Six new permanent secretaries in the Federal Civil Service were sworn in by Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari at the Council Chambers of the State House in Abuja on Wednesday. The swearing-in ceremony, which took place between 10:05 and 10:30 am local time preceded this week’s Federal Executive Council meeting. The newly appointed permanent secretaries and their states of origin are: Mahmud Kambari (Borno State), Esuabana Nko-Asanye (Cross River), Lamuwa Ibrahim (Gombe), Yakubu Kofar-Mata (Kano), Oloruntola Michael (Ogun), and Richard Pheelangwah (Taraba State).
According to Femi Adesina, the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, the event marked the end of a weeks-long prequalification exercise for directors by the Office of the Head of Civil Service of the Federation. He said that six persons had fulfilled the conditions as permanent secretaries after a selection exercise involving competency tests and interactions with a wide range of stakeholders.
The President approved the appointment of the six permanent secretaries on March 29, 2023, after a recently conducted selection process. The swearing-in ceremony took place barely one month after their appointments were approved.
The Federal Executive Council meeting began after the swearing-in ceremony, with several government officials in attendance, including the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, Head of Civil Service, Dr Folashade Yemi-Esan, the President’s Chief of Staff, Prof. Ibrahim Gambari, and National Security Adviser, Maj-Gen. Babagana Monguno (retd.). The Ministers of Interior, Science and Technology, Finance, Transportation, Agriculture, Health, Information, Mines and Steel Development, Communication and Digital Economy, and Sports were also present.
Vice President Yemi Osinbajo was absent from the meeting as he was in the United States of America, where he delivered a special lecture at the University of Pennsylvania on advocating a just energy transition for Africa in the light of Climate Change. He was expected to return to Abuja later on Wednesday.