president, is insisting on having a say in who gets the ministerial slot in the state. It is unclear if Tinubu will accommodate the two contending interests to satisfy both parties.
There are also insinuations that in Yobe, immediate past Senate President, Dr Ahmad Lawan, Governor of the state, Mai Mala Buni, and former senator who represented Yobe North in 2015, Mohammed Hassan, are in a show of supremacy.
Although Lawan contested against Tinubu in the APC presidential primary election, his name has been mentioned as a contender for the ministerial slot in the state.
Governor Buni, who was also accused of working for Atiku Abubakar, is also battling to have his candidate nominated as minister. Hassan who was a prominent member of Tinubu’s campaign council, is also pushing to be nominated.
In Zamfara State, former Senator Kabiru Marafa and immediate-past governor of the state, Bello Matawalle, are battling to secure the only available slot.
Marafa served as State Campaign Coordinator for Tinubu in Zamfara State. The state also gave Tinubu the highest number of votes in the entire North West. It is unclear how Tinubu will navigate through the mines
Meanwhile, some key stakeholders who participated in the campaign of Tinubu, appear to have been sidelined.
For instance, Festus Keyamo, who was one of Tinubu’s most vocal spokesmen during the campaigns, seems to have missed out, as Stella Okotekpe’s name was among those sent to the Senate for screening and confirmation.
Similarly, APC spokesman, Felix Morka, as well as immediate-past Deputy President of the Senate, Ovie Omo-Agege, were also not in the list, contrary to the expectations of many.
In Ekiti State, two names that were touted to be in the list of ministerial nominees – former Governor Kayode Fayemi and former Senator and National Chairman of the South West Agenda for Tinubu (SWAGA), Dayo Adeyeye were conspicuously absent. But a party chieftain told Saturday Sun that one of the names might still make it to the ministerial list once the remaining names are transmitted to the Senate in the coming days.