Presidency: The Benefits Of A Kitchen Cabinet

STEVE OSUJI

Dark Auguries All round: The imageries that tug at one’s mind these days  is a that of a  train on a rollercoaster. One also sees a plane on autopilot with the captain fast asleep, even snoring.

In fact, these days, one wants to scream: where in the world is the President!? The clouds over the nation are not clear; the auguries are indeed dark.

Nigeria seems to bumble from one mishap into another. The country stumbles from one calamity to another. Too many unforced errors of course betokens ineptitude or a stark lack of capacity to lead.

Low Capacity President, Poor Presidency: Leadership experts and presidency watchers have long concluded that both Nigeria’s numero Uno and his cabinet are irretrievably devoid of requisite capacity and even the patriotic zeal to pilot the ship of state.

Presidents are not necessarily geniuses. Throughout history, very few  leaders have been recorded to be ‘courageous ravens’ or  all-round brainards. No. But what great leaders over the ages have in common is big vision and the ability to deploy high-minds lieutenants to drive their vision.

Back to the current leadership in Aso Rock, it is not certain what President Tinubu’s big dreams are for Nigeria.

Over four to eight years, one can’t discern exactly, what huge impact or great legacy Tinubu wants to be remembered by.

Does he plan to pull X million people from poverty? Ensure electoral integrity in Nigeria? Solve Nigeria’s power supply challenge for good? Restructure Nigeria to function as a true federating sub nationals?

 What major vision is Tinubu pursuing? I doubt that anyone knows.

But even if there’s no huge, framed picture in the president’s head, managing the basics, doing the day-to-day chores of government, if brilliantly done, could inspire the population and liberate their minds into individual breakout achievements. But nothing of such. Zero!

A poor presidency will of course surround himself with like minds. This is exactly what’s happening in this government. Tinubu’s cabinet is no doubt the weakest Nigeria ever had in recent times.

It is largely made up of his handy boys and Man Fridays from his days as Lagos State governor.

The current Federal Executive Council  lacks depth and range. No exceptional minds, no men of timbre calibre with renowned experience, local and global and no maverick upstarts who are self-assured enough to shake the table and disrupt things. What a bland, lackluster cabinet.

Where There’s No Kitchen Cabinet: Kitchen Cabinet (KC), also known as the cabal in any high office, could be the best thing that could happen to a country if they are forward looking patriots.

In fact every government needs a kitchen cabinet.

The reason is that it’s very lonely at the top and the head must make decisions almost every hour. Every leader therefore, needs a sounding board – a very sound one at that!

This is a small group of brilliant men and women who can think on their feet and give the president wise counsel at the snap of the finger.

TINUBU has no such team. We don’t know of such.

Tinubu has no economic adviser.

Tinubu has no economic council or board.

Tinubu is his own energy adviser and minister; his own foreign affairs adviser and even political adviser and strategist.

He therefore, doesn’t have the benefit of learned and knowledgeable experts at his beck and call.

The Attorney-General’s office is purportedly the most crucial in any cabinet. But the AGF is clearly on AWOL in this cabinet, and that’s putting it mildly.

Even the current chief of staff, the closest person to the president is not at the calibre of an Abba Kyari or Prof. Sulu Gambari.

With due respect to Mr Femi Gbajabiamila (currently shunted chief of staff), he’s not primed to impact policy, he merely takes instructions and pushes files. The president has also managed to frame a barracuda presidency where he is feared by aides…

Buhari had men like Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, Raji Fashola, Ogbonnaya Onu and even Rotimi Amaechi, among a few others.

One finds it difficult to pick out nary two strong men in the Tinubu cabinet.

It is not for want of a good head who can help drive development, it’s more of a president imbued with a parochial mindset that won’t open up easily to ideas.

We need to headhunt.  We need to open the cabinet and allow an infusion of great minds especially from the diaspora. People like Adebayo Ogunlesi, Temilayo Butler, Bennett Omale, Osa Igbokwe, to make a random mention.

Even at home, party men like Muiz Banire, Ikechi Emenike (first class Economics, publisher with vast influence in many Africa’s state houses) and Prof Adebayo Williams and Adewole Adebayo, presidential candidate of SDP in the last election, to mention a few. These men would make a solid kitchen cabinet team.

Tinubu Needs A Kitchen Cabinet Quick: A small K cabinet always on standby would debate him and brainstorm with him on emerging issues needing instant response.

Issues like the  aircraft and officers stranded in Bobo Diolasso; the impulsive deployment of fighter jets to Benin Republic, the FIRS secret MoU with France, purchase of military aircraft from Italy (prioritising security over economy), seizing of Nigeria’s supertanker by the US, the Dangote vs. NNPC misma, Nigeria featuring on Trump’s travel restrictions list, bandits leisurely taking down Nigerians, including military officers at will as if we are in an unmanned territory, foreign countries like France and the US pushing Nigeria around like a serf nation…plus a lot more.

So many silly things are niggling at Nigeria’s sovereignty, her essence and the survival of the people.

It appears there’s no government in Nigeria today. It appears there’s nobody out there in the country who can think, or who’s thinking. Yet this president dares to canvass for a second term.

BOTTOM LINE: Will Obi Capitulate?

The man with the raging momentum, the one who changed the algebra of Nigeria’s politics in 2023, Peter Obi is in a fix right now.

With the ruling APC, shutting down Nigeria’s vast political space, including blocking access to nigh all political parties, Obi is right now at a cul-de-sac.

The only viable option open to him today is to formally join the coalition party, ADC.

But former vice president, Atiku Abubakar sits there already like a leviathan. The near-octogenarian is bent on flying the ADC’s flag in 2027. His marabouts have assured him the time is finally now … for real!

This leaves Obi with the running mate position, at best. This will be tough to explain to his teeming followers (OBiDIENTS) who made him a veritable third force in 2023.

The other option is to bite the bullet and quit the race to preserve his ideals. Fingers crossed as Nigeria awaits his next move in the new year.