<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dr Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, the political adviser to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has resigned, Daily Trust reliably learnt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Impeccable sources in the presidency confirmed yesterday that the former spokesman of the Northern Elders Forum (NEF) tendered his resignation about two weeks ago.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The sources said Dr. Baba-Ahmed did not provide details of the reasons for his decision, only stating that it was on personal grounds. However, as of the time of filing this report, it was unclear whether the presidency had accepted his resignation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Baba-Ahmed was appointed Special Adviser on Political Matters in the Office of Vice President Kashim Shettima in September 2023.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Over the past 17 months, he has represented the presidency at several public fora, including a recent national conference themed: \u201cStrengthening Nigeria\u2019s Democracy: Pathway to Good Governance and Political Integrity\u201d, which held from 28th to 29th January, 2025 in Abuja.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dr. Baba-Ahmed\u2019s role in the presidency drew criticism at certain points. A notable criticism came from the current Minister of State for Defence, Bello Mohammed Matawalle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In April 2024, Matawalle appeared to have taken an aim at Dr. Baba-Ahmed, when he said northern appointees must not remain silent in the face of intimidation or misrepresentation of the Tinubu administration. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
His remarks came after Baba-Ahmed criticised Matawalle\u2019s dismissal of the Northern Elders Forum (NEF) as a \u201cpolitical paperweight\u201d. That position by the minister was in reaction to the group\u2019s statement that the North had made a mistake voting for Tinubu in 2023.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Baba-Ahmed had argued that the Tinubu administration would have been better served if Matawalle had highlighted his own achievements as a minister\u2014along with those of other northern appointees\u2014rather than attacking the NEF.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cScathing criticism of NEF by the junior minister of defence, Matawalle, is ill-advised. He could have done a better job for this administration if he identified contributions of especially northern ministers and other appointees like me to improving security and reducing poverty in the North,\u201d Baba-Ahmed wrote.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Matawalle fired back, insisting that government appointees had a duty to defend and promote the administration they served. \u201cDr Baba-Ahmed\u2019s relationship and affinity with the Northern Elders Forum (NEF) is well known,\u201d Matawalle said, adding that: \u201cAs an appointee of this administration, it is his responsibility to work for its success, protect and defend the government against unjust and vicious attacks from those who hide under ethnic and other primordial interests to heat up the polity for myopic reasons\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The minister stressed further that: \u201cEvery appointee of President Tinubu, including Dr. Baba-Ahmed, owes the government a duty to promote, elucidate, and advance its good works and commendable efforts across all sectors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAs appointees from the North, we must take a stand, be unequivocal, and be counted among those working for the success of this administration. This is not the time to keep quiet in the face of intimidation and misrepresentation of the efforts and achievements of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu\u201d, the junior minister maintained.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dr Hakeem Baba-Ahmed at a glance<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dr Hakeem Baba-Ahmed (born September 11, 1955) is a Nigerian retired senior civil servant and former Chief of Staff to ex-Senate President, Dr Abubakar Bukola Saraki. He hails from Kaduna State. A practising Muslim, he has held several key positions in public service and governance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Baba-Ahmed studied at the Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, the London School of Economics, and the University of Sussex in the United Kingdom. He holds a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degree.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He began his career as a lecturer at the then University of Sokoto (now Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto) before joining the Kaduna State Civil Service. He later transferred to the Federal Civil Service, where he rose to the rank of Permanent Secretary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
During his career, Baba-Ahmed served as Permanent Secretary in various capacities, including in the Presidency and the Ministry of Commerce and Industry. He also held the position of Secretary to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A reform-minded public servant, he also served as Secretary to the Kaduna State Government. His contributions to governance earned him the national honour of Officer of the Federal Republic (OFR).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Baba-Ahmed is regarded as an elder statesman in Northern Nigeria. Before his appointment as Special Adviser on Political Matters to the President in the Office of the Vice President, he was the Director of Publicity and Advocacy for the Northern Elders Forum (NEF), where he spoke openly against policies that were perceived to be against the interests of the North, and of the various parts of Nigeria.