President Bola Tinubu has put forward Abbas Balarabe as a nominee for the position of minister to replace the previous nominee, Nasir El-Rufai, a former governor of Kaduna State, whose nomination was rejected by the Senate.
The announcement of this replacement was communicated through a letter that was read by Senate President Godswill Akpabio during the plenary session on Tuesday.
Balarabe’s name was presented alongside Dr. Jamila Ibrahim and Ayodele Olawande, who were initially nominated by the President for the roles of Minister of Youths and Minister of State for Youths, respectively.
Abbas Balarabe, a former Secretary to the Kaduna State government, previously chaired Governor Uba Sani’s 65-member transition committee in Kaduna State.
In August, the Senate had declined to confirm the nominations of El-Rufai, Stella Okotete (Delta State), a former Managing Director of Nexim Bank, and Abubakar Danlandi, a nominee from Taraba State.
The President had initially submitted a list of 48 nominees to the Senate, of which 45 were confirmed and subsequently sworn in as ministers.