After a long wait, President Muhmamed Buhari yesterday released the list of board members for various parastatals and agencies. In a reflection of what is clearly a lack of oversight, 6 deceased individuals were nominated. They include: Francis Okpozo, Donald Ugbaja, Garba Attahiru , Umar Dange Sokoto, Magdalene Kumu and Christopher Utov.
Senator Francis “Spanner” Okpozo was named as Chairman of the National Press Council, despite passing away in December 2016.
Okpozo was the Deputy Speaker Bendel State House of Assembly under the UPN until 1984 when the army seized power before the creation of Delta state and also Chairman Senate Committee on Environment in 1992 after been elected to represent Isoko, Itsekiri, Ijaw Senatorial District in the upper chamber.
Ironically, the President through his spokesman Femi Adesina had issued a press statement sending his condolence to Okpozo’s family on his passing.
Reverend Christopher Utov was also nominated as board member of the Nigerian Institute of Social and Economic Research (NISER).
Utov died on the 17th of March this year. Prior to his demise, he was the proprietor of the popular Fidei Polytechnic, Gboko
Garba Attahiru was named Chairman of the Federal Medical Centre, Yenagoa despite having passed away in May 2016. Garba, was a one time Chairman of Kaduna South Local Government Area.
Umar Dange Sokoto was appointed to the board of Federal Medical Centre, Ebute-Metta depspite being deceased.
Magadalene Kumu, who is also late was also appointed to the board of the Nigerian Film and Video Censors Board.
Donald Ugbaja was appointed to the board of the Consumer Protection Council.
Ugbaja, a Delta State indegene, died a couple of months ago. Ugbaja was a retired Deputy inspector General of Police.
Love for geriatrics
The errors in the appointment could be explained by a tendency to appoint geriatrics to sensitive positions by the President. Buhari had recently nominated a former Justice of the Supreme Court Sylvanus Nsofor as an ambassadorial nominee. The Senate initially rejected the nomination due to Nsofor’s age, and his inability to scale through the screening. Nsofor is 83.
Another retired justice, George Ouguntade was recently appointed Nigeria’s High Commisioner to the United Kingdom. is 77.
One in a series of gaffes
The President Muhammadu Buhari administration had also allegedly secretly reinstated fugitive former chairman of the Presidential Task Team on Pension Reforms, Abdulrasheed Maina, into the civil service. Maina has since fled the country.
The Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Interior, Mr. Magaji Abubakar has since admitted that he was responsible for his reinstatement. A move he had carried out in error.
The Presidency and the Senate are currently locked in a stale mate of sorts over the appointment of Ibrahim Magu as chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). While the Senate has rejected his confirmation, the Presidency has insisted on nominating.
This has resulted in the upper chamber refusing to confirm nominees including members of the Central Bank of Nigeria’s Monetary Policy Committee and the Deputy CBN Governor nominee Aishah Ahmad.
This is a developing story