By Camillus Eboh
ABUJA (Reuters) -Nigeria’s President Bola Tinubu has sent 19 additional names to the Senate to be approved for cabinet positions, a week after submitting 28 names for confirmation, according to a letter read out by the Senate President.
Tinubu is under pressure to quickly revive Africa’s largest economy, which is facing a high debt burden, double-digit inflation and widespread insecurity.
His cabinet nominations come nearly two months after he was sworn into office. Tinubu and his ministers have their work cut out for them, including dealing with the fall-out from scrapping a popular fuel subsidy that benefited the rich but cost the government $10 billion last year alone.
The new nominees included former governors and political associates and technocrats. Given Tinubu’s party majority in the Senate, his cabinet picks are expected to be confirmed.
On Wednesday, hundreds marched through major Nigerian cities to protest at the removal of the subsidy and demand a new minimum wage after Tinubu axed it in the country’s boldest reforms in decades, aiming to help the economy out of slow growth.
Tinubu has sent a total of 47 names to the Senate for approval. Under the constitution, the president must include a member from each of the country’s 36 states in his cabinet which includes ministers, ministers of state (junior ministers) and ministers in the presidency.
(Reporting by Camillus Eboh; Writing by Chijioke Ohuocha; Editing by Giles Elgood)
