The outgoing Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Mr. Festus Keyamo, has declared that the position of Minister of State is unknown to the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, and therefore an aberration.
Keyamo stated this while delivering a speech during a valedictory session chaired by President Muhammadu Buhari on Wednesday.
Citing some secttions of the constitution, Keyamo, however, noted that his observation is not out of ingratitude but as his contribution to the nation’s constitutional development as a relatively young democracy and to aid future governments to optimise the performance of those they appoint as ministers.
He explained in a lengthy speech made available to the press that it is difficult to assess the individual performances of the Ministers of State since their discretion were shackled with the discretion of the ministers as any original ideas developed by a Minister of State are subject to clearance by another colleague in cabinet before they can sail through for consideration by Council.