See What Buhari Ask SGF, Ministers To Do

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The presidency on Tuesday gave indications that it has started winding down the administration as President Muhammadu Buhari direct­ed the Secretary to the Gov­ernment of the Federation (SGF), Boss Mustapha, and his cabinet members to start preparing their hand over notes.

The directive was also laced with a subtle warning to the ministers, permanent secretaries and heads of gov­ernment agencies against abandoning the business of governance for electioneering.

President Buhari said, “Any infraction against the directive will be viewed seriously.”

He issued the directive at the closing ceremony of the 2022 Ministerial Performance Review Retreat, preceded by his signing of Executive Order 012 on improving performance management, coordination and implementation of pres­idential priorities.

Infopowerng recalls that the administration of President Buhari will come to its climax on May 29, 2023, having served out two terms as elected civilian president.

Buhari had seized the two-day ministerial retreat to ap­praise his administration’s performance in the last seven years plus to score himself high, noting that he had met the yearnings of Nigerians on critical infrastructure.

His assessment comes de­spite divergent views by many Nigerians in the last seven years.

Buhari at the retreat told participants that with the commencement of cam­paigns towards the 2023 gen­eral elections, the business of governance must continue to receive the needed attention during this period.

“Consequently, all minis­ters, permanent secretaries and heads of agencies must re­main focused in the discharge of their duties, as any infrac­tion will be viewed seriously.

“Our collective goal is to map out a transition plan for the incoming administration to ensure proper documen­tation of all the policies, pro­grammes and projects of gov­ernment with up-to-date status of implementation,” he said.

President Buhari noted that the lessons learned in the last three years of implement­ing the administration’s poli­cies, programmes and projects would serve as the needed tool to propel every ministry to re­main committed, towards the achievement of developmen­tal objectives.

He, therefore, charged all ministers, permanent sec­retaries and heads of gov­ernment agencies to step-up, double their efforts and work in synergy toward total deliv­ery of the administration’s set targets.

On Executive Order 12, the president explained that it would institutionalise a culture of accountability and transparency in the pursuit of good governance.

President Buhari also di­rected the Secretary to the Government of the Federa­tion (SGF) to continue with the quarterly review process and assessment of ministries for the third and fourth quarters of 2022, saying the reports will form part of transition docu­ments of his administration to the incoming government.

To achieve this objective, the president ordered all ministers and permanent secretaries to ensure that the performance reports of their ministries are submitted on a quarterly basis to the Office of the SGF for review by the Central Delivery Coordination Unit.

‘’The outcome of these reviews would be made avail­able for my consideration,’’ the president said.

He also declared that fol­lowing discussion and recom­mendations, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Devel­opment has been directed to engage with relevant stake­holders to ensure the comple­tion of all large-scale integrat­ed rice processing mills before the end of this administration.

‘’This will help our coun­try to maintain sufficiency in the local production of rice as the ban on the importation of foreign rice will be sustained, ‘’ he said.

On electricity, President Buhari directed that all hands must be on deck to en­sure timely realisation of the increase in electricity genera­tion to 25,000 megawatts in six years.

He recounted that the plan on electricity generation, through the partnership be­tween the Federal Govern­ment of Nigeria and German Siemens AG is on course as the first batch of the transformers has arrived Nigeria already.

Considering the huge in­vestment made in the rail sec­tor, the president directed the Ministry of Transportation and relevant security agen­cies to ensure the provision of maximum security along the railway corridors.

“We must ensure the safety of our rail users and strive to achieve the intended econom­ic goals. We must at the same time ensure realizable sched­ules and first-class mainte­nance.

“Following the milestones recorded in the road sector, coupled with the innovative ways of funding road infra­structure, the Ministry of Works and Housing has been directed to compile a list of all completed roads, bridges and other infrastructure for com­missioning before the end of this administration,” he said.

Furthermore, the presi­dent directed that the Federal Government’s investment in the reconstruction of 21 se­lected on-going federal roads totaling 1,804.6km, under the Road Infrastructure Devel­opment and Refurbishment Investment Tax Credit Policy must be closely monitored and tracked to ensure the roads are completed on schedule.

“In line with the outcome of the panel session on Priori­ty 4 (Improve Transportation and Other Infrastructure), the Ministry of Aviation is hereby directed to conclude and ensure the take-off of the national carrier project before the end of the year.”

In order to expand the fiscal space and improve the nation’s revenue generation efforts, President Buhari directed the Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning to en­sure effective implementation of the strategic revenue and growth initiative.

“In the same vein, we must also build synergy between the fiscal and monetary au­thorities in order to avoid unnecessary drawbacks in our economic planning and performance,” he said.

On the implementation of the Basic Healthcare Provi­sion Fund, the president di­rected that a monitoring and evaluation framework be put in place by the Ministry of Health in collaboration with relevant agencies and part­ners to track the disbursement and utilisation of the funds.

On humanitarian issues, the president noted that in the three years of existence of the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, the ministry has provided sub­stantial support and assis­tance to vulnerable citizens through various programmes.

He, therefore, directed the minister to facilitate and work with the Attorney General of the Federation in transmit­ting the Federal Executive Council’s approved National Social Investment Programme Establishment Bill (2022) to the National Assembly.

This, he said, would ensure the sustainability of this im­portant programme which leaves a lasting legacy for the vulnerable Nigerians by this administration.

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