President Tinubu Withdraws Appointees’ Nominations, Raising Questions About Coordination and Background Checks
Below is a list of appointees whose nominations were withdrawn by President Tinubu, and some possible reasons for their removal.
Barely six months after President Bola Ahmed Tinubu assumed office, the removal of appointees after their nomination has remained a topic of discussion in the political space, with many political bigwigs describing the trend as a lack of coordination and proper background checking before publicly making the announcement.
It is reported that amidst the controversy the development has generated, neither Tinubu nor his aides have publicly given reasons for the withdrawal of the appointees.
Below is a list of appointees whose nominations were withdrawn by President Tinubu:
Imam Kashim Imam: President Tinubu, on October Friday 13, appointed Imam Kashim Imam to serve as the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA).
Some individuals, like a former Minister of Aviation, Femi Fani-Kayode, and former Senator, Shehu Sani, commended Tinubu for the appointment.
Sadly, the presidency announced the removal of the 24-year-old fresh and first-class graduate of Engineering from Brighton University in the United Kingdom on Thursday, October 19.
Maryam Shetty: President Bola Tinubu in August withdrew the nomination of Maryam ‘Shetty’ Shettima as a ministerial nominee from Kano State.
In a letter sent to the Senate, the President replaced Shettima’s name with Dr Mairiga Mahmud without stating the reason for the withdrawal.
It was learnt that some bigwigs in the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) went against her nomination.
Abubakar Danladi: Danladi was the third ministerial nominee of President Tinubu that the Akpabio-led Senate failed to confirm during screening, citing some security concerns.
The Taraba State-born politician was reportedly barred from taking political office for ten years over alleged certificate forgery.
But Danladi refuted the claim, stressing that no court barred him from holding political office and that the rumour was being spread to present him in a bad light against his nomination by the President.
Nasir El-Rufai: The former governor of Kaduna State was nominated by President Tinubu to serve as federal minister, but the Senate rejected him during screening over issues bordering on security.
El-Rufai’s nomination was withdrawn after informing Tinubu that he was no longer interested in the position again, nominating his former commissioner for his replacement.
However, sources later claimed that some political bigwigs sponsored the security report against El-Rufai.
Possible Reasons for the Withdrawals:
While President Tinubu has not publicly given reasons for the withdrawal of any of his appointees, some possible explanations include:
Lack of coordination and proper background checks: Some observers believe that the withdrawals are a sign of a lack of coordination and proper background checks within the Tinubu administration.
This is supported by the fact that some of the appointees, such as Maryam Shetty, were reportedly nominated despite objections from within the ruling party.
Political pressure: It is also possible that some of the withdrawals were due to political pressure from within the Tinubu administration or from other political actors.
For example, it was reported that some APC bigwigs went against the nomination of Maryam Shetty.
Personal reasons: In some cases, it is possible that the appointees themselves withdrew their nominations for personal reasons.
For example, Nasir El-Rufai reportedly withdrew his nomination after informing Tinubu that he was no longer interested in the position.
Whatever the reasons for the withdrawals, they have raised questions about the Tinubu administration’s ability to make sound and timely decisions.
It remains to be seen whether the administration will be able to address these concerns.