Their political allegiance to President doubtful
Poor management of turn-key projects
Why more ministers ‘ll go – Presidency
BY ROTIMI DUROJAIYE
In a shocking move that ignited queries on the intention of his action, President Muhammadu Buhari, carried out a slight cabinet restructuring last Wednesday, with two ministers losing their jobs and two others reassigned.
Those dismissed were Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Mohammed Sabo Nanono, and Minister of Power, Saleh Mamman.
Minister of Environment, Mohammed Abubakar, was redeployed to MARD, while Minister of State for Works and Housing, Abubakar Aliyu, was elevated to Minister of Power.
That was the first time Buhari would wield the big baton on any of his ministers, before the end of their terms, since he came to power in 2015.
He had returned most of the ministers who served in his first tenure and posted them to the same ministries when he was re-elected in 2019.
However, sources revealed that more heads are expected to roll as Buhari begins an exceptional move to weed out non-performing ministers from his cabinet.
Both Nanono and Mamman are long-time associates of the president.
Presidency sources revealed that those penciled down to be axed were more than the two eased out and that more ministers would be shown the exit any moment from now.
“The president was deliberate in assigning portfolios to the two men. Mamman, from Taraba State, was expected to get the Mambilla power project up and going, himself being from the area. But up to this moment, nothing tangible is achieved in that regard
“
Although, the president said the changes were part of his administration’s strategy of independent self-review, however, The Point can report authoritatively that four factors accounted for the ministers’ sack.
According to highly-placed sources in government, some of the reasons are: non-performance; political allegiance and doubtful loyalty to the President; poor management of turn-key projects; and alleged corruption.
A source, who pleaded not to be named because of the “sensitivity” of the matter, said many of the 43 ministers have failed to live up to expectations in the assessment of the presidency.
“Some of the ministers are yet to understand their mandates after being in office for two and a half years,” the source added.
A presidential aide said Buhari was “particularly disappointed” in Nanono and Mamman, going by the premium he placed on the two ministers and their ministries.
“The president was deliberate in assigning portfolios to the two men. Mamman, from Taraba State, was expected to get the Mambilla power project up and going, himself being from the area. But up to this moment, nothing tangible is achieved in that regard.
“The choice of Nanono to superintend agriculture ministry flowed from the same principle. As a seasoned farmer himself and someone from Kano, he was expected to reposition the sector and help government’s diversification mantra,” the source said.
An operator, who pleaded to remain anonymous, also alleged that the sacked power minister never added value to the sector.
According to the player “Mamman was just a stumbling block in the system. The president told him to set up a board for the Transmission Commission of Nigeria, but he was just foot-dragging. Also he wasn’t willing to support Siemens and he kept foot-dragging as well.
“We hold regular meetings with the Central Bank of Nigeria on the power sector, where we always have top officials of the CBN, but he hardly attended.
“We also met with the Minister of Finance and officials of the Debt Management Office, but he was hardly in attendance. All our challenges, he is not the one resolving them; it is either the CBN Governor or Minister of Finance.”
Similarly, commenting on the sack of Nanono, an operator in the agriculture sector said he (Nanono) was never fit for the role. The source also preferred to remain anonymous.
The source also noted the recent stockpiling of some agricultural produce by the FMARD under Nanono, which contributed to inflationary pressure in the country.
Nanono was reported to have awarded contracts to some organisations to mop up some commodities, including maize, sorghum and rice and the move led to increase in the price of maize and rice.
The arrangement, which was termed, “Emergency Procurement,” had contradicted efforts by policymakers in the country to tame inflation.
Controversial N30m mosque project
Nanono was sacked months after a memo conveying his approval of N30m for the construction of a ‘Friday’ mosque for herders in Borno State became public knowledge.
The memo, dated December 10, 2020, which leaked in May 2021, showed that FMARD under Nanono approved the contract of the building of the mosque to El-Shukhur Multi-Buz Nig. Ltd, despite the fact that there was no provision for it in the 2020 budget.
Many Nigerians had flayed Nanono for the action of building a mosque for herders with taxpayers’ funds, saying he should also build a church for displaced Christians and a shrine for displaced traditionalists.
