President reportedly shifts speculated cabinet reshuffle to May

dimeji akinloye

January 3, 2017 4:31 AM

It was gathered that the President was advised delay the cabinet shake-up the second anniversary of his inauguration.

President Muhammadu Buhari

There are indications that President

According to Leadership newspaper, which cited 'impeccable sources', the President is no longer keen on the idea of reshuffling his cabinet so soon despite pressures from within and outside the government, including the First Lady, Aisha Buhari.

Buhari is said to have been convinced to delay the cabinet shake-up until May as part of a mid-term review mechanism.

The report cited a source at the National Assembly who said Buhari was advised to wait till the second anniversary of his inauguration, with the hope that it will help him to fix round pegs in round holes and avoid the "mistakes of the past."

It was also gathered that the minister of environment, Hajiya Amina Mohammed, will resign from her position to take up her new job as the deputy secretary-general of the United Nations.

However, the presidency on Monday, January 2, had denied any planned cabinet reshuffle now or later, describing media reports about it as "rubbish."

"The president jokingly raised the issue at a recent cabinet meeting, saying he didn’t know where the stories were coming from. So, since you said you want the truth, that is the truth. It's just rubbish," Buhari's spokesman, Garba Shehu told Leadership in a telephone interview.

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The President had On Wednesday, November 11, 2015, sworn in 36 ministers, but one of them, Barrister James Ocholi, from Kogi State, died in a ghastly road accident on Sunday, March 6, 2016.

A new minister to fill late Ocholi's position will reportedly be appointed in May, as well as a replacement for the outgoing minister of environment.

dimeji akinloye