The Federal Government has kicked against the inauguration of a Shadow government by Prominent economist and political activist, Prof. Pat Utomi ,describing it as an aberration in a federal system of government.
The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, said, “At a time when our nation is set to celebrate 26 unbroken years of presidential democracy, the idea of a so-called “shadow government” is an aberration.
He explained that Nigeria is not a parliamentary system where such a system is practised, and there is no provision for such in our statute books adding that opposition politics is a central feature of democracy, it must be practised at all times within the bounds of propriety.
Prof. Pat Utomi inaugurated a shadow government composed of members from various opposition parties.
According to Utomi, the “Big Tent Coalition Shadow Government,” launched virtually on Monday evening, will function as a credible opposition force, highlighting the failures of the Bola Tinubu administration while offering ideas for better governance.
Utomi, however, justified the move, arguing that policy missteps by the current Federal Government had worsened poverty, driven multinational companies out of the country, and intensified terrorism in Benue and Plateau states, alongside rising insecurity and corruption nationwide.
He expressed concern over what he described as the government’s resort to propaganda and the suppression of opposing views.
He said the shadow cabinet—made up of figures drawn from several opposition parties—was created to respond to what he called a national emergency.
Human rights lawyer, Dele Farotimi, was named head of the Ombudsman and Good Governance portfolio
