Paving a new way

AFTER much suspense, President Muhammadu Buhari inaugurated his much-awaited cabinet last week with sparks of surprises.

Against the recently expressed opinion that some of the ministers would not have portfolios since the constitution only prescribed 36 ministers and not necessarily 36 ministries, all the ministers were allocated ministries.

It is, however, remarkable that the number of ministries, which previously stood at 28, has now been compressed to 24.

Ministries like Culture and Tourism, Special Duties, Sports, Police Affairs, Lands and Urban Development have been swallowed by other related ministries. This is in line with Buhari’s earlier position on the need to prune down recurrent government expenditure.

The allocation of portfolios to the new ministers has also shown that Buhari is hardly predictable by proving wrong practically all bookmakers on how the ministries would be allocated, given the known pedigrees of some of the nominees.

Like footballers, the cabinet members must now work together like a team with the common goal of delivering democratic dividends to the Nigerian masses, if nothing else to prove to the Nigerian people that the campaign promises were not mere propaganda vibes.

Many Nigerians are increasingly agitated about lack of jobs and poor infrastructure for power supply, roads, health care, and piped water. An estimated 125 million people live below the poverty line.

Therefore, addressing the nation’s many ills and the growing inequalities will depend on how much the new ministers perform. Having answered the call to serve, they must be seen to be serving diligently and creditably. We congratulate them on their new assignments.