Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle, has called on all northern appointees of President Bola Tinubu’s administration to work for its success or to step down.
Matawalle’s statement came as a response to criticism from Dr. Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, Special Adviser on Political Matters to the President, regarding Matawalle’s earlier remarks, News About Nigeria reports.
Matawalle had criticised the Northern Elders Forum for threatening not to support Tinubu in the 2027 elections, calling them a political lightweight and a burden to the north.
However, Baba-Ahmed, a former spokesperson for the NEF, rebuked Matawalle for his harsh words, suggesting that he could have defended the administration better by highlighting the contributions of northern ministers and appointees to security and poverty reduction in the region.
In response to Baba-Ahmed’s comments, Matawalle reiterated his stance. He said every appointee of the president has to promote and defend the government’s efforts, particularly those from the North.
He said, “Dr. Baba-Ahmed’s relationship and affinity with the Northern Elders’ Forum (NEF) is well known. The fact now is that he is an appointee of the administration as Special Adviser and it is incumbent on him to work for the success of the government he is part of, protect and defend the government against unjust and vicious attacks from those who hide under ethnic and other primordial interests to heat up the polity for myopic reasons
“As appointees of the government from the North, we must all take a stand, be unequivocal and be counted in the roll of honours for our support and work for the success of the administration we are serving. This is not the time to keep quiet in the face of intimidation and misrepresentation of the efforts and achievements of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR. We must stand up to be counted for being on the part of the government or take our exit.”
Dr. Baba-Ahmed was appointed into the office of Vice-President Kashim Shettima in September last year. He is the elder brother of the vice presidential candidate of the Labour Party in the 2023 election.