FMARD under Nanono had confirmed the leaked memo as being authentic and stressed that it built the mosque for livestock farmers sacked from their settlements by Boko Haram insurgents in Borno State.
“To put the facts straight, the memo is authentic and appropriate in all ramifications. It is original and was issued by the ministry for the construction of a worship centre for a community of livestock farmers who were sacked and displaced in Borno State by Boko Haram insurgents and are being resettled in Ngarannam/Mafa Local Government, Borno State,” the Director of Information, FMARD, Theodore Ogaziechi, had said in a statement.
Nanono’s blueprint for agriculture
Nanono assumed duty on August 21, 2019, at the ministry of agriculture after a sloppy ratification process at the Senate ministerial screening session.
He was asked by the senators to “take a bow and go” because of his affiliation with some lawmakers, under the claim of having wide experience and deep knowledge of the sector.
Based on this, many Nigerians were robbed of knowing Nanono’s blueprint for the country’s agricultural sector.
On assumption at the ministry where he addressed reporters at that time, rather than sharing his plans for the sector, Nanono said hunger in Nigeria “cannot be compared to what is obtained in other countries,” and that efforts should be made by the Nigerian government to assist other countries in food supply.
“There is no hunger in Nigeria compared to what I saw in India in 1973. What we need is to get our acts together and develop the sector,” he said.
Prior to his appointment, President Buhari on August 20, 2019, had ordered the partial closure of the country’s land borders to curb smuggling and as well boost local production of agricultural commodities.
The borders were reopened more than a year later amid the exponential spike in the prices of food, increased calls for reopening of the borders and the imminent takeoff of the African Continental Free Trade Area Agreement in January this year.
While the rise in the prices of significant staple foods still subsist, the country’s agricultural sector witnessed little or no improvement under the watch of Nanono before his sack.
Upon resumption, the former minister who hails from Kano expressed high hopes of moving Nigeria’s agricultural sector forward. This, he said, would require the commitment of all, in order to leave his mark in the annals of the country’s history.
While receiving briefings from agricultural research agencies, Nanono promised to revamp the agricultural research institutes across the country to promote sectoral growth and food security in the country.
“I want to be very serious with the research institutes, so that they will research on improved seeds that will be suitable to our environment, as the institutes are the engine of growth in the sector,” he was quoted to have said.
Known for his mantra and affinity for commercial agriculture implementation in Nigeria, the former minister had promised to create over 300,000 jobs via this means, in the bid to mitigate the high level of unemployment in the country.
On his return to Nigeria from Hungary, he commissioned the Hungarian Demonstration plot established at the headquarters of the National Agricultural Seed Council, on October 17 2020.
The 0.4 hectare land commissioned was used to demonstrate the effect of the Hungarian agric invention called Water Retainer (an organic soil conditioner) which involves two Hungarian hybrid maize varieties and two tomato varieties.
With the cooperation of the National Horticultural Research Institute, and supervision of the Hungarian Agricultural Innovation Centre, the official trials of the tomato varieties were to commence in 2021.
More so, before the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, the agriculture ministry flagged off a soft loan scheme with the hope of boosting food crop production and agricultural mechanisation.
This involved the distribution of more than 10,000 tractors, fertilisers, chemicals and seedlings to farmers in the 774 LGAs in Nigeria.
“What we need is that the beneficiaries must be genuine farmers and natives of the participating local councils,” Nanono had said at the time.
In a similar manner, the FMARD initiated the mechanisation hubs in 650 local governments to support the farming communities.
“The mechanisation hubs which will be stocked with modern farming equipment, like tractors, power tiller, and harvesters among others, will also serve as centres for training the farmers on modern farming techniques,” the former minister noted.
Eventually, the Federal Executive Council approved a loan facility of $1.2 billion to finance the mechanisation of agriculture in the country.
Moreover, to enhance farmers’ access to agricultural financing in the country, the federal government earmarked N600 billion for the sector.
