In reaction to the embarrassing and debilitating five-month wait for President Muhammadu Buhari to constitute his cabinet when he was first elected in 2015, Nigerian lawmakers have altered the Nigerian Constitution to provide a two-month time limit for a President or State Governor to constitute their cabinet. The Constitution Fifth Alteration (N0. 45) Act assented to by President Buhari in March 2023 now requires that the President or a State Governor shall forward to the Senate or State House of Assembly as the case may be, the names of their nominees for confirmation as Ministers or Commissioners within sixty days after the date the President or Governor has taken his or her oath of office.
In addition, the alteration further requires such nominees to declare their assets and liabilities before their confirmation and prohibits the Senate and State Houses of Assembly from going ahead with such confirmation if this declaration is not done.
The alteration does not forbid the President or State Governors to appoint Ministers or Commissioners at any other time during their tenure subject to confirmation by the Senate or State House of Assembly. Since cabinet members serve at the pleasure of the President or Governor, this preserves their discretion to change their Ministers or Commissioners as they choose.
Placing a timeframe for nomination of Ministers and Commissioners is key to ensuring that key government officials are in place and there is no delay or significant interruption in the running of government business. This alteration binds the President-elect and Governors-elect who emerged from the 2023 general elections. The failure of President Buhari to constitute his cabinet more than five months after he assumed office in 2015 was a defining factor in Nigerians’ assessment his government at its beginning. The verdict was that the administration was a slow one lacking in responsiveness and even lack lustre. This perception has persisted throughout President Buhari’s eight-year tenure, with the administration described as having under-performed.