Ambode to nominate four commissioners, lobbyists chase party leaders

By OKUNADE ADEKUNLE

The lobby for appointment into Governor Akinwunmi Ambode’s cabinet is intense with former aspirants and local government chairmen leading the pack. OKUNADE ADEKUNLE reports

As the Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode prepares to constitute his cabinet and Board of parastatals, there is intense lobby by the aspirants in both the governorship and National Assembly primaries to be considered for political appointment. This is even more so for those candidates who were forced to step down by the leadership of the party. Also former executive chairmen of the local government councils in the state are not left out in the struggle for appointments. While the party will provide the majority of the nominees that will form the new cabinet, the Governor has been given four commissioners slots to fill in the new arrangement.

During the electioneering, some of the aspirants who were aggrieved over how Ambode emerged as the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC, were told to shield their swords and remain in the party to work for the success of Ambode at the poll so that they would be rewarded with appointments and contracts.This according to the party would make them to be relevant not only in the party but also in the government.

It was learnt that these governorship aspirants seem to have begun to put to the notice of the party’s leadership their promise that they would be rewarded for accepting the outcome of the primaries and also working for the party’s victory in the polls. Although, some of them who were former aides of former Governor Babatunde Fashola, may be the first to be considered based on their experience in public service and contribution to the development of the party, while the new ones seem not to be in the favoured circle as they find it hard in penetrating the party’s leadership and even lacked reliable party chieftains that would help them lobby the relevant people towards the objective.

As the governorship aspirants are battling to be on the appointment list of Ambode, so also are the aspirants of the party for the House of Representatives and state Assembly primaries lobbying the party’s leadership and even Ambode through their trusted leader in the party. It was gathered that some of them even went as far as Osun State to seek for Governor Rauf Aregbesola’s assistance in influencing the list of those that would be appointed as either Special Advisers or Commissioners. Others who have access to the wife of the national leader of the APC, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, have been flocking around her to help talk to Asiwaju on their behalf. It was revealed that the reason for the strong lobby by these aspirants is because the party’s leadership seems to be pulling back on the promise made to the aspirants when they were asked to step down their ambition for the preferred candidates of the party in the last general election.

One of the House of Representatives aspirants who was told to step down by the party disclosed to Hallmark that the party had directed all the aspirants who yielded to the party’s directive to submit their resume for party’s scrutiny, before submitting to the governor for approval. He added that the party seems to be careful in submitting names that might not meet up with the requirement needed to serve as either Special Adviser or Commissioner.

He also said that some of the aspirants are not happy with the idea of submitting their resume first to the party because some of the party leaders are believed to use such process to obtain money from the aspirants, and to witch-hunt those they have scores to settle with them.
“They have told us to submit our resume for the party to examine but it will get to Governor Ambode’s table which to some of us is seen as a ploy by the leaders to exploit us again because in things like that you will need to lobby even if you meet the requirement. The issue we are having now is whether the party’s leadership would follow due process as some of the leaders who have problem with the aspirants during and after the primaries want to use the opportunity to seek for their pound of flesh. It is something we are not sure of,” said one of the House of Representatives aspirants.

Among those who have joined in the lobby for appointments are the past council chairmen who were removed by Fashola after their tenure expired. It was revealed that the ex-council chairmen are relying on their contribution to the success of the party at the poll, as a result of their mobilization of voters and party supporters at the grassroots during the general elections to get appointments in the new administration.

The former council chairmen have the control of the party structure at the grassroots and the party banked on them to deliver the grassroots in the poll, although the party leadership gave them funds to mobilise and also pay canvassers in their respective LGA. The party also promised to give those who have served two terms in the office with higher responsibility in the government of Ambode. Some of them were promised Board chairmen and government agencies but the situation is different as many people are jostling for the jobs even those that contributed nothing to the success of the party.

A reliable source in the party disclosed to Hallmark that the bulk of the appointments are on the party leaders to pick who would get what position either as commissioner, special adviser and even Board appointments. Sources disclosed that Ambode was only allowed to nominate four commissioners, while the party chooses the remaining ones for him.

The source said that the ability of the government and the party to be able to share the positions among the aspirants and party loyalists have made Ambode to dissolve all Boards of parastatals and agencies. He further revealed that Ambode’s four slots may not be occupied by party members as he prefers to work with technocrats that would make his government to succeed and meet up with the expectations. He stressed that Ambode may have problem with those that the party may bring forward to work with him because most of them may have strong contacts  and political clout than Ambode, to be controlled by him as commissioners or even special advisers.
“Fixing these strong politicians into the government in different capacities may be problematic to the government at the long run, but things would be sorted out at the end. Fashola’s men too are there to attend to because they also played key roles in the electioneering and even some of them stepped down their ambition for Ambode to emerge”, said the source.

But the Lagos APC legal adviser, Mr. Sodiq Ademola, in a telephone interview stated that Ambode is given free hand to make his choice of people to work with in his government, adding that the party would only make input into the selection process because it is through the party that he emerged as governor of the state.

He stressed that the party has the capacity to manage all interests in the party without any rancor.
“ Governor Ambode is given free hand to choose people that would work with him but the party would only make input into the selection process because it is through the party that he emerged as governor of Lagos”, said Ademola.

Meanwhile, attempt to get the response of the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Mr. Habib Aruna, was not successful as he did not answer his calls until the time of filing this report.