While the COVID-19 lockdown measures imposed by the federal government took a toll on agricultural activities and food systems, the government launched the Agriculture for Food and Job Plan, a component of the Nigeria Economic and Sustainability Plan, to cushion the impacts of the pandemic on the farmers and the economy.
“Despite the investment in the sector before and during Nanono’s reign at the ministry, available data shows that agriculture has grown at the weakest rate under the Buhari administration than any other government since the return of democracy in 1999
“
Also, upon the commencement of last year’s planting season, the National Agricultural Seed Council certified 81,000 metric tons of seeds across the country, so as to enable farmers’ easy access to viable and high yielding inputs at affordable prices.
In addition, President Buhari had directed Nanono and other key players of the sector to join the already existing 12-member Presidential Task Force for COVID-19.
The former minister later flagged off the distribution of agricultural inputs to Nigerian farmers across the country.
This, he said, was aimed at boosting agricultural production in the country and averting food scarcity in 2021.
Some of the inputs distributed to the smallholder farmers include varieties of rice, maize, and wheat seeds including cocoa and palm seedlings, among others.
Lack of agricultural policy
Despite the investment in the sector before and during Nanono’s reign at the ministry, available data shows that agriculture has grown at the weakest rate under the Buhari administration than any other government since the return of democracy in 1999.
An analysis of the country’s gross domestic products by Statisense, a data analysis platform, showed that the sector grew at an average of 15 per cent in the past five years of this government.
When compared with past administrations, the sector grew by 133 per cent under the Obasanjo administration; 19.1 per cent under President Musa Yar’adua’s short tenure and 22.2 per cent under Jonathan’s government.
However, in terms of the agricultural sector’s contribution to the Gross Domestic Product, the Buhari administration was reported to have done so far better than only the Jonathan administration, based on an analysis by an online publication.
Data evaluated by the medium shows that the sector contributed an average of 27.5 per cent under President Obasanjo, 25.6 per cent under President Yar’adua, 21.75 per cent under President Jonathan and 21.90 per cent under President Buhari.
With the expiration of the Agricultural Promotion Policy last December, Nigeria currently does not have any officially communicated agricultural policy under Nanono.
The medium reported that even when it is glaring that Nigeria’s agriculture sector has the potential to reduce unemployment rate in the country, there is no clear evidence that the former minister fulfilled his promise of creating sufficient jobs through the agriculture mechanisation initiative, and many more initiatives as promised.
While it is clear that the APP policy document which lapsed last year has not fulfilled its purpose, a big proportion of foods consumed in Nigeria are still being imported, without any significant foreign exchange earnings being made from agriculture.
Lack of database for farmers
A publication by an online medium which exposed illicit transactions flows across ministries and their MDAs, discovered that between September and December last year, a total of N3.08 billion was paid into the private accounts of 42 staffers of the MARD under Nanono.
The publication observed that several fund disbursements by the nation’s agriculture headquarters were done through duplicated payments, some for similar purposes to some staffers.
Despite the continuous claims of subsiding of farm inputs for easy access by Nigerian farmers in different zones of the country by the federal government, many smallholder farmers still lamented lack of access to inputs and subventions.
Also, there seemed to be no distinct database for Nigerian farmers that can serve as a guide to initiate policies that can effectively and efficiently drive sustainable agricultural practices.
Mamman shocked
For Mamman, the former power minister, he did not expect to be shown the door, therefore, was shocked at receiving the news.
There was a rumour that Mamman collapsed and was admitted to a hospital in Abuja after he received the news of his dismissal.
But in an interview with BBC Hausa at the weekend, the former minister, who said he had been ill, dismissed the rumour, saying he did not faint, neither was he hospitalised.
He explained why he stayed away from his residence after his sacking by Buhari.
Mamman said he had been suffering from an illness before the incident and that when he went to the doctor for a check-up, he was advised to take a rest.
“Even before this sack was announced, I was very unwell because I did not even go to the office earlier this week,” he said.
“So yesterday, Wednesday and Thursday, I also went back to the hospital for a check-up, and the doctor told me I needed a break so I remained at one place to rest. I found a serene and quiet environment to rest and take medication as recommended by the doctor. I didn’t stay at home because sympathizers are trooping to console me; this would prevent me from resting and convalescing on time.
