|
Nigerian President Swears In New Cabinet, Warns Against Graft
ABUJA, Feb 8 (News Agencies) - Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo Thursday swore in a cabinet with 10 new ministers and warned them he would act against anyone succumbing to corruption.
"You cannot cover it. If you think you can, you are deceiving yourselves," he told the ministers.
"It does not matter how clever you may think you are. If I hear, you know what that means. I will not hesitate to take the necessary step," he told them.
The president said there was much cynicism over his repeated statements about battling corruption that have so far yet to see any senior official prosecuted.
"We cannot remove the cynicism unless we work hard to eradicate corruption," he said.
"This thing is a matter of life and death for this administration. Corruption must be eradicated from our national life and anybody who thinks it is a joke, let him or her dare," he warned.
Obasanjo was speaking after announcing the creation of three new posts of ministers in charge of the three armed services as he swore in his new cabinet.
The president created the three ministerial positions in charge of the army, navy and air force, as part of a super defense ministry that was left under the overall charge of his long-time ally, Theophilus Danjuma.
The naming of the new defense posts was one of the few significant changes made in the new cabinet sworn in Thursday after Obasanjo dismissed his last cabinet on January 24th.
Along with that of Danjuma, the positions of the ministers of aviation, commerce, communications, finance, foreign affairs, information, internal affairs, justice, labor, power, science, transport, water, women's affairs and works and housing were unchanged.
Obasanjo named 10 nominees to the cabinet on January 30th and the Senate approved them on February 7th.
New ministers were named to the ministries of agriculture, Africa, culture and tourism, education, the environment, the federal capital territory, health, industry, the police and sports.
Among those taking up new posts in the capital were two advisers, a leading banker and a top industrialist, Kolawole Jamodu named as industries minister.
Jamodu was not present at the swearing-in of the team and no reason was given for his absence.
The president, who took power in May 1999, dropped 10 ministers from his last team including the ministers of health, education, agriculture and the police, whose performance had been criticized.
The presidential liaison officer in the Senate, Kashim Ibrahim-Imam, told reporters at the time that the president had wanted to make a number of changes after criticism of the government as lackluster.
But in any event, key ministries, including commerce, communications and power, were untouched.
Reforms of the communications and power sectors are considered vital if the government is to improve the sluggish performance of the economy, and promised legislation on the two areas is overdue.
Obasanjo was reported last month to have decided to run for re-election in 2003 and believed he needed to shake up the government to do that.
|
