Buhari: Agricultural ministers, this is why I sacked them

President Muhammadu Buhari announced on Wednesday that Sale Mamman, the Minister of Power, and Mohammed Nanono, the Minister of Agriculture, had been disengaged in an effort to reenergize the cabinet.

According to a statement released by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, the President made the remarks during a meeting of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) at the Presidential Villa in Abuja.

The address was attached to the statement by a presidential aide.

In his speech, President Buhari avoided saying that the former ministers’ contributions to his government were insufficient.

Mamman and Nanono, he claims, were fired after an independent and critical review of their work.

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The President emphasized that many Nigerians have long complained about the country’s poor power supply and high food prices.

Dr. Mohammad Mahmood Abubakar, the Minister of Environment, has been reassigned to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, while Engr. Abubakar D. Aliyu, the Minister of State for Works and Housing, has been assigned to the Ministry of Power.

“On Wednesday, August 21, 2019, the current Federal Executive Council was sworn-in following a rigorous retreat to bring returning and new members up to speed on the accomplishments, challenges, and lessons learned from my first term in office, as well as to highlight the nine priority areas of government for the second term,” he said.

“Through sector reporting during Cabinet meetings and Retreats, the tradition of subjecting our projects and programs implementation to independent and critical self-review has taken firm roots two years and some months into the second term.

“I must commend this cabinet for displaying unrivaled resilience in assisting the government in navigating the disruption to global systems and governance caused by COVID-19’s emergence shortly after inauguration. Because the traditional model was altered, the weekly Federal Executive Council meetings were not spared.

“As we all know, the only constant in any human endeavor is change, and as this administration enters its critical second term, I believe it is critical to reinvigorate this cabinet in a way that will deepen its capacity to consolidate legacy achievements.”

“These important review steps have assisted in identifying and strengthening weak areas, as well as closing gaps.”