Groups lauds Buhari over Akume’s ministerial nomination

The Guardians of Democracy and Development and other civil society groups have commended President Muhammadu Buhari for including a former governor of Benue State, Senator George Akume in the list of his ministers.

The Coordinator of the coalition, Solomon Adodo, who made the commendation at a news conference yesterday in Abuja, said that judging from his stellar track records and antecedents, Akume’s appointment will add value to the administration of President Buhari in the light of his vast experiences.

“As a collection of nationalist and prodemocracy groups in Nigeria which has monitored our democratic voyage visà-vis good governance indices, we can boldly state that contrary to the impression that President Buhari’s cabinet is made up of only politicians, the likes of Senator Akume we know are coming with decades of rich experience as a civil servant, administrator and legislator,” he said.

“We also have confidence that the blend of his knowledge will be a sure plus in any ministry he will be assigned to. Available records show that Senator Akume served in the civil service and rose to become a permanent secretary before retiring to venture into politics. In politics, he was Governor of Benue State for two terms,” he added.

According to him, “it is on record that the infrastructure development Benue witnessed during his era remains unbeaten, with the state university teaching hospital, judges quarters, state legislators quarters, Makurdi industrial layout, massive land reclamation and erosion control projects, owner occupier housing estates among several other projects that stand today as landmarks in the state were executed by Akume.”