APC Chieftain Praises Tanimu Yakubu at 65

A United Nations-trained Negotiator and Chieftain of the ruling All Progressives Congress, Comrade Edwin Uhara has praised the Director -General of the Budget Office of the Federation, Dr. Tanimu Yakubu on the occasion of his 65th birthday anniversary.

In a statement released to newsmen in Enugu on Wednesday, the party stalwart said Dr. Yakubu is not only an economic guru but also an astute administrator who knows how to translate policies into realities.

Adding that he is not only advising on economic matters but also coordinating the fiscal policies of the nation which include but not limited to preparing executive budget, overseeing budget implementation and monitoring; as well as maintaining fiscal discipline and providing frameworks for annual budgeting processes among others.

Since his appointment, Dr. Yakubu has refused to be bogged down by bureaucratic bottlenecks but has embarked on what is now known as ‘Economic Activism’ where he normally educate Nigerians on the economic policies and direction of the Federal Government through his series of articles in different national dailies.

He has also strengthened the existing cooperation among government agencies, ministries and departments thereby ensuring that appropriations are implemented in the best interest of the nation.

Born on April 30th, 1961, Dr. Tanimu Yakubu started his academic pursuit in Nigeria where he was the founding president of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) before heading to acquire MBA in Finance from Wagner College in New York, United States of America.

Upon his return to Nigeria, Dr. Yakubu worked in a number of private-sector institutions like Icon Limited and the Afri-Projects Consortium where he was the Chief Economist and Principal Investment Adviser.

As Commissioner of Finance, Budget and Economic Planning in Katsina State between 1999 and 2002, Dr. Yakubu ensured that the state had the highest capital expenditure votes over recurrent expenditure ratio making it the first state to achieve such feat in Nigeria.

He has also served as Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of the Federal Mortgage Bank between 2003 and 2007 where he engineered the first mortgage-backed securitization policy in Sub Saharan Africa.

As Chief Economic Adviser and Deputy Chief of Staff to a former Nigerian President as well as member of the National Economic Management team between 2007 and 2010, Dr. Yakubu crafted many far reaching policies and recommendations that persuaded the Federal Government to set up Nigeria’s first Sovereign Wealth Fund (SWF) under it’s parent body — the Nigerian Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA).

He was also among the six key Federal Government officials who worked behind the scene to end the Niger Delta crisis; a development that led to a major boost of the country’s crude oil output.

In 2019, Dr. Yakubu passed the Fiduciary Awareness Certification Test (FACT) of Corporate Governance Rating System (CGRS) thereby making him a certified guru in corporate governance.

Before his current stint as Director-General of the Budget Office of the Federation, he had served as a non-executive director of Oando PLC.

Therefore, as you celebrate your birthday, I am wishing you Allah’s guidance, wisdom and protection.

Signed:

Comrade Edwin Uhara,
United Nations-trained Negotiator and former Member of the APC Presidential Campaign Council