Competence, integrity, credibility and commitment to the ideals of the All Progressives Congress (APC) are some of the core values leaders of the party in the states expect President Muhammadu Buhari to consider in picking the members of his next cabinet.

The party leaders, made up mainly of state chairmen and secretaries, told The Nation in separate interviews that the new cabinet should have no place for people who do not share the aspirations of the President for Nigeria and Nigerians, neither should it feature people who have no strong sense of character.

The Kwara State chairman of the APC, Mr. Bashir Bolarinwa, urged Buhari to consult with party leaders at the state level in picking his men and women.

He also said that those being considered for ministerial appointments should be armed with a letter of recommendation from the state chapters of the party.

Bolarinwa, a former member of the House of Representatives, said: “I wish the President well. But I still feel that even if he has some people in mind across the states, there is nothing wrong with him asking them to go back to their states and get recommendation letters from the party.

“It is important that the party is also allowed to be part of the decision making process.

“I feel that it is important that the President makes some consultations. That is still a way of making the party relevant.

“Of course, he is the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, but the votes that made him President were garnered from all the 36 states of the federation, including the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), and all the votes were added together for him to win the elections.

"For that reason, I think the party should be allowed to have some kind of say.

“But if you ask me, in a state like Kwara where I am the chairman of APC, if somebody like the former Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, is still interested, I think I will recommend him. Because the victory we are enjoying in this state today, he was a pillar.

“He was at the centre of the victory. He played a very significant role. I am saying this as the chairman of the ruling party and I am saying this as somebody who was at the centre of it and who actually knew all that happened.

“We should not forget that the victory that we lay claim to today in this state started with Alhaji Lai Mohammed’s federal constituency, because the bye-election we had in November last year served as an impetus and morale booster for party members and people of the state.

“That was when a lot of people in the state who were sitting on the fence and who did not give us a chance realised that truly, it was possible for APC to win elections in the state.”

•Excerpted from a report by The Nation.

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