New Year: 2 Positions That May Pitch Tinubu Against Northerners in 2025 and Why
- President Bola Tinubu may be facing major ethnic criticism from the northern groups as two positions currently held by northerners would be available later in 2025
- This is as President Tinubu may be nominating a replacement for the position of the NNPC Limited boss and that of INEC chairman
- Before now, President Tinubu has been accused of appointing his tribesmen to key positions, particularly the appointment of the CBN governor and the minister of finance
President Bola Tinubu has recently been accused of appointing his tribesmen into key positions, including that of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL).
Recently, Arewa Youths Integrity Network (AYIN), a social-political group in northern Nigeria, criticized President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s appointment of Shamseldeen Babatunde Ogunjimi as the Acting Accountant General of the Federation (AGoF).
Tinubu may nominate a replacement for Kyari, Mahmood
Photo Credit: @officialABATSource: Twitter
The group accuses Tinubu of nepotism, claiming he favours Yorubas over other tribes in Nigeria. AYIN believes that northerners are equally qualified for such appointments and that Tinubu’s decision is unfair.
Kperogi accused Tinubu of favouring Yoruba
Also, Professor Farouk Kperogi, a northern academic in the diaspora, accused the president of favouring Yoruba people in key appointments at the NNPC Limited.
Kperogi argues that this concentration of Yoruba figures in critical economic roles, including the minister of finance and the governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), constitutes “state-sanctioned ethnocentric domination” of a vital sector of national life.
Amid the ethnic criticism of President Tinubu, the North may be having another battle with the president as two important positions held by Northerners would be available for replacement in the year 2025. Below are the positions:
NNPC Boss position
There’s growing anxiety over the potential exit of Mele Kyari, the Group Chief Executive Officer of the NNPCL, as he turns 60 on January 8, 2025. Some industry watchers believe Kyari may leave the national oil firm, raising concerns about the company’s future leadership. However, others claim that his tenure is expected to end in 2027, in compliance with the Petroleum Industry Act 2021.
According to The Punch, Kyari has had a remarkable career. He spent 32 years at the NNPC and became the longest-serving head of the company since Nigeria’s return to democracy in 1999. Notable achievements have marked his leadership, and he’s one of the few appointments retained by President Bola Tinubu. The NNPC has had 19 managing directors since its formation, with only two from the South-West and North-Central regions.
The position of INEC Chairman
Professor Mahmood Yakubu, the chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), will end his tenure later in 2025, and President Tinubu is expected to nominate his replacement.
Northerners have held the position of INEC chairman in the last 15 years if Yakubu completes his tenure, and since its establishment by General Abdulsalami Abubakar ahead of the 1999 election, the electoral body has never had a chairman from Southwest.
President Tinubu may also face another criticism of nepotism if he nominates Yakubu’s replacement from the Southwest. The Senate confirmed Professor Yakubu for another five-year term as Chairman of INEC in November 2020. Vanguard reported that the confirmation comes after the presentation and consideration of the report of the Committee on INEC, chaired by Senator Kabiru Gaya
Tinubu’s media chat reviewed
TheTalk.NG earlier reported that President Bola Tinubu’s maiden media chats on Monday, December 21, have been reviewed by a public commentator, Eniola Daniel.
Daniel, in an exclusive interview with TheTalk.NG, noted that Tinubu was obviously more aware of the situation in the country than his predecessor, Muhammadu Buhari.
However, Daniel criticised the president for failing to propose solutions to the numerous challenges Nigerians are facing while still believing in his policies.
Source: TheTalk.NG
