As President Bola Tinubu marks his second year in office on May 29, 2025, intense scrutiny has descended on his cabinet, with a fresh round of ministerial performance evaluations set to land on his desk this week. The Central Results Delivery and Coordination Unit (CDCU), led by Hadiza Bala-Usman, is finalizing its first-quarter scorecards for all federal ministries, offering a critical lens into the effectiveness—or lack thereof—of Tinubu’s appointees.
The upcoming report, which evaluates the performance of ministries from January to March 2025, follows the President’s commitment to quarterly assessments based on deliverables agreed during the October 2023 Cabinet Retreat. Sources within the Presidency confirmed that ministers uploaded project data and milestones to a secure CDCU portal in April. Since then, a rigorous verification process has been underway.
“The assessment is complete and could be submitted to the President any moment now,” a Presidency insider disclosed. “Many ministries did not meet the expectations laid out in their performance bonds.”
Although Tinubu is not expected to announce sackings before the May 29 Democracy Day celebrations, there is growing anxiety within government circles. The CDCU’s last report in 2024 led to the removal and reassignment of several ministers who failed to meet performance benchmarks.
Only a few ministries are said to have performed “above average,” including the Ministry of Works. “Most others lagged behind in critical metrics like project delivery, policy implementation, and responsiveness to national challenges,” a top government source revealed.
President Tinubu, during the last cabinet retreat, emphasized that tenure would be performance-based. “If you are performing, nothing to fear. If you miss the objective, we’ll review it. If no performance, you leave us,” he said.
Opposition parties and civil society actors have wasted no time in reacting. The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) described Tinubu’s administration as “a monumental failure,” citing economic hardship, insecurity, and a declining health and education system.
“The ministers’ poor performance is a reflection of Tinubu’s leadership,” PDP spokesman Debo Ologunagba asserted. “He has desecrated democracy, wrecked the economy, and shown insensitivity to Nigerians’ suffering.”
Similarly, the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) and Labour Party (LP) called for an urgent cabinet overhaul. NNPP’s Ladipo Johnson urged Tinubu to inject “dynamic new hands” into his team, while LP’s Obiora Ifoh stressed the need for ministers who are result-oriented and committed to national welfare.
Debo Adeniran, Chairman of the Centre for Accountability and Open Leadership, highlighted widespread inefficiency in critical sectors like education, healthcare, and security. He called for ministerial accountability and public disclosure of performance evaluations.
“The rot in the education and health sectors is glaring. And when it comes to security, no one seems to take responsibility. This must change,” Adeniran said.
Echoing this sentiment, Auwal Rafsanjani, Executive Director of the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre, accused several ministers of prioritizing 2027 election ambitions over governance. “Some ministers are only concerned with impressing the President for re-election, not delivering results to the people,” he remarked.
Rafsanjani also urged the President to make the CDCU’s quarterly reports public. “Accountability starts with transparency. Nigerians have a right to know who is working and who isn’t.”
Since its inception in June 2023, the CDCU has served as a performance watchdog under the direct supervision of the Presidency. Modelled after delivery units in the UK and Rwanda, the CDCU was mandated to track performance indicators, issue quarterly dashboards, and flag red-line projects needing intervention.
Hadiza Bala-Usman, a former Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority, was appointed to head the unit and has maintained a data-driven, behind-the-scenes approach. She earlier warned that scorecards “will feed directly into presidential decisions,” stressing that the unit’s findings are not for academic exercise.
Although sackings may not be immediate, the assessments will inform Tinubu’s cabinet interactions in the weeks following the anniversary. There are strong indications that a major reshuffle could follow in the third quarter of 2025, especially if ministers fail to show measurable improvement.
Presidency spokesman Bayo Onanuga downplayed the political implications of the report, stating, “It’s a routine exercise to keep ministers and agency heads on their toes.”
Nonetheless, with widespread public discontent and increasing economic pressure, Tinubu’s mid-term review may prove pivotal—both for his administration’s credibility and for setting the tone as Nigeria approaches the 2027 general election.