EXCLUSIVE: Real Reason FEC Has Not Reconvened
A ministerial retreat that will harmonise government programmes and align its policies is underway, a senior figure in government said yesterday.
The retreat, the official explained, will not be ‘a talk-show’ but a reset of public policy for members of the Federal Executive Council (FEC).
The retreat will shape the focus of the government programmes and policies which the ministers will be requested to implement with specific timelines and proper monitoring.
Ahead of the retreat, ministers have been familiarising themselves with their ministries to get a good grasp of the situation.
The ministers are expected to key in into policy outlines of the Renewed Hope Agenda of the Bola Ahmed Tinubu administration.
The source said: “The retreat has become imperative to streamline the promises being made by the ministers who were put on their toes to deliver on government programmes.
“Some of the ministers have been making tough promises out of enthusiasm. But timelines must be attached to these promises, not only to ensure they are realistic, but also attainable.”
It was learnt that the government has settled for Monday for FEC meetings, a departure from what obtained under the previous administrations.
A regular FEC meetings during the Muhammadu Buhari held weekly on Wednesdays.
“In this dispensation, it was learnt that FEC will meet on Monday’s and might not be weekly to enable the ministers time to deliver on the assignments before them”, the official said.
Forty-five ministers were inaugurated on August 21. They had an inaugural FEC on August 28.
Three more ministers-designate – Balarabe Lawal (Ministry of Environment), Jamila Bio Ibrahim (Ministry of Yotuh) and Ayodele Olawande (Ministry of Youth) – will join the cabinet at its next meeting to bring the number to 48.
Many of the ministers had been up and running since their inauguration.
Works Minster, Dave Umahi, who was mandated by the President to see for himself the state of the federal roads, as moved around the country and has given his report to the President.
He has also got the Presidential approval for the use of concrete to build federal roads.
Yesterday, the minister said the President had approved immediate interventions to make more than 260 critical roads motorable across the country.
Aviation and Aerospace Development Minister Festus Keyamo; Marine and Blue Economy Minister Adegboyega Oyetola, Minister of Solid Minerals Dele Alake, Minister of Humanitarian Affairs Dr. Betta Edu, Interior Minister Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo and Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister Nyesom Wike, among others, have also been impactful.
