Illegal Appointment of Prof Nnanyelugo Martin Ike-Muonso as DG at Nigeria’s Raw Materials Research and Development Council: Science Minister Uche Nnaji Erred

I was shocked beyond words to discover that the newly appointed DG/CEO of RMRDC is an economist (BSc., MSc, and Ph.D. Economics) by training and completely lacking in engineering, science and technology background; a requirement enshrined in the enabling Act.

There is absolutely no intention to belittle or disparage his credentials, but the fact remains that he does not meet the legal requirements for the position which he currently occupies thereby making the entire exercise a nullity.

The appointment was done in contravention of the unambiguous provisions of Section 9 of the Raw Materials Research And Development Council Act, 2022 which states as follows:

9 (1) There shall be appointed for the Council, a Director-General, who shall be the chief executive officer of the Council.

(2) The Director-General shall –

(a) be appointed by the President on the recommendation of the Board through the Minister responsible for Science and Technology.

(b) possess at least 18 years post qualification experience in science, engineering and technology subjects with vast cognate experience in raw materials acquisition, exploitation, conservation and development.

The use of the word “shall” is an imperative command usually indicating that certain actions are mandatory and not permissive. This contrasts with the word “may” which is generally used to indicate a permissive provision, ordinarily implying some degree of discretion.

The framers of the RMRDC Act were cognisant of these in using the word “shall” to provide needed guidance on the prerequisites or legal threshold to be met for the appointment of RMRDC DG.

The word “shall” is used in legal drafting to impose a duty. A duty the Minister and all those responsible have woefully failed to discharge.

This is no doubt a show of shame and another example of brigandage in our political culture.

I am led to believe that the current Minister for Innovation, Science and Technology, Mr Uche Nnaji, has a Science background and should know better than to be a part of this ill-advised appointment. President Bola Tinubu has done a reasonably good job of assigning roles to his appointees according to their areas of expertise. It therefore comes as a surprise that this contravention of mandatory legal requirements for appointment escaped the notice of the Presidency.

This appointment is an embarrassment and both the Minister and his appointee know it. No matter how much they try to burnish and embellish the credentials and profile of Prof. Ike-Muonso, he is neither an engineer, scientist or technologist within the contemplation of Section 9 of the Raw Materials Research And Development Council Act of 2022.

This is also an affront to the science and engineering community in Nigeria and the silence of this community is saddening. The immediate past DG is an engineer and so also was the one before him. So what brought us to this sad state of affairs  where people who are meant to enforce the rule of law continually trample on same? Have we run out of scientists and engineers in Nigeria or are we simply to defer to the wishes of those seeking “jobs for the boys”? I call on the Science and Engineering community to take a firm stand against this executive rascality currently going on at the Federal Ministry of Innovation, Science and Technology. Entities such as the Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria (COREN), Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE), Pharmaceutical Council of Nigeria (PCN), Academic Staff Union of Research Institutions (ASURI) should take all necessary steps to reverse this blatant usurpation of their role in such a critical Institute. ASURI did a commendable job when it resisted the sit-tight designs of the immediate past DG of RMRDC who was intent on tenure elongation after serving two five-year terms which is the legal maximum. I am yet to see the parent unions in research institutes in Nigeria like SSA, NASU, and especially ASURI take a stand or make a pronouncement on this illegal appointment. Or have they all been compromised or intimidated into silence?

In order to develop, science and Technology must be given its pride of place in Nigeria and political office holders who do not still know this are not worthy of their positions. Trading in commodities or raw materials is not and will never be a Science and Engineering qualification. If it were, a lot of traders with long experience trading in commodities can also be found for the DG role.

Prof. Ike-Muonso has never done any work in a science laboratory and will be out of his depths as DG of RMRDC. This appointment has put him in uncharted territory and dressed him in  Shakespearean borrowed robes.

The Honourable Minister is already seen by many stakeholders and Nigerians as one of the least performing ministers in the President Tinubu administration and is facing possible replacement in the rumoured imminent cabinet reshuffle. He should tread with caution as this kind of recklessness will not help his dwindling profile.

We all recall the recent example of Chukwuemeka Woke whose appointment on the 9th of May, 2024 as the managing director of Ogun-Osun River Basin Development Authority was met with stiff opposition from Nigerians because he is not from the South West region. This led to his swift removal by President Tinubu and subsequent redeployment to another agency. I join other well-meaning Nigerians to urge Mr. President to have the courage to do the right thing once again.

 Adekola Malomo writes from Abuja, Nigeria.