Northern Forum rates three of President Tinubu’s Ministers (see list)
The Concerned Northern Forum (CNF) on Sunday commended the Minister of Steel Development, Audu, and his counterparts in the ministries of Federal Capital Territory, Wike, minister of Works, and Interior, for their dedication to President Bola Tinubu’s “Renewed Hope” agenda.
Speaking at a press conference in Kaduna, the National Vice Chairman of the forum, Comrade Muhammad Aminu Abbas, stated that the rating was part of the group’s initiative to evaluate the current administration as it celebrates its one-year anniversary in office.
They said: “Today, we gather to celebrate and congratulate President Bola Tinubu on his impactful one year in office and also to run a scorecard on some performing ministers towards decorating the most outstanding stewards in the current cabinet who have flown high the banner of Mr. President’s Renewed Hope Agenda.
“Having done our due diligence and evaluated all the ministers under the administration in the period under review, we have identified true patriots who have served President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and indeed Nigerians excellently.
“Base on our scorecard, the following ministers have made it on our elite list of top performers and they include Nyesom Wike, who as the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory has revolutionised the provision of infrastructure and land administration in the FCT within a short period of time in office.
“Equally deserving of accolades is Engr. Dave Umahi, Minister of Works, Engr David Umahi, whose giant strides in road construction including the legacy Lagos to Calabar coastal highway and Badagry to Sokoto highway as well as the ingenious use of cement for construction has drastically cut down the cost of road construction and reduced pressure on our foreign exchange.
“Another top performer deserving of mention is Hon. Bunmi T. Ojo, whose Interior Ministry employed innovative technology and cost saving means to clear the backlog of passport application, ushering in an era of instant passport application and collection.
“The Coalition’s spotlight was however, on the Minister of Steel Development, Hon. Prince Shuaibu Audu who is a youth like us, a rare breed who has demonstrated enormous capacity in the Ministry of Steel Development and has more than all the other Ministers pioneered policies and projects which have the potential for the industrialization and rapid economic development of the nation.”
The Coalition expressed appreciation to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for implementing technical parameters to evaluate the performance of all ministries using key indicators, an initiative spearheaded by the office of Hadiza Bala Usman.
While acknowledging the government’s achievements, the Coalition emphasised that the direct beneficiaries of these policies should also have a say in assessing the performance of ministers and their ministries. This is why they specifically highlighted the Minister of Steel Development.
The group said: “It is on this note that we have decided to pick Hon. Prince Shuaibu Audu as our star performer amongst all the Ministers and to make our position known on the historic developments in the steel sector within the last one year and also bear witness to the fact that the minister has performed excellently well and even beyond the expectations of Nigerians as he strives to revive the hitherto moribund steel sector including the comatose Ajaokuta Steel Complex.
“In line with the vision and blueprint of President Tinubu, the Minister has already taken steps to explore the possibility of securing up to $5 million funding from the World Bank to finance the 10-year roadmap for the steel and metals sector.
“Already, talks have been completed with Russia’s TyazhPromExport (TPE) Consortium, the original equipment manufacturers and developers of the Ajaokuta Steel Company Limited (ASCL), with a view to exploring options available for reviving the company.
“This collaboration and partnership is also likely to attract an additional $2 billion for the revamping of Ajaokuta Steel Company.
“The Honorable Minister is also at the concluding stages of raising ₦35 billion (over $25 million) from local financiers for the revival of the Light Steel Mill (LSM) at Ajaokuta.”