“But I was also not hospitalised, and I did not faint as reported.”
The sacked minister has also been reported to be nursing governorship ambition in Taraba State by 2023.
While speaking with youth groups and other key stakeholders in Jalingo in October last year, Mamman had said that no government in the history of this country has done for the youth what the current administration of President Muhammadu Buhari is accomplishing through its numerous intervention programmes.
In the power sector, Mamman had said five million solar home projects would be implemented through the Economic Sustainability Plan targeting mostly the rural population.
“Already plans are ongoing to kick start this and it is being designed to ensure that majority of the firms and the installers are Nigerian youths. This is also part of the commitment of President Muhammadu Buhari’s focus on lifting 100 million people out of poverty within 10 years,” the sacked minister had said.
He had also said the president’s directive on mass metering programmes for the power sector which has already started across the country was another avenue for the youths to benefit.
Sources said under his administration, the power sector has been in comatose and the separation of the former Ministry of Power, Works and Housing under Babatunde Fashola was thought to provide some leeway in the sector.
“Shortly after being appointed, Mamman ordered the suspension of the then Managing Director of the Rural Electrification Agency, Damilola Ogunbiyi, and asked for the immediate stepping down of the Managing Director of the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading Plc, Marilyn Amobi
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Mamman’s two years journey came with intrigue and drama characterised by cluelessness, especially in the areas of policy and regulatory issues.
Shortly after being appointed, Mamman ordered the suspension of the then Managing Director of the Rural Electrification Agency, Damilola Ogunbiyi, and asked for the immediate stepping down of the Managing Director of the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading Plc, Marilyn Amobi.
The development created tension and disconnection in the administration as the president reversed the decision shortly after the announcement was made.
His reorganisation agenda also led to the sack of the then Managing Director of Transmission Company of Nigeria, Muhammed Gur.
Being from Taraba, the former minister resuscitated the Mambilla power plant but the hope of the project has been in limbo as the development has been more of talk than work.
Described as an alley of the former Chief of Staff to the President, late Abba Kyari, most stakeholders believe that the demise of Kyari was the beginning of the troubles for Mamman.
While the increase in tariff was pursued with vigour during his two years in office and mass metering introduced on the condition that there would be an increase in electricity supply, Mamman had earlier in the year apologised to Nigerians over the current power outages and shortages in various parts of the country.
This was in addition to repeated grid collapse.
Former chairman of Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission, Sam Amadi, said sacking ofMamman was a good decision.
“He has not shown any leadership in the sector. He did not show the capacity to drive up the performance of the agencies and entities in the market,” Amadi was quoted as saying.
According to Amadi, Mamman “basically failed,” describing his performance as “woeful.”
He noted that the removal may signal that the government really wants to do its best to solve the crisis of the sector, adding it would be a shame if Buhari fails after eight years to crack the riddle of the power sector.
Amadi noted that the new minister has an enormous responsibility, stressing that he would be taking over at a time when trust in the sector is very low and the crisis of financial viability and service delivery is also low.
“He needs to quickly up the trust quotient and reshape expectation and engender commitment by the stakeholder, especially new and old investors. He has to restore regulatory independence and improve policy guidance in the sector,” Amadi noted.
It was reported recently that the NERC has approved an upward review of electricity tariffs in the country.
The decision by the commission was communicated in a document to electricity distribution companies.
The increment was confirmed in a document from the Eko Electricity Distribution Company, dated August 25, 2021, with reference number 023/EKEDP/GMCLR/0025/2021.
The document stated that the tariffs would increase between N42.44 and N58.94, depending on their class.
The new increment is expected to remain implemented till December before a further increase in January 2022.
According to the statement from Eko DisCo, “This is to officially notify you that there will be an increase in electricity tariff with effect from 1st September 2021. This increase is as a result of nationwide mandate to implement the Service-Based Tariff approved by our regulator NERC.’’
Eko DisCo also informed its metered customers on new increment.
The company said for metered customers with internal vending arrangements, the rates will be adjusted accordingly to reflect the new tariff increase as released by NERC.
