How lawyers ‘invaded’ Buhari’s ministerial list
The presence of many lawyers in President Muhammadu
Buhari’s freshly-minted cabinet is generating a lot of interest, as
Daily Trust found out.
Nigerians subjected the list of President Muhammadu Buhari’s
36 ministerial nominees to scrutiny, immediately underscoring
the fact that there are ten of them with legal background. This
means out of every three ministers, there is at least one who is
a lawyer. Almost five of them are Senior Advocates of Nigeria
(SANs). For starters, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo is a lawyer
and the Chief of Staff to the president, Malam Abba Kyari, is
also one. Also, a good number of the president’s aides are said
to be lawyers, marking the first time in the history of Nigeria that
the Federal Executive Council will be markedly populated by a
large number of professionals from a particular sector.
Barrister Hussaini Muhammad, a legal practitioner in Jos, told
Daily Trust that there is wisdom in the president’s choices. “I’m
sure the president wants people who will reduce heavy workload
from his table, who have ample knowledge of legal technicalities
and implications of every action. Remember, since he was
sworn in, he has been preoccupied by efforts to right wrongs of
the past. Look at the probes going on in various sectors. I think
the president wants people that will do things right,” he said.
On the appropriateness of the composition, Comrade Farouk
Akanbi, a former chairman of the Nigerian Labour Congress
(NLC) in Kwara Sate, said: “It is not always easy to determine
the appropriateness or otherwise of a cabinet from nominations
or composition. One thing that is clearly shown is that the
nominees are drawn from diverse political backgrounds, bearing
in mind that the APC ab initio was an amalgamation of several
political parties, which some have described as the coming
together of strange bedfellows.”
Malam Garba Shehu, Senior Special Assistant to the President
on Media recently said appointing ministers is not easy. “It’s
not as easy as appointing a new head boy for a secondary
school. There are so many interests to balance in addition to the
kind of quality that would measure up to the high standard that
the president has set for the administration,” he said.
When Daily Trust pointed out the apparent pattern to Special
Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi
Adesina, he said it was not deliberate that President Buhari
appointed many lawyers as ministers. The presidential
spokesman stated this in a telephone interview yesterday, and
he emphasised that it was coincidence. “It could not have been
deliberate. I think it is just coincidental,” he said.
Many legal practitioners spoken to by Daily Trust expressed
approval at the development, with one who chose to remain
anonymous saying: “This ‘invasion’ of sorts is quite welcome.
Lawyers are usually high quality professionals, so it’s not
surprising that the president picked many from our ranks.”
Abubakar Malami (SAN):
He is a constitutional lawyer, and he is among those who played
prominent roles in the formation of the APC in 2013. Following
the delay in registering the party, he told the Independent
National Electoral Commission (INEC) that the merging political
parties seeking to be registered as APC have crossed
constitutional hurdles.
Lai Mohammed:
He is a lawyer by profession who become famous being the
APC’s spokesman, was unexpected on the ministerial list. As an
outspoken lawyer, he has defended the actions - and inaction -
of his party. During his screening at the Senate, Mohammed
famously told opposition PDP legislators that it will take them at
least ten years to come to terms with being in the opposition.
Babatunde Raji Fashola (SAN):
A former governor of Lagos, from May 29, 2007 to May 29,
2015, he is a notary public of the Supreme Court of Nigeria and
one of those that played active role in the formation of the APC.
Observers believe that his recent travails with the APC leader,
Bola Ahmed Tinubu, and Governor Ambode would scuttle his
dream of becoming a minister, but all that is now history.
Adebayo Shittu:
The Oyo State indigene has been among those speculated to be
ministers from day one. A lawyer, Shittu came to the APC from
the CPC wing and stood by his party firmly. He reportedly
refused to decamp, even when he contested and lost the
gubernatorial primary polls in the last election.
Mr. James Ocholi:
A former National Deputy Legal Adviser of the ruling All
Progressives Congress (APC), he contested for the governorship
ticket of the party in his state,Kogi, but lost to perennial
gubernatorial jostler Abubakar Audu. He was also a
governorship aspirant on the platform of the defunct Congress
for Progressive Change (CPC) in the state.
Solomon Dalong:
He is from Plateau State and a lawyer, activist and university
lecturer. He had stood by the minorities in Plateau State
throughout the crisis period. A serious supporter of President
Buhari, Dalong lost to the incumbent governor of the state
during primary elections. He had served in Buhari’s transition
committee.
