Edo Cabinet: Regrettably, it’s going to be a long wait

From John Mayaki

The delay by Governor Godwin Obaseki in constituting a cabinet following his official inauguration nearly a year ago will certainly set bad precedence which, if not checked, could become a recurring incident in successive governments.

Cabinet appointments are crucial to running a functional government, and this is the least Edo people deserve. As his employers who voted for him, they must call on the Governor to rise up to the task and end his protracted charade on the matter.

As we speak, there is an absence of governance in Edo state. The legislative arm cannot carry out its core duties of representation because its very makeup is unrepresentative, no thanks to the actions of the Governor. What has been cobbled together and called a House has ten members instead of the legal twenty-four. All 18 local government councils are without democratically elected chairmen. This is far worse than the case of a double jeopardy and has left the state needing urgent piloting, even with particular reference to all the sectors.

Take the education sector for instance. The cycles of industrial actions recorded across virtually all the tertiary institutions controlled by the state, with some like the Ambrose Alli University shutting completely for long spells, have had devastating effects on the quality of education in the state. The morale of the teaching staff in Edo State is at an all-time low and students are increasingly forlorn, their thirst for learning replaced with a feeling of despondence. This scenario signifies utter disrespect for the state’s educational institutions and is indicated of the importance the Governor attaches to education.

It is unclear that the Governor has any care in the world for the people’s voiced concerns and their thoughts about his fecklessness and disappointing prevaricating. The inexcusable delay in performing a governance task as basic as appointing commissioners, nearly a year into a second tenure when governance ideas and direction ought to be already clear, has deepened negative feelings about the credibility of his administration.

The situation of Edo State is unique in its absurdity. It is hard to imagine that a governor found none worthy to fill important positions running into a year, not even a media aide to hone his higgledy-piggledy communication, in the enlarged circles of individuals who daily pay homage to him. Could it be a lack of trust in those who served in the previous administration or complete disregard for the electorates or a combination of both?

Of worse consequence is what this show of incompetence and arrogant dismissal of the electorates’ concerns signal to the business community. No investor will commit funds in a state where the Governor operates as a sole administrator and with a reputation for targeting businesses for political reasons. Recent data from the Nigerian Investment Promotion Council (NIPC) lend credence to this fact. Edo was nowhere to be found on the list of the ten states with notable investment announcements in the second quarter of 2021. Nassarawa made the list.

There is no clear or articulate plan on how the Governor intends to achieve his MEGA manifesto. He has not even been able to put together a document, let alone put the full force of government behind the agenda. Yet time continues to flee and the multifarious problems challenging the state continue to compound.

Another question that boggles the mind is this: how is Governor Godwin Obaseki implementing the 2021 budget without a cabinet in place, considering the pivotal role cabinet members and appointed heads of ministries play in the implementation process?

Edo State faces the untidy and worrying prospect of permanent secretaries nominating and implementing capital projects. The workings of governance in the state is in shambles and reflective of the confused mind of the self-acclaimed technocrat and investment banker governor.

Trapped by its own greed and lack of gumption, his party PDP appears also unable to hold him to account. He has yet sent them on another wild goose chase on the matter of appointments, using technicalities such as a screening committee for potential candidates. Meanwhile, in another breath, he had three months ago requested and obtained approval from the 10-member Assembly to appoint Special Advisers with nothing to show.

The mess already created is certain to hamstring the appointees if and when they finally surface. By the time they finish another round of screening conducted by the House of Assembly, the administration might be halfway gone. Regrettably, it’s going to be a long wait. And the signs are evident that Obaseki’s second-term ship is rudderless and heading fast, without aim, towards a large iceberg.