Buhari’s order to Ministers: I’m not in a hurry to resign, says Ngige

 

 

Obiorah Ifoh

Labour Minister Chris Ngige who seeks to be president but has yet to purchase his nomination form of N100m, has said he would consult Buhari and his constituency on whether to resign

 

Minister of Labour and Employment, Senator Chris Ngige, has reacted to President Muhamadu Buhari’s directive that all ministers vying for any elective office in 2023 should resign.

 

This is as Minister of State for Education, Emeka Nwajiuba; Minister of  Science and  Technology, Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu,and his counterpart in the  Niger Delta Ministry, Senator Godswill Akpabio,  have thrown in the towels ahead of May 16 deadline.

 

It would be recalled that President Muhammadu Buhari at the Federal Executive Council, FEC, meeting on Wednesday told cabinet members who have declared their presidential ambition to resign before Monday, May 16.

 

Reacting, Ngige said he is not in a hurry to resign from his appointment and that he has to consult with President Muhamadu Buhari and his constituents before tendering any resignation letter.

According to him, Buhari gave a window for those that need clarifications on his pronouncement to meet him.

“I have no reaction for now because the President said if anyone wants clarifications, the person should meet him.

 

“So I have to consult him and consult my constituents, Anambra state because I am holding the office for the government and my constituents,” Vanguard quoted him as saying.

Recall that President Muhammadu Buhari had directed all ministers seeking elective public office to resign before May 16.

 

This was disclosed by the information minister, Lai Mohammed, at the end of Wednesday’s Federal Executive Council meeting presided over by Buhari.

 

However, Barely two hours after President Muhammadu Buhari ordered his appointees interested in elective offices to leave his cabinet, Minister of State for Education, Emeka Nwajiuba, has resigned his appointment.

The Minister, who was first to drop the sum of N100m for the APC Presidential forms, resigned to devote more time and energy to pursue his political ambition.

Minister of State for Education, Emeka Nwajiuba, has resigned his position in the cabinet of President Muhammadu Buhari in line with the presidential directive for all ministers interested in the 2023 elections to leave.

 

Buhari had directed that all members of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) running for elective offices to submit their letters of resignation on or before Monday the 16th of May, 2022.

According to the Nigerian Lawyer, Buhari singled out the Minister of State for Education, Emeka Nwajiuba for braving the odds to quit to avoid conflict of interest, and said: “I expect other members of this council seeking to be President to resign with immediate effect.”

 

The Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Sen. Godswill Akpabio has become the second cabinet member to resign his appointment in pursuit of his presidential ambition in 2023.

 

Disclosing Akpabio’s resignation in a statement made available on Wednesday night, Chief Press Secretary to the Minister on Media, Jackson Udom, confirmed that: “the Minister has resigned. He has submitted his resignation letter to the SGF. We are waiting for him at the ICC, where he is coming to submit his nomination form”.

 

The statement strongly debunked rumours that Akpabio has withdrawn from the 2023 presidential race, adding that “he will soon submit his nomination form at the International Conference Centre, Abuja, in line with his party’s guidelines”.

 

“Our attention has been drawn to mischievously written news stories making the rounds by paid agents of some politicians, that the leading presidential aspirant, Senator Godswill Akpabio, has purportedly withdrawn from the presidential race. This is a joke carried too far.

“This is certainly the handiwork of those who are scared of contesting  against Senator Godswill Akpabio.

 

“Senator Akpabio has resigned his appointment as Minister, Niger Delta Affairs Ministry and will soon submit his nomination form at the International Conference Centre, Abuja, in line with his party’s guidelines.

 

“For those behind this lies and falsehood, we advise that they should learn to live with the reality, that Senator  Akpabio is fully in the race, not only for the All Progressives Congress (APC) ticket, but to emerge the next democratically elected President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria,” the statement added.

Also, The Minister of Science and Technology, Ogbonnaya Onu, has followed the directive of the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.) which asked that all members of his cabinet and appointees vying for electoral offices resign on or before May 16, 2022.

 

However, highly reliable sources within the office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation and the Ministry of science and technology confirmed that the minister had indeed dropped his resignation.

“The minister was at the office of the SGF to drop his resignation. That was expected seeing as the president asked that they all should resign”, one source said.

 

However, The Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja has declared the provision of Section 84(12) of the Electoral Act 2022 unconstitutional.

The appellate court, however, set aside the judgment of the Federal High Court in Umuahia that voided the controversial provision.

The judgement was on the appeal marked: CA/OW/87/2022 filed by the PDP.

Justice Hamma Akawu Barka, who headed the three-man panel of the appellate court, on Wednesday, held that the provision was unconstitutional.

According to the panel, which heard the appeal on merit, the provision violated Section 42 (1)(a) of the Constitution as it denied “a class of Nigerian citizens their right to participate in election.”

The Section 84(12) of the Electoral Act read: “No political appointee at any level shall be a voting delegate or be voted for at the convention or congress of any political party for the purpose of the nomination of candidates for any election.”

Ruling on the suit marked: FHC/UM/CS/26/2022 which Nduka Edede filed before the Umuahia court, Justice Barka held that the Federal High Court Umuahia had no jurisdiction to have entertained the case.

The panel held that Edede lacked the locus standi to have filed the suit in the first place.

The court noted that the plaintiff did not establish any cause of action to have warranted his approaching the court on the issue.

Justice Barka said the plaintiff did not establish that he was directly affected by the provision.

 

Meanwhile, The national leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has said that he will congratulate the winner and return home if he loses the presidential ticket of the party.

The ruling party had slated its presidential primary for May 30 2022.

The former Lagos governor will be contesting the APC ticket along Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, Rotimi Ameachi, Chief Timipre Sylva, Dave Umahi and 23 other party chieftains.

Speaking with newsmen after submitting Tinubu’s presidential nomination forms on Wednesday in Abuja, former Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) Babachir Lawal, who led the Tinubu Support Group (TSG) alongside Governor Babatunde Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State and James Faleke, expressed confidence that their principal will defeat other aspirants.

When asked to explain what Tinubu meant in a statement that he will go back home if beaten, the former SGF boss said: “He’s a democrat. Every politician should not be afraid of the election because the probabilities are two: either you win or lose. So, if we lose at the convention, we go back home, we lick our wounds and prepare to support the winner if he emerges in a free and fair manner.

“There are no challenges. We are politicians; we have been in this game for many years, whatever challenges there are, we’ve already converted them into opportunities.”

Lawal said President Muhammadu Buhari’s directive on ambitious Ministers to resign was not a threat to his principal?

“How can it be a threat? The more the merrier. We are democrats and we believe that if there are one million contestants on the platform of APC, we will carry majority of the delegates at the convention. So, the more the merrier, they are all welcome.

“Well, we feel elated that today we have come to submit the winning form and we have complied with one of the major requirements of the party for contesting for presidency on the platform of APC. We’ve done all that is required; we’ve submitted all the required documents as you can see, we have received our acknowledgement copy and we’re confidence victory will be ours come 30th May during the convention.”

Also, the National Chairmam of Zenith LABOUR Party, Chief Dan Nwanyanwu has applauded President Muhammadu Buhari for ordering political appointees in his government to tender their resignation.

 

In a statement he issued Wednesday, Chief Nwanyanwu Congratulates “President Muhammadu Buhari and the Federal Executive Council for directing all political appointees interested in contesting any elective office in 2023 to resign on or before Monday 16.

 

“This came a week after the NEC of ZLP called on the president to ask such appointees to resign.

 

“This is President Muhammadu Buhari  I know that listens.This decision is supported by morality and conscience.”