‘Keeping Cabinet In Check, Not FEC Meeting, Important’ Presidency Says

President Bola Tinubu has given his explanation why  he is yet to convene for another Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting 44 days after the maiden meeting.
The maiden meeting was on August 28, at the Council Chamber of the Presidential Villa in Abuja, where the president installed 45 ministers at the inaugural cabinet meeting.

But, 44 days after the first gathering, concerns about Tinubu’s ability to govern the nation have persisted due to his inability to chair any FEC meeting.

Attending to the matter is Abdulaziz Abdulaziz, the President’s Senior Special Assistant for Print Media, who opined that the FEC meeting does not have a set schedule, it is not a problem.
According to Abdulaziz, President Tinubu had a different understanding of the FEC’s duties, and just because meetings haven’t taken place doesn’t mean that government has stopped..

He said: “I think this is not an issue because there is no specific time for FEC meetings. Nobody said there are specific provisions for FEC meetings, and every government can work out things that will suit it. The most important thing is that ministers are working.

“In fact, the president has a different idea of the functions of the FEC because what we have seen, which a lot of experts have criticized, is how FEC reacts to contract awarding, but that is not the principle of FEC.

“He (the president) will hold the FEC, but those policy advisory and supervision kinds of functions, not the traditional way of coming every week announcing contract awards.
“There is more to FEC than contract award, and the most important thing is that cabinet is in check, ministers are busy working, and there is a consultation with the president. So, lack of FEC meeting doesn’t stop anything.”