Opinion: As ministers gear up to render their stewardship, by Kola Amzat

The present Federal Executive Cabinet (FEC) was constituted about five months ago, not quite long after the president got inaugurated. No doubt, the time is ripe for the ministers to start rolling out their achievements for the period they’ve been in the office, particularly as New Year commences.

In accordance with the President Tinubu’s avowed commitment and promise to run a responsible, responsive and credible government that would be accountable to Nigerians with respect to probity and accountability, he has accordingly constituted a Policy Coordination and Monitoring office under the Secretary to the Federal Government of the Federation, to handle and superintend on this all-important assignment expected to avail Nigerians with the internal workings of government, with respect to on-going projects, completed ones and new projects that are being initiated.  

It’s therefore incumbent on Hadiza Bala-Usman’s Policy Coordination office to situate in the public domain the Key Performance Index (KPIs), as well as the standards of performance the government expect of the ministers in order to ensure fairness, equity and justice in evaluation.

Meanwhile, Nigerians expect the FCT Minister to reposition, reengineer and refocus the federal capital territory, Abuja to be at least, amongst the first three (3)  federal capitals in Africa, in terms of infrastructure, security, administrative conveniences, beauty & grandeur, transportation infrastructure, investments attraction and more importantly, making the nation’s seat of power very conducive for the nationals and foreigners to live. These supposed to be integral part of the minister’s KPIs.

Therefore, the onus is on the minister to confirm to Nigerians on the update in respect of work done so far, to ensure that the above initiatives come to fruition.

Nigerians demand from Ministers of Defense zero tolerance for security breach across the country, in whatever form. Even though, we’re conscious of the fact that, insecurity has been a hydra-headed challenge around the country over years, but, President Tinubu has vowed to make the requisite resources available to frontally confront and battle this challenge to submission.

The onus of proper and synergistic coordination of security operational activity across the country therefore rests squarely on the Minister of Defense, as well as Minister of state for defense, to continually ensuring that the territorial integrity of the nation is protected and secured from the internal & external aggression.

The above should also constitute an integral part of the ministers’ KPIs?  

The defense ministers KPIs should equally include holistic digitalization of FCT, Abuja and other strategic & security formations across the country like Lagos, Kaduna, Enugu, etc. Digitalization of the nation’s treasure base like Port Harcourt, Onne, Warri, Uyo and Eket should as well be paramount.

The overall objective is to properly secure the territorial integrity of the nation, protection of life and property of the citizenry and the nation’s treasure base across the land.   

At the performance review session, the ministers should be able to brief Nigerians how far they’ve gone in the implementation of the above initiatives, as well as   confirming to Nigerians, the associated challenges, if any.      

Minister of works KPIs should include linking the country strategic locations with each other, and more importantly with the federal capital territory through networks of modern roads.

It’s also of essence that the Minister’s KPIs should take cognizance of linking industrial locations like Lagos, Aba, Nnewi, Kano, Port Harcourt etc with seaports and commercial areas around the country.

It’s the responsibility of the Minister to inform the nation on how far he has gone in the ministry, as well as taking Nigerians through the factors limiting the optimal achievement of these goals.    

Citizenry expects the KPIs of solid minerals development minister to include super-intending on the effective coordination and supervision of the operational activities of the ministry, with a view to ensuring that in no distant time, the ministry fulfil the long expectation of the government and Nigerians of been a veritable source of economic diversification.

KPIs should also spell it out in unequivocal terms, the need to have zero tolerance for illegal mining.

Meanwhile, we expect the ministers to avail Nigerians the challenges limiting his developmental forays during the performance evaluation session.

The integral part of Minister of power’s KPIs should be to increase the nation’s megawatts from 3500-4500 to 10000 in a very short while, and with the increase progressively moving up to about 15,000-20,000 within the first year/second year of this administration.

It’s also incumbent on the minister to implement to the letter the new Electricity Bill, that has decentralizes administration of power from the firm control of NERC, thereby providing ample opportunity for the new private and corporate investors to invest in the sector.

In addition, it’s expected that the KPIs would take charge of reviewing the operational activities of the existing DISCOs with a view to renewing the Licenses of the performing ones, as well as discontinuing with those that might have fell short of expectations.

The KPIs should also include reducing the area of coverage of the DISCOs, as this existing arrangement has largely made their operations to be inefficient and frustrating to consumers.

There exist no doubt that there are deep rooted problems in the ministry. The minister should be able to brief and update Nigerians on this, as well as strategic initiatives he’s put in place in going around them. 

