His Excellency,
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu
President and Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria
Aso Rock Villa
Abuja, FCT.
Dear Mr. President,
I hope this letter finds you in good health as you go about the onerous task of leadership in these trying times for our dear country.
I presume you are aware of the uproar raised by the appointment of Nnanyelugo Martin Ike-Muonso as DG of RMRDC. Numerous articles and petitions have been written by concerned Nigerians from all walks of life condemning and calling for the immediate removal of the DG for not meeting the legal requirements prescribed by law for the said appointment.
This appointment was unusual from the beginning as it was surreptitiously done without the usual announcement by your media team as has become the norm. But beyond the manner of announcement or lack thereof, it is firmly established and public knowledge that Nnanyelugo Martin Ike-Muonso is not qualified to be DG of RMRDC. Martin Ike-Muonso is an economist by training and does not have the requisite science, engineering and technology background as enshrined in the enabling Act.
Please permit me to refer you to Section 9 of the Raw Materials Research And Development Council Act of 2022 which states as follows:
9 (1) There shall be appointed for the Council a Director-General, who shall be the Chief Executive Officer of the Council.
(2) The Director-General shall –
(a) be appointed by the President on the recommendation of the Board through the Minister responsible for Science and Technology
(b) possess at least 18 years post post-qualification experience in science, engineering and technology subjects with cognate experience in raw materials acquisition, exploitation, conservation and development.
Mr. President, this is a clear case of the government violating the very legal enactments it is duty-bound to protect. I am using this medium to bring it to your attention believing that the people whose responsibility it is to brief you properly on the matter have abdicated that responsibility for reasons best known to them and secondly, because this is at odds with your track record of ensuring that appointees are fit for purpose.
The Minister for Innovation, Science and Technology, Mr Uche Nnaji, who made this recommendation is an enemy of your administration and is intent on tarnishing your image by this underhanded appointment.* Nigeria has engineers in their numbers who are eminently qualified to head an engineering research institute. So why resort to an economist? This appointment trivializes the importance of science and technology as a critical component of our aspiration to great power status.
An appointment such as this one is not a good reference point for the much talked about Renewed Hope Agenda you promised Nigerians.* It is also a bad precedent which deprives your administration of the moral authority to demand obedience to the laws of the land. This is therefore an opportunity to show Nigerians and indeed the whole world that you do not merely pay lip service to strict adherence to the rule of law. Nobody will believe in your government or take it seriously if this appointment is not reversed.
You have previously shown that you are a listening President when genuine grievances are brought to your attention and this disposition of yours is undeniable. For instance, you revoked the appointment of 24-year-old Kashim Imam as Chairman of the Board of Directors of Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA), removed Chukwuemeka Woke as DG of Ogun-Osun River Basin Development Authority following complaints that he is not from the South West Region and suspended all governing board appointments of tertiary institutions for alleged non-compliance with Federal Character Principles, the reinstatement of Prof. Nenibarini Zabbey as the coordinator of Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYPREP) within 48 hours of appointing Mr Olufemi Adekanmbi. In all of the above cases, there were no egregious violations of the Laws of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as in the instant case. The question that readily comes to mind is why is this case being handled differently.
Concerned citizens heaved a sigh of relief when an article appeared in The Punch Newspapers of 26th June 2024 and several other dailies wherein the science and technology committee of the House of Representatives waded into the matter by setting up a probe panel headed by Hon. Abiodun Akinlade to probe the appointments of both the NASRDA and RMRDC Directors-General. The probe panel assured Nigerians that the probe would be concluded within two weeks and its findings made public. Nigerians are eagerly awaiting the outcome of the probe.
Nigerians are also looking forward to seeing you exhibit your usual courage by reversing this appointment which contravenes the clear and unambiguous provisions of Section 9 of the RMRDC Act of 2022.
Olamilekan Adesina, PhD, writes from Lagos, Nigeria Email address: princesscynpesq@gmail.com
