Photo: See Who Will Be President Buhari's Finance Minister

8 years ago

Photo: See Who Will Be President Buhari's Finance Minister

Okechukwu Enyinna Enelamah, one of President Muhammadu Buhari’s latest ministerial nominees will be finance minister in the new cabinet, TheNEWS has learnt authoritatively.

Enelemah, 50 year-old head of Nigeria’s biggest private equity firm, African Capital Alliance is one of the few of the 37 nominees, whose portfolio we can confirm.

Enelamah, a former Goldman Sachs banker, former medical doctor, is a founder and chief executive of ACA, which has raised over $750 million in managed funds since its inception in 1997.

According to his his CV published by Bloomberg, Dr. Enelamah was one of the original principals of Zephyr Capital and South Africa Capital Growth Fund, Ltd.

“Previously, he was employed at Arthur Andersen and Goldman Sachs. He was an investment professional of Zephyr Management, L.P. He serves as a Director of Dorman Long Engineering Limited. He has been a Non-Executive Director of UAC of Nigeria Plc since 2010. He also serves on the Board of various companies including eTranzact, Cornerstone Insurance Plc, Technoserve, Inc., Africa Leadership Initiative West Africa (ALIWA), and Business Day.

“Dr. Enelamah is a Chartered Financial Analyst and a qualified Chartered Accountant in Nigeria, winning two national prizes in the qualifying examinations. Dr. Enelamah holds an M.B.A. degree with high distinction from the Harvard Business School, where he was a Baker Scholar.

Dambazau: will be defence minister
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Another nominee, who was cleared by the Senate today is General Abdulrahman Dambazau, former chief of army staff. He will be defence minister, just like Dr. Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu’s role is also clear: minister of state in the petroleum ministry.

TheNEWS learnt that President Buhari deliberately did not assign the portfolios of the 37 nominees, because there are plans to restructure the ministries into about 18.

The scenario unfolding is the appointment of two ministers per each ministry.

President Buhari wants nominees such as Enelamah on board in view of the need to find more creative ways to engineer Nigeria out of its present financial quagmire.

Oil income has fallen by two-thirds to just $3.2 billion in the last year up to July, according to a report published at the weekend by the NNPC. With President Buhari eager to implement his party’s programme of creating jobs, he needs people with ideas to help out”, said a source close to the president’s thinking.

President Buhari first sent a list of 21 names to the Senate on 30 September, comprising former governors and politicians who generally helped the president to power in the 28 March election. Among them were Raji Fashola, Kayode Fayemi, Rotimi Amaechi, Chris Ngige, Ahmed Ibeto, Lai Mohammed and others.

Yesterday he forwarded 16 additional names, containing several technocrats.

Among them is Aisha Abubakar, a banker who until recently headed the Abuja Enterprise Agency, a government body to help smaller firms.

The others, with several being not well known figures nationally, Khadijatu Bukar Abba Ibrahim, Claudious Omoleye Daramola, Prof Anthony Onwuka, Jeffery Onyema, Brig. Gen M.M Dan Ali (Rtd), James E. Ocholi, a senior advocate, Zainab Shamsuna Ahmed, Muhammadu Bello, Mustapha Baba Shesuri.

Others are Heineken Lokpobiri, a former senator, Adamu Adamu, a journalist, Prof Isaac Adewole, a medical doctor and former vice chancellor of the University of Ibadan, Pst Usani Usani Uguru and Abubakar Buhari Bawa.