The National Chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress,
Adams Oshiomhole, on Monday lamented that ministers are taking
advantage of President Muhammadu Buhari’s “fatherly disposition” by
not being up and doing in the various ministries they head.
He also threatened to prevail on Buhari to sack such ministers
from the federal cabinet, adding that if President Buhari condones
disrespect for his office, he will not condone disrespect for the
party.
Oshiomhole handed down the threat during an interview with State
House correspondents at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
He said the APC under his leadership would not continue to
tolerate ministers who abuse their offices and disrespect President
Muhammadu Buhari by refusing to carry out his orders.
The former Edo State Governor said if Buhari decided to condone
disrespect for his office, he would not allow any government
official to disrespect the party.
He said, “You know, we must return to internal discipline. You
cannot purport to be an honourable minister and you act
dishonourably. Nobody is greater than the party.
“If the President condones disrespect for his office, I will not
condone disrespect for the party.
“And when we expel the minister, we will prevail on the
President that he can’t keep in his cabinet people who have neither
respect for his own decisions nor have respect for the party
without which they would not have been ministers.
“There are no independent candidates in our system. Nobody, I
emphasise, no minister is above the party and they have taken undue
advantage of the President’s fatherly disposition.”
Oshiomhole said it was the same “green pen” that made them
ministers that also appointed the board members that they are
refusing to inaugurate.
He said it was illegal for a minister in a democracy to subvert
the powers of the boards because the laws establishing the
institutions are clear.
The party chairman said he was sure that affected ministers did
not have the President’s backing in their actions.
He added, “When a minister sits in his office to appropriate the
powers of the board in a democracy — not in a dictatorship — and
award contracts that didn’t go though boards, those are clear abuse
of office for which they are liable.“I am convinced that what they are doing is not with the
endorsement of Mr. President. Over the period, they have tried to
drop the President’s name, but I tell them it is the same authority
that appointed these people.“So, we are informing them that it is either they comply with
the President’s instructions or they comply with the party’s
position or they go and administer outside the government.“We have respect for ministers, but only to the extent that they
recognise that they are products of a political party and we are
not negotiating that.“If they did that in the past, under our leadership we will not
tolerate it.“They either comply or we will expel them from the party.
“When we expel them, we will find out how a government can keep
a rebel in the cabinet.“There is no question about that.”
The National Chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress,
Adams Oshiomhole, on Monday lamented that ministers are taking
advantage of President Muhammadu Buhari’s “fatherly disposition” by
not being up and doing in the various ministries they head.
He also threatened to prevail on Buhari to sack such ministers
from the federal cabinet, adding that if President Buhari condones
disrespect for his office, he will not condone disrespect for the
party.
Oshiomhole handed down the threat during an interview with State
House correspondents at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
He said the APC under his leadership would not continue to
tolerate ministers who abuse their offices and disrespect President
Muhammadu Buhari by refusing to carry out his orders.
The former Edo State Governor said if Buhari decided to condone
disrespect for his office, he would not allow any government
official to disrespect the party.
He said, “You know, we must return to internal discipline. You
cannot purport to be an honourable minister and you act
dishonourably. Nobody is greater than the party.
“If the President condones disrespect for his office, I will not
condone disrespect for the party.
“And when we expel the minister, we will prevail on the
President that he can’t keep in his cabinet people who have neither
respect for his own decisions nor have respect for the party
without which they would not have been ministers.
“There are no independent candidates in our system. Nobody, I
emphasise, no minister is above the party and they have taken undue
advantage of the President’s fatherly disposition.”
Oshiomhole said it was the same “green pen” that made them
ministers that also appointed the board members that they are
refusing to inaugurate.
He said it was illegal for a minister in a democracy to subvert
the powers of the boards because the laws establishing the
institutions are clear.
The party chairman said he was sure that affected ministers did
not have the President’s backing in their actions.
He added, “When a minister sits in his office to appropriate the
powers of the board in a democracy — not in a dictatorship — and
award contracts that didn’t go though boards, those are clear abuse
of office for which they are liable.“I am convinced that what they are doing is not with the
endorsement of Mr. President. Over the period, they have tried to
drop the President’s name, but I tell them it is the same authority
that appointed these people.“So, we are informing them that it is either they comply with
the President’s instructions or they comply with the party’s
position or they go and administer outside the government.“We have respect for ministers, but only to the extent that they
recognise that they are products of a political party and we are
not negotiating that.“If they did that in the past, under our leadership we will not
tolerate it.“They either comply or we will expel them from the party.
“When we expel them, we will find out how a government can keep
a rebel in the cabinet.“There is no question about that.”