President Tinubu Swears In Corporate Guru Joseph Tegbe as Power Minister and Diplomat Sola Enikanolaiye to Core Cabinet Roles

The Federal Executive Council (FEC) has received a major structural boost after President Bola Ahmed Tinubu officially swore in two newly appointed cabinet ministers, deploying top-tier private and public sector experts to steer the nation’s critical energy and foreign policy portfolios.

The brief swearing-in ceremony took place on Monday at the Council Chambers of the Presidential Villa in Abuja. The low-key administrative assignment was witnessed by the appointees’ spouses, the Governor of Kogi State, Ahmed Usman Ododo, the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, and senior cabinet officials. The event marks the latest phase in the administration’s ongoing cabinet adjustment manual, designed to inject fresh executive competence into ministries hit by recent political departures.

The vacancies were initially triggered after a directive from the Secretary to the Government of the Federation forced public officers harboring 2027 ambitions to exit the cabinet before their party primary elections. Consequently, former Power Minister, Chief Adebayo Adelabu, stepped down to pursue the APC governorship ticket in Oyo State, while former Foreign Affairs Minister, Yusuf Tuggar, resigned to focus on his electoral bid in Bauchi State. Following their exit, President Tinubu forwarded the new nominees to the National Assembly, where the Senate successfully screened and confirmed them.

Taking the principal hot seat is the new Minister of Power, Joseph Olasunkanmi Tegbe. An indigene of Oyo State, Tegbe brings a formidable 35-year fiscal and institutional reform pedigree to a sector crippled by historic infrastructure bottlenecks, consumer pricing disputes, and fuel supply deficits. Holding a First Class degree in Civil Engineering from Obafemi Awolowo University alongside advanced governance degrees from Switzerland and Birmingham, Tegbe previously operated as a Senior Partner and Head of Advisory Services at KPMG Africa. His professional data log includes executing major structural overhauls for the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) and leading subnational fiscal stabilization drives.

Concurrently, the President deployed Ambassador Sola Enikanolaiye to serve as the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs. Enikanolaiye, a highly decorated career diplomat from Igbagun, Kogi State, brings an unyielding 35-year foreign service manual back to the ministry where he previously rose to the rank of Director and Permanent Secretary before his retirement in 2017. A First Class Political Science graduate from Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, who holds a Master’s degree in International Law and Diplomacy from the University of Lagos, Enikanolaiye previously served as Nigeria’s Head of Mission in New Delhi, India, and held strategic diplomatic postings in London, Belgrade, Ottawa, and Addis Ababa.

“The inclusion of these two refined professionals into our executive cabinet represents a calculated step to fortify our delivery templates under the Renewed Hope Agenda,” a media statement signed by Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, noted. “The President has charged both ministers to immediately deploy their vast institutional knowledge to drive affordable energy solutions for domestic industries and project an aggressive, dignified foreign policy stance across our global bilateral partnerships.”

With the industrial landscape heavily sensitized toward infrastructure recovery and economic stabilization across the 2026 trade calendar, the pressure has shifted entirely onto the new appointees.

As Minister Tegbe steps out of the State House to assume control of the power sector’s technical rescue loops and Ambassador Enikanolaiye moves to harmonize international transit certifications, the presidency is banking heavily on their combined bureaucratic shields to restore stability and maximize output across their respective national domains.