President Bola Tinubu has received advice from former Senator Shehu Sani, who served as Kaduna Central’s representative in the 8th National Assembly, to avoid making the same appointment mistakes as Muhammadu Buhari, his immediate predecessor.
In an appearance with Sunday Politics on Channels Television, the former lawmaker pleaded with President Tinubu to give competency top priority when appointing new officials if he wants to see progress that will benefit the nation.
Nepotism was at its height under Buhari’s eight-year government, which ran from May 2015 to May 2023, according to Sani, but not all areas of governance—most notably security, the economy, healthcare, and education—saw improvements.
“I will advise President Tinubu to be careful not to make the mistakes of President Buhari, and I believe he is experienced enough to understand this.”
He noted that the nation had ministers appointed to eight-year terms under President Buhari, emphasizing that they served under him for both his first and second terms. He also noted that there had been no cabinet reorganization or dismissal.
He bemoaned the fact that it takes three to four months to replace a minister, even in the event of their dismissal, claiming that this was the nature of the national government.
He claimed that Nigerians witnessed the height of nepotism under Buhari, when individuals were assigned to positions of authority and kept them there regardless of their actions.
He added that service chiefs were retained in office despite their failures, and by retaining them, the careers of those behind them were destroyed, pointing out that for many years, many officers were retired to appoint one person.
If the country has to move forward, Sani suggested that Nigerians must treat the issue of competency as the qualification for appointment.
He observed that the situation in northern Nigeria is a reflection of the failure of political leaders, particularly those from the region who failed to use political power to reduce the level of underdevelopment in the 19 states of the region.
He wondered what all the powers had been used for, saying that it had not been used for the benefit of the people for a very long time.
