The Presidency has apologised for the errors in the list of appointments made by President Bola Tinubu since he assumed office on May 29, 2023.
In an effort to respond to public criticism and concerns over the fairness of Tinubu’s appointments, presidential spokesperson Sunday Dare had earlier published a list detailing appointees by their respective geopolitical zones.
The move was aimed at pushing back against recent comments made by Senator Ali Ndume of Borno South. Ndume, a senior lawmaker from the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), recently spoke on Arise Television, where he accused the president of breaching the federal character principle through appointments that he described as unbalanced.
Sunday Dare, who serves as the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Public Communication, released the list of appointments on Wednesday. According to the breakdown, 29 officials were from the South West, 35 from the North West, 25 from North Central, 24 from the North East, 22 from the South-South, and only 16 from the South East.
Critics quickly reacted to the published document, pointing out key omissions that raised further questions about inclusivity in Tinubu’s administration. Notably, the list did not include the name of Femi Gbajabiamila, the President’s Chief of Staff, who is a prominent figure from the South West. Also missing was Kemi Nandap, the Comptroller General of the Nigeria Immigration Service. These gaps, especially the continued underrepresentation of the South East, fueled ongoing debates on social media and other platforms.
Faced with growing public scrutiny, Dare addressed the situation on Thursday through a post on his official X (formerly Twitter) account. He wrote: “We have noticed a number of errors in the list of appointments tweeted. We are sorry. We will provide an updated list later. Thank you.”
