Sports Minister Sunday Akin Dare, might go into battle with Speaker of the House of Representatives Femi Gbajabiamila, and a former Governor of Lagos State Babatunde Fashola, in the race for Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Chief of Staff.
QUEST TIMES had reported that ahead of the May 29 inauguration, President-elect Bola Tinubu has commenced the vetting process for his Chief of Staff, with Speaker Gbajabiamila and Fashola said to be front-runners for the plum and influential role.
Also believed to be considered for some serious roles in the coming administration are Tinubu’s former Commissioner for Finance, Wale Edun and the Kebbi State Governor, Atiku Bagudu, among other familiar faces currently being identified for various roles.
However, in readiness for his administration’s take-off next month, THISDAY reported that Gbajabiamila has already begun discharging the duties of the Chief of Staff to Tinubu, having unofficially resumed with the President-elect in France, with a view to working out processes and plans, including calendarising his activities.
“He has technically resumed with him in Paris, and they are trying to work out process and plans,” an insider told THISDAY, adding that the President-elect was already looking at building national security and economic teams. Sources had also revealed that Tinubu has appointed Edu and Bagudu into his economic team, which he considers quite critical.
QUEST TIMES can now report that Dare, who has been Buhari’s Youth and Sports Minister since 2019, has made the shortlist for the Chief of Staff role.
Dare was for almost 7 years the Chief of Staff and Special Adviser on Media to Asiwaju.
He combined the knowledge he acquired from Havard University, Oxford University, New York University, Ahmadu Bello University and the University of Jos, to excellently handle Asiwaju as a leader of the Nigerian opposition and a continental and international political figure.
This was at the time Asiwaju was dubbed “Machiavellian” and a “master strategist” by internationally renowned publication, Financial Times.
Dare’s fluency in the Hausa language made it possible for him to be the first Nigerian non-native Hausa speaker to have headed the Hausa Service of the Voice of America in Washington DC for almost 9 years.
56-year-old Dare also served as the Executive Commissioner, Stakeholder Management, Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), an appointment he was nominated for by President Buhari in 2016.