President Goodluck Jonathan yesterday placed a weighty challenge on the shoulders of his special advisers, saying they must be more informed and educated than his ministers in areas where they were appointed to counsel him.
Jonathan gave this charge after swearing in 13 out of 18 of his new aides. He said that his aides should rise up to the enormous challenges that lay ahead because Nigerians were expecting the best from his administration.
The aides were sworn in in three batches.
“As special advisers, you are expected to be more knowledageble in the areas you will advise than even ministers; in most democracies that is what obtains. Let me share a joke with you that a friend told me. While I was talking about special advisers, he admonished me and said ‘Mr. President, I hope you will not appoint special advisers that you will advise”, the president said.
He added: “So from your citations I am quite sure that I am appointing special advisers that would advise me and not the ones I will advise.”
He congratulated them on their new positions and reminded them that the challenges before them were enormous.
The 13 persons who were sworn in as the president’s aides in three batches are: Mr. Oronto Douglas (Research and Strategy); Dr. Reuben Abati (Media and Publicity); Mr. Kingsley Kuku (Niger Delta Affairs); Mrs. Sarah Akuben Pane (Social Development); Dr. Tunji Olagunju (NEPAD); Mrs. Sarah Jibril (Ethics and Values); Senator Joy Emordi (National Assembly Matters); Dr. Pius Olakunle Osunyikanmi (International Relations); Prof. Dan Adebiyi (Special Duties; Mrs. Asma’u Abdulkadir (Gender Issues); Nze Sullivan Akachukwu Nwakpo (Technical Matters); Barr. Bashir Sufyan, (Legal Matters to Vice President); Senator Isaiah Ballat, (Special Duties to Vice President).
?