Ministers-Designate May Be Inaugurated Monday, To Operate On Lean Budget

AS the two-day retreat for ministers-designate ended in Abuja yesterday, sources at the presidency have disclosed that the ministers would be sworn-in on Monday in the presidential villa.

This comes even as President Muhammadu Buhari is said to have directed his ministers-designate to do away with lavish office protocols once they assume duties.

This, the source said, is in line with the present administration’s low profile nature as a fall out of declining revenue base.
Buhari urged his would-be ministers to, among other things, work as a team to achieve the present administration’s change agenda.

In his opening remarks to the participants, the President described them as agents that will drive the change agenda promised by the present administration before it was voted into power.

Speaking to State House correspondents, one of the ministers-designate, Dr. Chris Ngige said he and his colleagues were ready to key into the President’s low profile government agenda, with a view to radically transform the nation’s economy within a short period of time.

Ngige, a former Anambra State governor said, “Yes, because of the lean economy, we are going to block areas of leakages, retinue of aides, protocol staff, large convoys of cars. These things will not fly in this administration.”

Addressing the ongoing debate about portfolio allocation, Ngige said the debate was not necessary, saying with or without portfolio, a minister would still function in the cabinet. It is one single cabinet. The important thing is that we want to move our people from where they are now; they are in abject poverty, which affects about 75 percent of the populace. We want to restructure the country to reduce poverty.”