Daily Independent Online.
*
Tuesday, June 22, 2004.
Presidency denies cabinet reshuffle
By Gbenga Abiodun
STate House, Abuja
Reports doing the rounds that the President
may drop some members of the Federal Executive Council in a major cabinet
reshuffle and replace them with new ones was on Monday doused by the Senior
Special Assistant to the President on Media, Mrs. Remi Oyo.
Briefing State House Correspondents on this
and other issues, she said while President Olusegun Obasanjo appreciates that
there is the avenue for professionals to contribute to the task of
reconstructing the nation, he believes they can do this by other means without
necessarily being cabinet ministers.
Oyo spoke against the backdrop of
insinuations that the president has decided to drop non-professionals in his cabinet and bring in professionals
and technocrats.
She added that the decision to reshuffle
the cabinet remains the prerogative of Obasanjo who for now has no plan to do
so and nobody can preempt him. Her words: “There was a publication that
the President was thinking of dropping some ministers. There is nothing like
that.”
“The seasonal speculation can only in
the minimum cause jitters among people but in the main not mean much,”
she stated, adding that, “What I can say from this vintage position is
that there is nothing like that for now.”
Clarifying on the presence of United States
marines in the Niger Delta, she said the explanation offered by the Ministry of
Defence about it should suffice for now, while affirming confidence in the
Nigerian Armed Forces and the commander-in-chief to deal with the issue.
“I don’t think there is any
problem or any danger whatsoever to our territorial integrity, but the truth of
the mater is that the ministry of defence which has such capacity has commented
on this matter so I think you may want to speak with the defence chief or Col.
Emeka,” she concluded.
