Explainer: Why portfolios of ministerial nominees not revealed before screening

On Monday, July 31, 2023, the Nigerian Senate commenced the screening of the first batch of 28 ministerial nominees, which was forwarded by President Bola Tinubu on July 27, 2023.

Former Governor of River States, Nyesom Wike; Nkiruka Onyejeocha, a former member of the House of Representatives for Isuikwuato/Umunneochi Federal Constituency of Abia State; Olubunmi Tunji Ojo, a member of the House of Representatives for Akoko North East/Akoko Northwest Federal Constituency of Ondo State; Prof Joseph Utsev (Benue State), and 14 other nominees were screened on Monday, the Senate reconvened on Tuesday, August 1, 2023, to continue the screening exercise.

While Nkiruka Onyejeocha, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, and other current or former national lawmakers were asked to take a bow and leave, a tradition the National Assembly has long held, other nominees were grilled by the 10th Senate in line with their CVs and work experiences.

Although the list of ministerial nominees forwarded by Tinubu did not include the portfolios of the different ministries they were intended to head, Prof. Joseph Utsev, a civil and water engineer, who spent more time before the Nigerian Senate during his ministerial screening due to some discrepancies in his CV, was grilled regarding the Ministry of Water Resources and the occasional flood disaster. Also, Dr. Betta Edu, a former Cross River Commissioner of Health (December 2019 – March 2022) and current APC National Women Leader, was asked questions bordering on Nigerian healthcare.

However, the non-attachment of portfolios before the screening of ministerial nominees has been widely debated.

What does the law say?

In the Nigerian constitution, only the Attorney General of the federation, also known as the Minister of Justice, is required to have an educational qualification relating to the practice of law.

Section 150 (2) of the 1999 constitution, as amended, states that “A person shall not be qualified to hold or perform the functions of the office of the Attorney-General of the Federation unless he is qualified to practice as a legal practitioner in Nigeria and has been so qualified for not less than ten years.”

From 1999 when Nigeria returned to democracy, all Ministers of Justice have not only been legal practitioners but also Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SAN).

During former President Goodluck Jonathan’s tenure, Mohammed Adoke, SAN, was Minister for Justice and Attorney-General of the Federation between April 6, 2015, and April 29, 2015. He was thereafter replaced by Abubakar Malami, SAN, who served as Minister for Justice and Attorney-General until the expiration of ex-President Muhammadu Buhari’s tenure on May 29, 2023.

“For the avoidance of doubt, only the Attorney General/ Minister of Justice must belong to a profession (he/she must be a lawyer),” Dr. Joe Abah, a former Director-General of the Bureau of Public Service Reform said.

He added, “All other Ministers are screened and sworn in as ‘Ministers of the Government of the Federation.’ The President can appoint anybody else to any post and reshuffle them as he likes.”

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In fact, as has been seen in the past, it is common for ministers to head ministries outside their educational qualifications. Former Lagos Governor, Babatunde Fashola, SAN, served as Minister of Power, Works, and Housing from 2015 to 2019. Rotimi Amaechi, who studied English and Literature at the University of Port Harcourt, headed Nigeria’s transportation ministry for eight years.

Dr. Abah said that “President Tinubu doesn’t have to attach portfolios to the Ministerial list,” adding that “even when he appoints a SAN as Minister, he could deploy him to Women Affairs (or make him Minister of State for Labour).”

However, some Nigerians believe that to head some strategic ministries like Finance and Budgeting, Education, Defence, and Healthcare, the nominees should have qualifications relating to those fields, in order for the lawmakers to streamline their questions towards their portfolios.

Professor Anthony Kila, a professor of Strategy and Development at the Commonwealth Institute of Advanced and Professional Studies, expressed concerns over Tinubu’s decision to submit names without portfolios.

“Tinubu had the opportunity to break the old practice of sending the name without portfolios as some of us have advocated for, and he did not do that,” he said during an interview on Arise TV on Friday, July 28, 2023.

He added, “What questions do you ask somebody of whom you do not know what role he’s going to cover? This is the missing bit. Do you ask him about the national anthem, recite the plaque, or you ask him something in his mind, or are you going to ask him if he still believes what he said five years ago? But these questions are not relevant.”