President Bola Tinubu categorically stated on Monday that he is not ready to cut the size of his 48-member cabinet in response to critics who referred to it as “bloated.”
During a media conference at his home in Bourdillon, in the affluent Ikoyi neighbourhood of Lagos State, Tinubu declared, “I am not ready to shrink” the size of my cabinet.
The former governor of Lagos stated, “I am not prepared to bring down the size of my cabinet,” claiming that “efficiency” has been the primary consideration in his ministerial selection process.
The leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), who stated that he has no regrets about eliminating the petrol subsidy in May 2023, claimed that Nigeria cannot continue to be Father Christmas to its neighbours.
“I have no remorse about eliminating the petrol subsidy. He told reporters, “We are wasting our future, and we were only fooling ourselves that reform was required.”
Three months after becoming office, in August 2023, Tinubu named 48 ministries. The ministers were promptly vetted and confirmed by the Senate. In January, Simon Lalong, one of the ministers, transferred to the Senate, while Betta Edu, another, was suspended.
Since many Nigerians have been dissatisfied with the performance of some of the ministers, particularly in light of the country’s historic inflation, dire economic conditions, and growing insecurity, there have been calls for the president to reorganise his cabinet.
Ten ministers were reassigned to new ministerial posts by Tinubu in October 2024, and seven new ministers were nominated for Senate approval. Although he dismissed five of his ministers, detractors maintain that the president’s cabinet is still sizable, particularly in light of the establishment of a livestock ministry with a minister.
