President Bola Tinubu, on Wednesday, said ministers would only retain their offices based on their performances which would be reviewed periodically.
Declaring open the 2023 Cabinet Retreat for Ministers, Presidential Aides, Permanent Secretaries and Top Government Functionaries, held at the State House Conference Centre, Abuja on Tuesday, President Tinubu said: “If you are performing, nothing to fear, if you miss the objective we review, if you don’t perform, you leave us… Don’t be a clog in the wheel of Nigeria’s progress”.
He explained that his Special Adviser on Policy Coordination, Hadiza Bala-Usman, who will spearhead the Result Delivery Unit, would closely monitor the performances of the Ministries, Departments and Agencies across the eight priority areas of his administration.
These include Food Security—To promote economic growth and development through job creation, food security and putting an end to poverty; Ending Poverty—To promote economic growth and development through job creation, food security and putting an end to poverty; Economic Growth and Job Creation—To promote economic growth and development through job creation, and putting an end to poverty and Access to Capital—To promote economic growth and development through job creation, food security and putting an end to poverty.
Others are Inclusivity: Drawing on all Skills bass—To prominently feature women and youth in national activities; Security—To defend the nation from terror and all forms of criminality; Fairness and rule of law—To be impartial and govern according to the constitution and ensure the rule of law and Anti-Corruption Stance—To discourage corruption whilst strengthening the effectiveness and efficiency of various anti-corruption agencies.
President Tinubu also made it clear that performances would be evaluated and accountability upheld. This includes a performance bond to form the basis of periodic reviews and evaluations.
“At the end of this retreat, you will sign a performance bond with me…You are here to help me succeed and succeed I must…I have appointed a dynamic young lady Hadiza Bala Usman as my SA on Policy Coordination. If you have a problem with her, come to me. If you don’t, stay where you are and work,” he told the ministers.
The President stressed the importance of collaborative efforts to propel the country forward and reaffirmed his confidence in the democratic process.
He declared that he had accepted the assets and liabilities of his predecessor, telling the participants that although chaos exists around them, they must be focused like one driving in a tunnel to deliver the goods.
“You don’t look at the skies or sideways, face your front and focus on your lane”, he advised.
While noting that his administration has spent the last six months “reviewing ourselves,” he stressed the importance of good healthcare and quality education, which he said is the best weapon against poverty.
The president assured foreign investors that they would be able to bring in their capital, invest and repatriate their gains without hiccups.
He declared the country open for business while promising to remove obstacles to economic growth.
At the opening ceremony, all ministers and ministers of state were seated for the three-day exercise, except the Minister of Tourism, Ms. Lola Ade-John.
