*Appoints Boss Mustapha new SGF.
By Ahmed Idris
President Muhammadu Buhari on Monday terminated the appointments of suspended Secretary to the Government of the Federation(SGF), Mr. Babachir David Lawal, and the Director General of the National Intelligence Agency (NIA), Mr. Ayodele Oke.
The two government officials were indicted by a presidential panel headed by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, which investigated allegations of financial misconduct against them.
The President also approved the appointment of Mr Boss Mustapha as the new Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi Adesina, said in a statement in Abuja.
The statement reads: “President Muhammadu Buhari has studied the report of the panel headed by the Vice President, Prof Yemi Osinbajo, SAN, which investigated allegations against the suspended Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Mr Babachir David Lawal, and the Director General, National Intelligence Agency (NIA), Ambassador Ayo Oke.
“The President accepted the recommendation of the panel to terminate the appointment of Mr Lawal, and has appointed Mr Boss Mustapha as the new Secretary to the Government of the Federation. The appointment takes immediate effect.
“President Buhari also approved the recommendation to terminate the appointment of Ambassador Oke, and has further approved the setting up of a three-member panel to, among other things, look into the operational, technical and administrative structure of the Agency and make appropriate recommendations.”
The new SGF was appointed by President Buhari as the Managing Director of the National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) in June, 2016. Mustapha is a lawyer with extensive experience in both private and public sectors in management positions.
Mustapha, who hails from Adamawa was a Deputy National Chairman of the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), one of the legacy parties that formed the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC). He was also Chairman of the APC 7-man committee that undertook the screening of 27 aspirants seeking to clinch the party’s gubernatorial ticket in the Kogi State last election.