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Culled from Daily Trust <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Dr Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, the political adviser to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has resigned, Daily Trust reliably learnt. Impeccable sources in the presidency confirmed yesterday that the former spokesman of the Northern Elders Forum (NEF) tendered his resignation about two weeks ago. The sources said Dr. Baba-Ahmed did not provide details of the reasons for his decision, only stating that it was on personal grounds. However, as of the time of filing this report, it was unclear whether the presidency had accepted his resignation. Baba-Ahmed was appointed Special Adviser on Political Matters in the Office of Vice President Kashim Shettima in September 2023. Over the past 17 months, he has represented the presidency at several public fora, including a recent national conference themed: \u201cStrengthening Nigeria\u2019s Democracy: Pathway to Good Governance and Political Integrity\u201d, which held from 28th to 29th January, 2025 in Abuja. Dr. Baba-Ahmed\u2019s role in the presidency drew criticism at certain points. A notable criticism came from the current Minister of State for Defence, Bello Mohammed Matawalle. In April 2024, Matawalle appeared to have taken an aim at Dr. Baba-Ahmed, when he said northern appointees must not remain silent in the face of intimidation or misrepresentation of the Tinubu administration. His remarks came after Baba-Ahmed criticised Matawalle\u2019s dismissal of the Northern Elders Forum (NEF) as a \u201cpolitical paperweight\u201d. That position by the minister was in reaction to the group\u2019s statement that the North had made a mistake voting for Tinubu in 2023. Baba-Ahmed had argued that the Tinubu administration would have been better served if Matawalle had highlighted his own achievements as a minister\u2014along with those of other northern appointees\u2014rather than attacking the NEF. \u201cScathing criticism of NEF by the junior minister of defence, Matawalle, is ill-advised. He could have done a better job for this administration if he identified contributions of especially northern ministers and other appointees like me to improving security and reducing poverty in the North,\u201d Baba-Ahmed wrote. Matawalle fired back, insisting that government appointees had a duty to defend and promote the administration they served. \u201cDr Baba-Ahmed\u2019s relationship and affinity with the Northern Elders Forum (NEF) is well known,\u201d Matawalle said, adding that: \u201cAs an appointee of this administration, it is his responsibility to work for its success, protect and defend the government against unjust and vicious attacks from those who hide under ethnic and other primordial interests to heat up the polity for myopic reasons\u201d. The minister stressed further that: \u201cEvery appointee of President Tinubu, including Dr. Baba-Ahmed, owes the government a duty to promote, elucidate, and advance its good works and commendable efforts across all sectors. \u201cAs appointees from the North, we must take a stand, be unequivocal, and be counted among those working for the success of this administration. This is not the time to keep quiet in the face of intimidation and misrepresentation of the efforts and achievements of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu\u201d, the junior minister maintained. Dr Hakeem Baba-Ahmed at a glance Dr Hakeem Baba-Ahmed (born September 11, 1955) is a Nigerian retired senior civil servant and former Chief of Staff to ex-Senate President, Dr Abubakar Bukola Saraki. He hails from Kaduna State. A practising Muslim, he has held several key positions in public service and governance. Baba-Ahmed studied at the Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, the London School of Economics, and the University of Sussex in the United Kingdom. He holds a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degree. He began his career as a lecturer at the then University of Sokoto (now Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto) before joining the Kaduna State Civil Service. He later transferred to the Federal Civil Service, where he rose to the rank of Permanent Secretary. During his career, Baba-Ahmed served as Permanent Secretary in various capacities, including in the Presidency and the Ministry of Commerce and Industry. He also held the position of Secretary to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). A reform-minded public servant, he also served as Secretary to the Kaduna State Government. His contributions to governance earned him the national honour of Officer of the Federal Republic (OFR). Baba-Ahmed is regarded as an elder statesman in Northern Nigeria. Before his appointment as Special Adviser on Political Matters to the President in the Office of the Vice President, he was the Director of Publicity and Advocacy for the Northern Elders Forum (NEF), where he spoke openly against policies that were perceived to be against the interests of the North, and of the various parts of Nigeria. Culled from Daily Trust <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":23632,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[50],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-23631","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-politics"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/fctnewsgazette.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23631","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/fctnewsgazette.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/fctnewsgazette.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fctnewsgazette.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fctnewsgazette.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=23631"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/fctnewsgazette.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23631\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":23633,"href":"https:\/\/fctnewsgazette.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23631\/revisions\/23633"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fctnewsgazette.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/23632"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/fctnewsgazette.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=23631"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fctnewsgazette.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=23631"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fctnewsgazette.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=23631"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}