• Mr. President’s anti-corruption fight throws spanner in the works of his team
Like vermin of the cesspit fleeing the scourge of the janitor’s antiseptic, ministers in the cabinet of President Muhammadu Buhari are scared silly of the incumbent Head of State. The Capital findings revealed that both male and female members of the presidential cabinet, are unable to make use of their initiative in crucial affairs related to their different portfolios because the president does not give them the freedom to do that.
Consequently, they are unable to use their discretion to resolve urgent matters requiring their attention.
The ministers, it was gathered, are not allowed to award contracts or initiate massive capital projects as was the usual practice under previous administrations. More importantly, the prevalent fear of the president’s anti-corruption fight and his deployment of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), to prosecute his anti-corruption agenda, is a source of bitterness and serious worry to many members of the presidential cabinet.
Many of them are very angry and dissatisfied with the president but they lack the courage to look him in the eye and tell him they do not appreciate his mode of leadership.
The ministers are also not happy with the president for denying them the opportunity to make money from capital projects. Even aides of the ministers persistently lament the ‘dryness’ and unprofitability of serving with Buhari’s administration.