MINISTERIAL PORTFOLIOS: Igbos Angry With President Buhari

Opinion leaders and socio-political associations in the South- East are angry with President Muhammadu Buhari over the portfolios of his ministers.

The Punch reports that the Igbos are of the opinion that the president intentionally denied the South-East ‘juicy’ ministries. Describing the portfolios given to Igbo ministers as ‘very disappointing’, leaders of the foremost Igbo socio-political body, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, and Njiko Igbo, are totally not cool with the president’s choice of portfolios for the South-East ministers.

The president of Ohanaeze Youth Wing, Mazi Okechukwu Isiguzoro, said Ogbonnaya Onu and Chris Ngige deserved ‘more influential’ ministries than what they were given. Isiguzoro said:

“We are disappointed that somebody of the calibre of Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu was assigned to Science and Technology ministry, even Dr. Chris Ngige should have been appointed as the Health Minister
instead of Labour and Productivity. Okechukwu Enalama should have been appointed Minister of Finance.

“Igbo ministers did not get juicy portfolios, except perhaps Ibe Kachikwu and Rotimi Amaechi, who are our brothers from the South-South. We are not happy that we did not get the juicy portfolios, although we are happy that our brothers from the Niger Delta got. Nevertheless, the era of impunity has gone and we expect all the Igbo ministers to perform excellently. We expect them to close ranks and work towards developing Igboland.”

The president of Njiko Igbo, Reverend Okechukwu Obioha, said Buhari has in a way, intentionally put Igbo ministers at the back seat in his cabinet. He went further to say he was not surprised. He said:

“They are adding more salt to the injury, we expected that. We can see that we (Igbo) are not wanted in this country. At the moment, the sharing of the national cake is between the North and the South-West. What will Ngige be doing as Labour and Productivity minister when the Federal Government is not employing anyone, or creating jobs?

“Even the Foreign Affairs portfolio that was given to an Igboman (Geoffrey Onyeama) is of no consequence because already Buhari has travelled to most of the countries and he will continue to do so. He has travelled in six months more than the immediate past president travelled in six years.

“So the Foreign Affairs minister will just be a rubber stamp. Buhari has taken the Ministry of Petroleum Resources for himself, making an Igboman the Minister of State. So, he (Buhari) has virtually given the Igbo nothing. But the problem is this will lead to more agitation for Biafra.”

On Wednesday, November 11, President Muhammadu Buhari inaugurated 36 ministers that were recently screened and cleared by the Senate. The 36 ministers were also given their portfolios. You can see the full list of the portfolios of the 36 ministers here.