A Development Consultant, Jide Ojo, says the eight ex-governors and 37 other persons recently sworn in as ministers and members of Federal Executive Council (FEC) by President Bola Tinubu are technocrats.
In the FEC are eight former Governors: Nyesom Wike (Rivers), Gboyega Oyetola (Osun), Simon Lalong (Plateau), Bello Matawalle (Zamfara), Ibrahim Geidam (Yobe), Atiku Bagudu (Kebbi), Dave Umahi (Ebonyi); and Abubakar Badaru (Jigawa).
Ojo, who was a guest on Channels Television’s Politics Today programme on Tuesday, argued that none of the President’s 45 ministers has less than a first degree certificate.
The analyst said experience matters in the effective delivery of responsibilities as ministers and “all of them are experienced one way or the other”.
“These are technocrats in their own right,” Ojo said.
“There are so many people who have this misconception that technocrats are only people who are brought aboard from the private sector. No; it is a misconception.
“All of these people are technocrats in their own right; some are lawyers, some are architects, some are engineers, some are medical doctors, they belong to different fields.”
Ojo said there is none of the new ministers who is not a graduate, adding that politicians can also be technocrats.
“When people talk about a government of technocrats, you just need to moderate your expectations that technocracy is not mutually exclusive from being a politician,” he said.
The analyst said the new ministers were in a way compensated as they worked for the Tinubu presidency.
Ojo, who, however, criticised the “bloated” size of the President’s cabinet, said some of the new ministries and ministers were unnecessary.
He said the new ministers came on board at a time when there is no honeymoon and they must rise to work immediately.
He said there should be clear-cut demarcation of duties between ministers of state and substantive ministers to avoid friction.