Aisha Alhassan:
She was once the Taraba State Attorney General and
Commissioner of Justice and the first woman to be appointed as
Secretary, FCT Judicial Council and later appointed the Chief
Registrar of the High Court of the FCT. Popularly known as
‘Mama Taraba’, Alhassan almost made history as the first
female governor in Nigeria. She was a senator who represented
Taraba North constituency of Taraba State under the PDP but
later decamped to the APC and became the gubernatorial
candidate of Taraba State for the 2015 general elections. She
was defeated in the election re-run held on 25th of April 2015.
Dr. Ibe Kachikwu:
He is from Delta State and was recently appointed as the Group
Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum
Corporation (NNPC). Kachikwu was the Executive Vice Chairman
and General Counsel of Exxon-Mobil (Africa). He is a first class
graduate of law from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka and the
Nigerian Law School. The new NNPC chief executive also has
Master’s and doctorate degrees in Law from the Harvard Law
School.
Geoffrey Onyeama:
He is the Chair of the World Trade Organization Agreement on
Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights and holds
a Bachelor of Arts (BA), Political Science, Columbia University
(Columbia College), New York, USA, (1977); Bachelor of Arts
(BA), Law, Cambridge University (St. John’s College),
Cambridge, United Kingdom (1980); Master of Laws (LL.M),
Law, University of London (London School of Economics and
Political Science (LSE), London, United Kingdom (1982); Master
of Arts (MA), Law, Cambridge University (St. John’s College),
Cambridge, United Kingdom (1984). He was a Research Officer,
Nigerian Law Reform Commission, Lagos, Nigeria, (1983-1984)
and speaks English, French, German and Igbo.
Udo Udoma Udo:
Senator Udo Udoma was appointed Chairman of the Union Bank
of Nigeria Plc Board in 2013. He is an accomplished lawyer and
member of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA). He served in the
Nigerian Senate from 1999 to 2007 and led the Committees on
Appropriations, and National Planning during that period. He
was also the Senate Chief Whip between 2004 and 2007. He has
served on several national committees and also as the non-
executive Chairman of the Nigerian Securities and Exchange
Commission (SEC).
Abia gov. submits list of
Buhari’s freshly-minted cabinet is generating a lot of interest, as
Daily Trust found out.
Nigerians subjected the list of President Muhammadu Buhari’s
36 ministerial nominees to scrutiny, immediately underscoring
the fact that there are ten of them with legal background. This
means out of every three ministers, there is at least one who is
a lawyer. Almost five of them are Senior Advocates of Nigeria
(SANs). For starters, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo is a lawyer
and the Chief of Staff to the president, Malam Abba Kyari, is
also one. Also, a good number of the president’s aides are said
to be lawyers, marking the first time in the history of Nigeria that
the Federal Executive Council will be markedly populated by a
large number of professionals from a particular sector.
Barrister Hussaini Muhammad, a legal practitioner in Jos, told
Daily Trust that there is wisdom in the president’s choices. “I’m
sure the president wants people who will reduce heavy workload
from his table, who have ample knowledge of legal technicalities
and implications of every action. Remember, since he was
sworn in, he has been preoccupied by efforts to right wrongs of
the past. Look at the probes going on in various sectors. I think
the president wants people that will do things right,” he said.
On the appropriateness of the composition, Comrade Farouk
Akanbi, a former chairman of the Nigerian Labour Congress
(NLC) in Kwara Sate, said: “It is not always easy to determine
the appropriateness or otherwise of a cabinet from nominations
or composition. One thing that is clearly shown is that the
nominees are drawn from diverse political backgrounds, bearing
in mind that the APC ab initio was an amalgamation of several
political parties, which some have described as the coming
together of strange bedfellows.”
Malam Garba Shehu, Senior Special Assistant to the President
on Media recently said appointing ministers is not easy. “It’s
not as easy as appointing a new head boy for a secondary
school. There are so many interests to balance in addition to the
kind of quality that would measure up to the high standard that
the president has set for the administration,” he said.
When Daily Trust pointed out the apparent pattern to Special
Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi
Adesina, he said it was not deliberate that President Buhari
appointed many lawyers as ministers. The presidential
spokesman stated this in a telephone interview yesterday, and
he emphasised that it was coincidence. “It could not have been
deliberate. I think it is just coincidental,” he said.
