The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Senator Abdullahi Adamu, has cautioned party chieftains against nursing high expectations of being appointed as ministers by President Bola Tinubu, saying everybody can’t be a cabinet member.
Adamu also used the opportunity to explain the delay in the unveiling of the President’s ministers and heads of ministries, departments and agencies, saying Tinubu was carrying out an extensive consultation before making an official announcement.
The former Nasarawa State governor stated these at the meeting of the National Working Committee and APC state chairmen at the national secretariat of the party in Abuja on Monday.
The meeting, which started at about 1.55pm, was attended by a delegation of 32 members of the Forum of APC Chairmen, including their leader, Ali Dalori, and acting Secretary, Alphonsus Ogah.
Addressing the party chieftains, Adamu said, “Every APC member has an inherent right to hope to get some patronage. We cannot all be ministers of the government. We cannot all end up as board members, directors of parastatals and MDAs across the country.
“The President has just started. He is doing his extensive consultations before coming up with his nominees for ministers. The nomination of the ministers will come first. They will go through their screening until they are pronounced after they have been submitted before Mr President. He will formally appoint his ministers and swear them in. Only then will he disclose each of them to the country to know which minister is going to which ministry and how many ministries we are going to have.
“After that is done, the ministers will assume office, make a comprehensive report, starting from all the ministries and MDAs under them, before we know what vacancies exist for chief executives, directors and part-time directors.
“These are some of the exercises that will take place in the next two months. It cannot happen by next week. But certainly, that is what we should be expecting.”
The APC chair, nevertheless, expressed optimism that Tinubu would consider party loyalists at both state and national levels for appointments.
“But we do expect some patronage from the government that we are forming. It is our hope and prayers that Mr President will come along with us in that regard and strengthen the relationship of the party in the states and at the national level will enjoy some level of patronage in the new government.
“Those are the key issues that we do hope to share with you in the course of this meeting,” Adamu said.
Meanwhile, Adamu decried the abduction of Ekiti APC Chairman, Paul Omotosho, by gunmen suspected to be kidnappers.
This was even as he prayed for the quick recovery of ailing Ondo State Governor, Rotimi Akeredolu.
Omotosho was kidnapped on Saturday evening along Agbado–Imesi-Ekiti Road in the Gbonyin Local Government Area of Ekiti State while driving to his hometown.
In what some sources alleged to be an ambush, the APC chairman was forced out of his Toyota Hilux and whisked away.
Akeredolu, on the other hand, has reportedly gone abroad on medical vacation.
Prior to his trip, the governor had handed power over to his deputy, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, in an acting capacity.