First Merit, Then Affirmative Action

A reaction to some inaccurate and misleading report on the Vice President’s speech yesterday in Calabar.

VICE President Yemi Osinbajo has not ruled out the continuous need of the Federal Character Principle in Nigeria, but believes that merit ought to come first, then such affirmative actions.

Prof Osinbajo certainly agrees that in the end, there should always be fair and equitable representations that reflect the nation’s geo-political diversities in appointments and other instances including in the public educational sectors.

It is therefore inaccurate to say that the Vice President “criticized the setting up of the Federal Character Commission, ” and misleading to link his views to the “appointment of political office holders into the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari.”

MR. OLUSOLA ABIOLA

FOR THE OFFICE OF THE VICE PRESIDENT