Many legal practitioners spoken to by Daily Trust expressed
approval at the development, with one who chose to remain
anonymous saying: “This ‘invasion’ of sorts is quite welcome.
Lawyers are usually high quality professionals, so it’s not
surprising that the president picked many from our ranks.”
Abubakar Malami (SAN):
He is a constitutional lawyer, and he is among those who played
prominent roles in the formation of the APC in 2013. Following
the delay in registering the party, he told the Independent
National Electoral Commission (INEC) that the merging political
parties seeking to be registered as APC have crossed
constitutional hurdles.
Lai Mohammed:
He is a lawyer by profession who become famous being the
APC’s spokesman, was unexpected on the ministerial list. As an
outspoken lawyer, he has defended the actions - and inaction -
of his party. During his screening at the Senate, Mohammed
famously told opposition PDP legislators that it will take them at
least ten years to come to terms with being in the opposition.
Babatunde Raji Fashola (SAN):
A former governor of Lagos, from May 29, 2007 to May 29,
2015, he is a notary public of the Supreme Court of Nigeria and
one of those that played active role in the formation of the APC.
Observers believe that his recent travails with the APC leader,
Bola Ahmed Tinubu, and Governor Ambode would scuttle his
dream of becoming a minister, but all that is now history.
Adebayo Shittu:
The Oyo State indigene has been among those speculated to be
ministers from day one. A lawyer, Shittu came to the APC from
the CPC wing and stood by his party firmly. He reportedly
refused to decamp, even when he contested and lost the
gubernatorial primary polls in the last election.
Mr. James Ocholi:
A former National Deputy Legal Adviser of the ruling All
Progressives Congress (APC), he contested for the governorship
ticket of the party in his state,Kogi, but lost to perennial
gubernatorial jostler Abubakar Audu. He was also a
governorship aspirant on the platform of the defunct Congress
for Progressive Change (CPC) in the state.
Solomon Dalong:
He is from Plateau State and a lawyer, activist and university
lecturer. He had stood by the minorities in Plateau State
throughout the crisis period. A serious supporter of President
Buhari, Dalong lost to the incumbent governor of the state
during primary elections. He had served in Buhari’s transition
committee.
Aisha Alhassan:
She was once the Taraba State Attorney General and
Commissioner of Justice and the first woman to be appointed as
Secretary, FCT Judicial Council and later appointed the Chief
Registrar of the High Court of the FCT. Popularly known as
‘Mama Taraba’, Alhassan almost made history as the first
female governor in Nigeria. She was a senator who represented
Taraba North constituency of Taraba State under the PDP but
later decamped to the APC and became the gubernatorial
candidate of Taraba State for the 2015 general elections. She
was defeated in the election re-run held on 25th of April 2015.
Dr. Ibe Kachikwu:
He is from Delta State and was recently appointed as the Group
Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum
Corporation (NNPC). Kachikwu was the Executive Vice Chairman
and General Counsel of Exxon-Mobil (Africa). He is a first class
graduate of law from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka and the
Nigerian Law School. The new NNPC chief executive also has
Master’s and doctorate degrees in Law from the Harvard Law
School.
Geoffrey Onyeama:
He is the Chair of the World Trade Organization Agreement on
Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights and holds
a Bachelor of Arts (BA), Political Science, Columbia University
(Columbia College), New York, USA, (1977); Bachelor of Arts
(BA), Law, Cambridge University (St. John’s College),
Cambridge, United Kingdom (1980); Master of Laws (LL.M),
Law, University of London (London School of Economics and
Political Science (LSE), London, United Kingdom (1982); Master
of Arts (MA), Law, Cambridge University (St. John’s College),
Cambridge, United Kingdom (1984). He was a Research Officer,
Nigerian Law Reform Commission, Lagos, Nigeria, (1983-1984)
and speaks English, French, German and Igbo.
Udo Udoma Udo:
Senator Udo Udoma was appointed Chairman of the Union Bank
of Nigeria Plc Board in 2013. He is an accomplished lawyer and
member of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA). He served in the
Nigerian Senate from 1999 to 2007 and led the Committees on
Appropriations, and National Planning during that period. He
was also the Senate Chief Whip between 2004 and 2007. He has
served on several national committees and also as the non-
executive Chairman of the Nigerian Securities and Exchange
Commission (SEC).
Abia gov. submits list of
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