The Arewa Integrity Youth Initiative has expressed strong disagreement with the recent appointment of Mohammed Abu Ibrahim as the Executive Secretary and Chief Executive Officer of the National Agricultural Development Funds (NADF). The controversy revolves around allegations of procedural irregularities and concerns about the qualifications of the newly appointed Executive Secretary.
The President of the Arewa Integrity Youth Initiative, Alh. Abubakar Danlami, held a press briefing in Kaduna to voice the group’s objections. In his lamentation, he quoted Section 10, subsection 2 of the NADF Act, stating, “The Executive Secretary shall possess cognate experience in any of the following disciplines of Agricultural finance; Economics; or Agricultural policy formulations and implementation. Whereas, the new secretary does not have any of the above mentioned.”
He continued to emphasize the group’s concerns and cited subsection 5 of the Act, which says, “The Secretary may be removed by the President ‘for inability to perform the functions of his office, whether arising from infirmity of mind, body, or any other cause, or for misconduct.'”
Alh. Abubakar Danlami further stated, “The appointment of Mohammed Abu does not follow due procedures as enshrined in the act, and we advise His Excellency President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to rescind his decision and reinstate the defunct chairman Dr. Gazali Mohammed Abubakar until due process is followed.”
One of the key issues raised by the group pertains to the qualifications of Mohammed Abu Ibrahim for the role. It has been pointed out that the newly appointed Executive Secretary lacks any of these qualifications. This discrepancy has raised concerns about the appropriateness of his appointment.
Furthermore, Alh. Abubakar Danlami emphasized that both the newly appointed Executive Secretary and the former are of the Arewa extraction, and they should be given equal consideration. He expressed the view that the former Executive Secretary had worked diligently in the interest of the parastatal and should be allowed to continue his work without being abruptly replaced.
The group believes that if these irregularities in appointments persists, it could lead to a state of anarchy, with the potential for hindering significant development under the current administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. They are determined to make their voices heard and have called upon the media to support their efforts in reaching the President so that necessary corrective measures can be put in place.
Alh. Abubakar Danlami concluded by warning that if no changes are made in the near future, they will resort to street protests in the vicinity of the Presidential Villa to draw attention to what they perceive as an alarming trend of mischievous decision-making within the government.
