President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s most anticipated cabinet reshuffle has come and gone but the appointment of Iyom Bianca Odinaka Ojukwu, the wife of former Biafran warlord, Chief Emeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu, as the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs has attracted the most diverse comments for some obvious reasons. While some commentators read politics into the appointment, which those in government consider the most strategic by Tinubu, others see it differently depending on which perspective they are speaking from.
Despite the divergence of opinions about the appointment of the ex-beauty Queen and Ijelle Nwanyi, all of them reached a consensus that Bianca Ojukwu is eminently qualified for the job. As a lawyer and diplomat, she is highly experienced for the job. Some critics even believe that giving her the post of a junior minister is belittling, a sentiment which some people close to her do not share. To be appointed a minister in Nigeria is a big deal. A former minister once told me that to be a minister in Nigeria is not a small thing, whether senior or junior minister, it comes with lots of privileges. The jostling for ministerial positions justifies that assertion.
Let me also add at this juncture that the lobby for ministerial appointments in Nigeria is so intense that President Tinubu has to leave the shores of this land to do it partly in London and in Paris during his most recent working leave. Although the cabinet reshuffle didn’t meet the expectations of most Nigerians, it left all of us with some talking points or what some commentators would refer to as key takeaways. The cabinet is still bloated despite the call for cutting down the cost of governance. The Yorubaness of the cabinet is not in doubt as they dominate everywhere just like Buhari people dominate the cabinet during his days. Some people believe that Tinubu will still tinker with the bloated cabinet. Some Nigerians still think that some ministers in the cabinet will be discharged just like the other five. They believe that the economic team will be rejigged and the power sector allowed to be manned by experts. They say that the government needs a vibrant chief economic adviser and a pragmatic economic team.
Whether one is appointed a junior or senior minister or given a juicy or non-juicy ministerial position, there is nothing wrong with it. Must Tinubu’s cabinet be made up of only members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) or members of the Lagos boys club or Afenifere or Ngbati, Ngbati? The South-East was not fairly treated in the cabinet reshuffle having lost two senior ministers only to be given two junior ones. Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe described the cabinet reshuffle as ‘renewed shege’ to the people of the South-East. I remember one-time Tinubu man and political polemicist and intellectual, Prof. Udenta O. Udenta, urging Tinubu to form a rainbow cabinet, a cabinet made up of all Nigerians irrespective of party affiliation. Perhaps Udenta will be disappointed by Tinubu’s cabinet reshuffle.
Although the reshuffled cabinet didn’t fully meet Udenta’s aspirations, Tinubu went outside his party and appointed Bianca Ojukwu, a chieftain of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) and an ardent supporter of Peter Obi of the Labour Party (LP). Despite the bickering in Anambra State chapter of APC over the appointment, Governor Charles Soludo of APGA and Governor Alex Otti of Abia State, who rode to power via LP, hailed it. By bringing Bianca Ojukwu into his cabinet, some supporters of the administration believe that Tinubu has killed two birds with one stone. They also think that the appointment will likely to translate to gaining some political mileage into the Igbo heartland preparatory for 2027. Why must everything be tied to politics? It is simply because in Nigeria everything is seen from the perspective of politics. That is why some people believe that Bianca’s appointment will change the South-East political landscape and equation. Some people are already listing their expectations from Mrs. Ojukwu. Will she fulfill or betray them? Will her appointment change the politics of the South-East which has since 1999 been pro-PDP and most recently pro-LP because of the Peter Obi factor? All of these will unravel in the fullness of time.
Is APGA still relevant in the nation’s political equation when it has remained an Anambra peoples’ party since inception? How long shall we remain in ‘nkea bu nke anyi’ APUGA? Its inroad into Imo State via Rochas Okorocha was aborted midway due to irreconcilable differences between Governor Okorocha and the then APGA chieftains who insisted that its leadership should remain in one senatorial zone in Anambra State. That was why Rochas Okorocha joined forces with other progressives to form the ruling APC.
How far can Soludo go with the much-fractured APGA with the looming 2025 Anambra gubernatorial election? How far can LP go with only one sate and many factions in 2027? Is ZLP uprooting LP in Abia State judging by the outcome of the recent local government election? How far can the South-East go in 2027 with the political mosaic or rainbow of PDP, APC, LP and APGA? This is a multi-billion naira question begging for honest answers. Ndigbo need to rethink their politics and what the region stands to gain henceforth. We have been sidelined for so long. We cannot go far with the current rainbow party structure in the South-East region.
This development is probably why the South-East governors cannot speak with one voice on any issue, be it insecurity, unemployment and absence of foreign direct investment or poor internally generated revenue. The time has really come for Ndigbo to take their political destiny in their hands. We have been at the periphery of power for so long. We must now declare where and what we want to be in the nation’s politics. There is nothing wrong in taking decisions. History will blame us for indecision.
Beyond all the qualities Bianca Ojukwu will bring to her new job, her exquisite beauty stands her out. No wonder she stole the show at the ministerial screening by the Senate, to the extent that Senate President Godswill Akpabio, had to warn his fellow senators to concentrate on her resume and not her ravishing beauty. At the screening, Mrs. Ojukwu said: “I have served Nigeria in many capacities as an Ambassador, permanent representative to the United Nations and in other capacities. As an Ambassador to the Kingdom of Spain, I was able to build bridges on behalf of Nigeria. I was the Secretary of Anambra State Peace, Truth and Justice Commission. It is my honour to stand here and to assure that I am here because there is hope for this country. If we are able to come together, commit and salvage this nation, we shall have peace.”
No doubt, Bianca Ojukwu will distinguish herself in her new job considering her vast experiences. If there is anything there for our people, she will surely bring home our share. She will represent us very well, irrespective of what the critics are saying. The politics of her appointment notwithstanding, Bianca Ojukwu merits her appointment.
