Why Bunkure Was Appointed Ahead Of Political Bigwigs

President Bola Tinubu, on Friday, nominated Mariya Bunkure as a replacement for Maryam Shetty in his ministerial list before the 10th Senate.

Naija News understands that Tinubu earlier nominated Shetty in his 19-man list. However, her name was swapped with Bunkure’s name on Friday.

The decision came as a surprise as Shetty was already in the National Assembly for her screening when she was informed of the development.

An associate of the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Abdullahi Ganduje, who spoke with Daily Trust, revealed why Bunkure was appointed ahead of top contenders for the ministerial list.

The source claimed that Bunkure got the nod ahead of other strong contenders because Tinubu made his intention to have a certain number of females in his cabinet clear.

The associate said, “Oga (Ganduje) was informed by the president that he would prefer the replacement of Shetty to be a woman so as to meet his target number for female representation in his cabinet. This is why Bunkure got the nod at the last minute. Although she is close to the family, there were stronger contenders, but all of them are male, so oga picked her.”