Ministerial Appointments For Sale?

The allegation by Alwan Hassan, spokesman of the APC Presidential Campaign Council, that some ministers pay billions of naira to secure appointments and then move to recoup their investment, has reopened an uncomfortable debate about the commercialisation of public office.

Speaking on Arise Television on October 23, 2026, Hassan suggested that some appointments are driven by financial considerations rather than public service. He provided no names or documentary evidence, yet his remarks have stirred controversy and triggered calls for investigation within and outside the ruling party.

Its significance lies in its source. Though APC National Publicity Secretary, Felix Morka, clarified that Hassan was referring to practices under previous administrations, the allegation cannot be waved away. Claims of monetised appointments have persisted across successive governments.

In 2019, US-based Professor Farooq Kperogi alleged in an article, “Ministership for Sale: Up to N2.5 Billion Per Slot,” that some ministerial slots under President Muhammadu Buhari’s second term were auctioned to the highest bidders, including a claim that Cross River nominee, Jeddy Agba, paid billions to the late Chief of Staff, Abba Kyari. The allegations were never conclusively investigated, but they deepened public cynicism.

The Jonathan administration was not spared. In June 2011, newspapers reported on appointment syndicates exploiting political connections to secure positions for clients. President Goodluck Jonathan himself lamented selfish lobbying and fake ministerial lists. Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah also decried the culture of using appointments to reward political interests rather than competence.

This newspaper recalls that the problem goes beyond ministers. In 2022, former Senator Andy Uba was charged with allegedly obtaining N400 million from businessman George Uboh on the pretext of facilitating his appointment as MD of the NDDC. The charge was later withdrawn after a settlement. In 2023, businessman Tein Jack-Rich denied claims by Jackson Ude that he paid N500 million for a ministerial slot. Neither claim should be treated as fact without evidence.

More disturbing are allegations around recruitment into public institutions. In 2023, the Federal Character Commission, created to ensure fairness, was embroiled in scandal when commissioners accused its then Chairman, Muheeba Farida Dankaka, of selling jobs for between N750,000 and N7 million through intermediaries. Dankaka denied it and counter-accused the commissioners. The episode exposed deep rot in public recruitment.

Frequent tenure extensions beyond statutory retirement and arbitrary reversals of appointments have further eroded confidence. While often justified on grounds of continuity, they raise questions about transparency and political interference.

The recent case of Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi Matthew is even more troubling. He allegedly created a fictitious government agency with forged documents, enjoyed government privileges and secured N1.3 billion in the 2026 Appropriation Act. His claim of paying N400 million through an intermediary for appointment was denied by Chief of Staff, Femi Gbajabiamila, while the Presidency confirmed the agency never existed. The ICPC has since arraigned him. The case raises serious questions about institutional oversight.

This transcends party and administration. Political scientists call it rent-seeking and prebendalism, where public office becomes a channel for private accumulation. When appointments are seen as investments, the temptation to recover costs through inflated contracts and patronage becomes irresistible.

We insist that Hassan’s allegation should neither be dismissed for political convenience nor accepted without proof. It deserves independent, credible investigation. Nigerians deserve to know whether public offices are being commercialised, who facilitates it, and what is being done to stop it. Public office is a public trust, not a commodity for sale.