President Bola Tinubu has approved a reshuffle of his ministerial cabinet and merged two ministries into one.
The decision was made during the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting on Wednesday, according to a statement by Bayo Onanuga, the president’s spokesperson.
Onanuga confirmed that the president has scrapped the Niger Delta Ministry and the Ministry of Sports Development.
Additionally, Tinubu approved the merger of the Ministry of Tourism with the Ministry of Culture and Creative Economy.
“President Tinubu and Federal Executive Council scrap Niger Delta Ministry and the Ministry of sports development.
“There will now be a ministry of regional development to oversee all the regional development commissions, such as Niger Delta Development Commission, North West Development Commission, South West Development Commission, North East Development Commission.
“The National Sports Commission will take over the role of the Ministry of Sports.
The FEC also approved the merger of the Ministry of Tourism with the Ministry of Culture and Creative Economy,” Onanuga said.
Backstory
President Tinubu has come under intense pressure to reshuffle his cabinet following the argument that some of the ministers have not been performing.
Last month, Onanuga announced that a cabinet reshuffle was imminent.
Addressing a press conference at the State House in Abuja, Onanuga expressed concern that despite significant efforts, Nigerians remained unaware of the administration’s achievements.
He said, “The President has expressed his desire to reshuffle his cabinet, and he will do it. I don’t know whether it will happen before October 1, but he will surely do it. That is all I can say for now, as no timeline has been provided.”
Commenting on the current administration’s performance, Onanuga added, “At the last Federal Executive Council meeting, the President instructed all ministers to actively promote the administration’s activities.
“Some ministers have been hesitant, avoiding television, radio, and other media platforms. The President wants them to overcome this and communicate their work to the public.
“Because the feeling out there is that the government is not doing enough and the government has been doing a lot. And it is up to them to go out there and blow their own trumpet. They should go out there and talk about what their ministries have been doing.”