New Shape for Federal Ministries
By Anthony Akaeze
Sunday, September 14, 2008
President Umaru Yar’Adua creates ministry of Niger Delta and restructures existing ones
A major step towards giving the Niger Delta region priority attention was taken last week with the creation of the Niger Delta ministry by the federal government. The new ministry, to be known as the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs, is expected to coordinate environmental and youth empowerment policy initiatives in the region. By that decision, the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, which handles most of the development programmes in the region, will now become a parastatal under the new ministry.
Yayale Ahmed, the new secretary to the government of the federation, said that the ministry will have its headquarters in Abuja and that two ministers were being proposed to take charge of it. One will be incharge of the environment which will oversee the physical development of the Niger Delta region while the other will take charge of youth development.
Some people see the creation of the ministry as a re-enforcement of Umaru Yar’Adua’s government commitment to address the problems of under development in the Niger Delta region. Edwin Clark, Ijaw national leader, said the move signals a possible new dawn for the Niger Delta people: " I am very happy that Yar’Adua has shown his genuine and sincere desire to develop the Niger Delta region by creating the ministry. It shows that he is ready to develop the region," Clark said.
But the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta, MEND, one of the rebel groups fighting for a better share of the nation’s resources for the Niger Delta people, is not impressed. In a statement, MEND said creating a ministry for the Niger Delta is tantamount to "putting a plaster on a wound." The group, through its spokesman, Jomo Gbomo, said only true federalism coupled with a master plan to develop the Niger Delta will end the militant agitation in the region. "It’s a joke. Creating a ministry is not the coming of the much awaited messiah. Anything you do without resolving the fundamental problem of resource control, true federalism and the release of all Niger Delta militants is a waste of time and an exercise in futility."
The creation of the Niger Delta ministry was not the only decision taken by the federal government on Wednesday. The Umaru Yar’Adua administration also announced changes that affected other ministries, in what has been described as a major "restructuring of federal ministries."
For instance, the Police Affairs ministry has been restored while other ministries such as aviation, transport, environment, works, housing and urban development, water resources, agriculture and rural development which were hitherto merged, have been reinstated as separate ministries. It was the defunct Olusegun Obasanjo administration that merged the ministries.
The energy ministry was split into two-power and petroleum. The ministry of power would be headed by a substantive minister, while there will be a full minister and a minister of state for the petroleum ministry. With the changes, the ministries are now 28, with 48 ministers to take charge of them, as against 22 ministries during Obasanjo’s tenure.
Ahmed explained that the changes were in line with the federal government’s decision to realise its seven point agenda. Using the ministry of power as an example, Ahmed said it would play a pivotal role in government’s plan to generate and ensure stable power supply in the country. " This time around, we are going to have a substantive ministry of power to enable us pursue the plan to provide adequate electricity," Ahmed said.
Although the ministries have been increased from 22 to 28, some ministers are sure to lose their jobs. This is as a result of the government’s decision to reduce the number of ministers to three ministries: education, mines and power as well as science and technology. The ministry of education, for instance, currently has three ministers in the persons of Igwe Aja – Nwachukwu (the senior minister), Jerry Agada and Aishatu Dukku as ministers of state. Government said only one minister would henceforth be incharge of the ministry.
Segun Adeniyi, the special adviser to the president on communications, said "the review of the current structure is predicated on the need to streamline and strengthen the mechanism for service. delivery without sacrificing the objectives of the Public Service. Reform carried out at the twilight of the last administration." According to him, "President Yar’Adua has directed all ministers to re-articulate the mandates of their ministries and departments in line with the requirement of the seven point agenda under the guidance of the secretary to the government of the federation and the head of service."
With this development, it is expected that ministers may be appointed to head the new ministries, just as there could also be a cabinet reshuffle. This could happen anytime soon.
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