About four days to the expiration of the 60-day provision for the President to submit names of ministerial nominees to the Senate for screening and confirmation, President Bola Tinubu is yet to fulfil this constitutional provision.
Multiple sources in the Senate told Vanguard Weekend that the upper legislative chamber is yet to receive the final list of the ministerial nominees.
Sources at the presidency had last week hinted that the list was ready, but that a few adjustments were being made by the President.
One of the sources disclosed that four names initially penciled down by the President in four states, have been withdrawn and replaced with new names.
A highly placed source in the Senate said: “We are yet to get the final list of the ministerial nominees.
“If we have received it, the Clerk of the National Assembly would have read it out, there will be no need to keep the list if it is received.”
Another source said as of Friday, the President was still editing the list and will submit the final list this week.
The source said: “As of Friday, the list is with Baba but I don’t know of yesterday (Saturday). Every minute he is changing some names, up till Friday when he travelled, he still edited some names. But by this week, he will call the Presidential Liaison Officer to the Senate and give him the list.
“It’s this week that he will send the list and Senate will clear the nominees this week.”
A lawmaker from the South-West, who spoke on the matter, said the president also confirmed that he was yet to send the list of his ministers for screening.
The senator also attributed it to the politics around the choice of the APC chairman.
The lawmaker said: “I learned the Senate President has been given the list and what is delaying it is the addition and subtraction to the list. Anything can happen at the last minute.
“Another thing causing the delay is the politics and intrigues concerning the possible choice of Dr Umaru Ganduje, as the national chairman of APC.
“Most of the party leaders don’t want Ganduje but a majority of them are rooting for former Nasarawa State governor, Tanko Al-Makura, to take over from Senator Abdullahi Adamu.
‘’They are also rooting for former Senate spokesman, Senator Ajibola Basiru, as Secretary of the party. Whereas Almakura is from Nasarawa as the ousted Adamu, Basiru is also from Osun State as the ousted Omisore.
‘’Most APC leaders are against Ganduje as national chairman given the alleged corruption charges levelled against him. They say it is not good for the image of the party.
“As you know, the Kano State government has brought up the matter and that is why most of the leaders are saying it is not good for the image of the party.
“They have gone to meet with Asiwaju that they don’t want Ganduje but the buck stops at his table.”