President Muhammadu Buhari of Nigeria

Buhari: A Personal Cabinet

At last, the month most Nigerians have been expecting is here and they are waiting for the man of the moment to unveil his dream team. While there is a cautious and somewhat sanctimonious air to Buhari's delays and appointments thus far, the president made it clear in a recent interview that his appointments have been, and would continue to be, compensatory and personal. He suggested that his appointments are skewed to benefit those who stuck by him through thick and thin during his political journey. The appointments also seem to favour those that were most strident in criticizing the former government of President Jonathan. While there is nothing wrong in appointing loyal associates; cliquism and exclusivity might destroy the best of intentions in a multi-ethnic and multi-cultural society such as Nigeria. If according to the president: 'I appointed those I could trust' - does PMB bother about those who could trust him? 

When our leaders have to explain their actions or inactions as it affects the country, they cite examples from well-articulated 'democracies' to explain their inadequacies.  Buhari recently defended why it has taken him so long to appoint a cabinet by comparing his actions to that of Obama's USA.  Buhari said "…when cabinet ministers are appointed in September, it will be some months after I took the oath of office. It is worth noting that Obama himself did not have his full cabinet in place for several months after first taking office; the United States did not cease to function in the interim.” But comparing the Nigerian and American political process is disingenuous. For one, America is not in such a desperate situation as Nigeria. Their society virtually functions on autopilot because intrinsic in the American socio-political system are mechanisms for checking inefficiency, corruption, evaluation of progress and implementation of policies. Most of their institutions are in private hands with government acting as regulators. This is the reason why the fundamentals of American foreign, economic, internal, defence and trade policies have been linear since it became a superpower - irrespective of who is president. The president can therefore afford more time for deliberation in appointing a cabinet without grinding the engine of state to a halt. Having said that, the United States President wastes no time, when it comes to what is most important to his presidency. Obama, for example, hit the ground running when it came to the provision of universal health care for Americans. After the ineffective Jonathan government, one expected Buhari to have taken actions that would give some respite to the suffering masses of Nigeria but it all became a waiting game. 

Nigeria has been in the doldrums for over three decades and PMB has been part of this history as a soldier who served in various capacities, including head of state. He has a vantage position to know who to appoint to get the best results - depending on what is most important to get Nigeria out of its mess. But PMB has busied himself with being retributive to the Jonathan led government. The most important credential for you to have in Nigerian politics today is to be known to have opposed Jonathan and supported Buhari. Those calling the shots in Nigeria's political firmament never accepted Jonathan as a bonafide president. Jonathan was thus without a real power base and had to quickly build one or get lonely. He surrounded himself with those he can 'work with' without checks or control. Without political backbone, and surrounded by self-serving officials, Jonathan became a weak and rather indecisive president. However, all of Jonathan's faults are simply symptoms of a deeper malady buried within the Nigerian socio-political structure. 

PMB has started off, after a long delay, on the same course as Jonathan, by appointing a 'personal' cabinet he can work with. A personal cabinet dominated by northern elements with token compensatory roles for the other geopolitical zones of the country. Theoretically, it does not matter where cabinet ministers come from, as long as they serve the people. The problem with Nigeria is that, serving the people is the least of our cabinet minister's worries. The hope is that PMB's dream team ultimately brings us sweet dreams. But in a society with 'oga' syndrome, an illiterate electorate, profound rich-poor gap and massive unemployment, the dream team might become dreamers while the majority of Nigerians are having nightmares.

email: jrotimibgood@gmail.com