Strong indications emerged on Wednesday, that President Muhammadu Buhari may have withdrawn the name of immediate past Deputy Governor of Niger State, Ahmed Musa Ibeto from his ministerial list.
Vanguard can exclusively report that President Buhari has earlier sent a letter to the Senate President, Bukola Saraki, notifying him of the withdrawal of Ibeto.
The letter Vanguard gathered from an authoritative source will be read on the floor of the Senate before screening commences on Wednesday.
Ibeto made the first batch of 21 ministerial nominees sent to the Senate President by Buhari on September 30.
However, Vanguard gathered last night that the withdrawal of Ibeto’s name may not be unconnected to the fact that like Ibeto, another ministerial nominee, Abubakar Bawa Bwari, who was among the second batch of 16 nominees announced by Senate President yesterday, also hails from Niger State.
According to Vanguard’s background checks, Abubakar Bawa Bwari popularly called ABB by his admirers was born on 4th November 1963 in Tafa Local Government Area of Niger State.
He was elected as a member of the Federal House of Representatives, representing Suleja/Gurara/Tafa Federal Constituency in 1998 and subsequently became Chief Whip of the House, a position where he served meritoriously over a period spanning 1999-2007.
Meanwhile, when contacted last night to clarify the mix-up on why two nominees hail from Niger State, the Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to President Muhammadu Buhari, Mr. Femi Adesina said: “The names of ministerial nominees President Muhammadu Buhari has sent to the Senate for screening, had no states of origin attached to them. As soon as the President does that, it will be made public.”
With Ibeto reportedly dropped, the total number of ministerial nominees now stands at 36 instead of 37.
Confirming this development via his Twitter handle @bukolasaraki, the Senate President in a tweet yesterday evening said: “Today, I presided over the screening and confirmation of 10 of the 36 Ministers nominated by President Muhammadu.” Vanguard