KPIs for Minister of Petroleum resources should include ensuring that nation’s Refineries are back in operations. The duo of Port Harcourt and Kaduna Refineries rehabilitation have been wholly paid for, with the former already delivered and the latter delivery being expected in the first quarter of Year 2024. Next should be rehabilitation of that of Warri and Onne. This should form part of the Minister’s KPIs and also, with the realistic timelines.

KPIs of this ministry should also include zero tolerance for illegal bunkering particularly on the deep sea; the dastard act that has over the years caused the nation trillions of naira.

Effective management of oil installation and infrastructures across the nation, with respect to zero tolerance for pipelines vandalization should also be dominant in KPIs.    

More importantly, optimal revenue into FAAC must be continually ensured by the minister. This should be a key aspect of KPIs.      

Nigerians are not unconscious that are associated issues. The minister must be able to take citizenry through at the performance evaluation session.

Larger percentage of KPIs for Labour & Productivity Minister should be for zero tolerance for labour unrest. Although, we are aware of labour leaders’ continual uncompromising and irreverent stance, the minister is expected to continually device ingenious means to manage this challenge.

It’s also important that the minister mandate should continually ensure that ASUU remains less disruptive in the nation’s university educational activity.

And, of course, as prices of consumer items continually journey on the upward trend, it’s normal & logical that the federal government respond appropriately and accordingly, through the increase in wages across board in order to stem labour unrest. This could be a key aspect of the Minister’s KPIs.

Any problem so far in the minister implementation of the initiatives? Nigerians deserved to be briefed.

Industry, Trade and Investment Minister should employ strategic initiatives to reinvent and reignite industrial hubs across the country, with particular reference to the hubs in Lagos, Kano, Aba, Nnewi, and Onitsha.

This could be ways of providing infrastructures, granting of concessions, rebates, supporting companies to building IPP to drive their operations etc. This should be dominant in the minister’s KPIs.

Encouraging small and medium scale enterprises to grow, stabilize, as well as help in the growth & development of the nation economy should also form part of the KPIs.

At the session, the expectant nation expect to be informed of various challenges the minister is going through in his bid to deliver on the several mandates.

Budget and Planning Minister’s KPIs need to include holistic implementation of Budget in all MDAs. The KPIs must emphasize zero tolerance for non-implementation of budget.

Equally, credible census should form part of the performance standards.

KPIs of Finance Minister need to include efficient management of overall economy, effective collaboration of fiscal and monetary policies, efficient management of nation’s debt; both domestic & foreign, optimal management of foreign reserves, as well as efficient management of the country’s GDP growth.

Ultimately, the citizenry expect the Minister’s KPIs to include ingenious ways of developing and growing the economy, more so, as Coordinating Minister of economy.   

At the performance evaluation session, Nigerians would be delighted to hear from the minister of challenges in the ministry.

Agriculture Minister’s KPIs includes ensuring providing enough agricultural produce for the teeming population, as well as for commercial exports to foreign markets.

In the light of this, the KPIs should include rehabilitation and construction of dams in agricultures producing areas particularly in the north, as well as collaborating with the security agencies with a view to ensuring top-notch security at the locations, thus shielding them from banditry, herdsmen invasion and kidnappers.

More importantly, for decades, agriculture has been projected as a veritable source of the nation’s economic diversification agenda. This should forms part of KPIs.

What quantum of revenue been projected therefrom? Of course, this should realistically be in billion/trillion and what are the militating factors against these laudable initiatives?

The nation would expect to be accordingly briefed by the minister.

Sports development Minister’s KPIs should of necessity include satisfactory performance of the nation’s sporting teams in international sporting events like AFCON, World Cup, Olympic Games, boxing and basketball tournaments, as well as development and maintenance of sports infrastructures across the country, particularly the nation’s stadia.

These, amongst other issues should constitute performance index the minister is expected to provide briefing on, for the expectant nation, as well as availing the citizenry the difficulty in the course of implementing the mandate of the president.

Periodic performance evaluation of cabinet ministers remains the only contemporary and strategic device of making them to be intensely faithful and passionately embrace the president’s 7 point agenda, as well as being conscious of demands of citizenry.

Nigerians must therefore commend the president for this strategic initiative, as it would make the cabinet members to continually be on their toes, as well as making them alive to their responsibilities in office.     

Kola AMZAT (FCA, FCIB)

Lagos based Financial & Management Consultants,

09077509348.