A Senator of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Dino Melaye, is insisting on the sacking or voluntary resignation of the economic team of the Nigerian President, saying the current economic hardship does not represent the party’s campaign promises.
The Senator, who is from Kogi State, said that his political affiliation should not be considered, as he was only concerned about what will make the lives of Nigerians better.
“It is about the survival of democracy, the Nigerian populace and having a just and egalitarian society.
“There is no policy direction of the economic team. We have not seen anything that will show as hope for the revival of the economy.
“I am a proud member of the APC and I am very confident of my loyalty to my party, but what we have at hand… with most of the Ministers it is a matter of double jeopardy. No capacity no capability,” he stressed.
Economic Hardship
Asked why the Senate could not identify the capacity of the individuals before their names were approved, Senator Melaye explained that the names came without portfolios and that it was difficult to base screening on particular expertise.
“We were screening them without knowing the ministries they were going to man.”
He pointed out that with the economic hardship Nigerians were facing, “it is no longer about your political party. It is about the survival of this country and about the masses of the country”.
‘Competence For The Office’
On the positions of the members of the economic team the Senator pointed out that he had no personal condemnation of any individual, but stressed that he was only being truthful.
“I have no problem with anyone of them, but the truth need to be told. It has no colour.
“The Budget and Planning Ministry is the soul of any government or economy and you need somebody who has expertise in public finance and somebody who specialises in development economics to man the place
“Udo Udoma is a gentleman, a wonderful lawyer and a great Nigerian, but that does not translate into competence for the office he finds himself.
“Now, you bring a lawyer to become the Minister of National Planning, that is giving carpentry job to a tailor, he will never succeed”.
On the position of the Finance Minister, Senator Melaye said that Mrs Kemi Adeosun had appeared before the Senate on two different occasions and that from his assessment, she lacked needed competence to handle the position.
“From my personal assessment, she does not have the competence.
“How many million dollars’ portfolio has she handled or managed before becoming the Minister of Finance. The Finance Minister should be someone that can take us out of the woods.
“We cannot continue to operate in an experimental level that is not working,” he insisted.
The Senator lamented about the nature of things, stressing that Nigerians are facing untold hardship with an unknown end.
“You need to understand the hunger that is out there.
“I have a role to play in the success of the party. It is in response to the promise we made to Nigerians.
“There is hunger. There is poverty,” he emphasised, hinging his demand for the team’s sacking on these factors.
Refuse To Be Distracted
Senator Melaye’s comments have continued to draw diverse views, with another lawmaker with the House of Representatives, Honourable Abdulmumin Jibrin, who is also a member of the APC, defending the President and his team.
Honourable Jibrin, who was the former Chairman of the Appropriation Committee in the House of Representatives, said that the President was not to blame on the state of Nigeria’s economy.
In a statement he said: “It is unfair and very wicked to push such blame on a man who just came on board barely a year ago.
“Not even a magician can turn around the economy within a period of one year.
“The biggest spending in our economy, that is the budget, hasn’t even run a full course of one year. Yet, some people want to crucify President Muhammadu Buhari. Haba! Let’s face reality!
“We all know how badly oil price has gone, a situation that adversely affected our foreign reserves and mounted pressure on the naira.
“No matter what approach we adopt to manage and deal with the situation, recovery will be slow. It is not President Buhari’s fault.
“Everyone seems to forget when the whole country was supporting more spending as against saving. But here we are today, soaked in the rainy day. President Buhari should not be used as anybody’s scape goat,” he insisted.
On the competence of the ministers the lawmaker countered Senator Melaye’s claims, saying that “a minister doesn’t have to know everything.
“A minister has an ample latitude to draw knowledge from the MDAs staff or within the larger society to achieve result in his ministry.
“I believe that most of the present cabinet ministers can source information or knowledge from these reservoirs when the need arises.
“I have worked very closely with most of them and I am convinced that they have proved their mettle despite managing a very difficult situation that they did not create.
“I am sure nobody can question the competence of Udoma Udoma. Finance Minister Kemi Adeosun is also doing her best, and having worked with her, I am convinced she has all it takes to turn around the economy.
“The Central Bank Governor is managing the most challenging period the apex bank has ever witnessed.
“I think the president has worked with this team for about a year. His cabinet team understands him better and vice-versa”.
He expressed the belief that if the economic team stayed focused and refused to be distracted, Nigerians would begin to see the dividends.
Honourable Jibrin then urged President Buhari not to fall for the trap of people trying to distort the progress made so far.
“Whoever he appoints again, the call for sack will never stop,” he added.
