Among the cabinet members of the President Bola Tinubu administration, perhaps the most unfailingly engaging is the Minister of Interior, Dr. Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo. Whether for his youthful age of 42 years (born 1 May, 1982) or for combining his political office with being an engineer, entrepreneur and philanthropist or whether having served before as a member of the House of Representatives representing Akoko North East/Akoko North West Federal Constituency of Ondo State from 2019 to 2023 and was the House Committee chairman on Niger Delta Development Commission, he has so far proved most suitable for his current office.
Bar the controversy that set him on edge a few weeks after assuming office as the interior minister – which bordered on probity and accountability – and of which he cleared his image admirably, Tunji-Ojo, has left no one in doubt of his burning desire to leave a good mark by embarking on a strict reformist agenda. To say he hit the ground running is, in fact, an understatement.
As would have been expected of him as he assumed office at the Ministry of Interior, he assured the management, staff and agencies within the ministry that he would lead from the front rather than from the back basically on trust; and he demanded reciprocity from the audience. On the day, he cut the picture of a general addressing his troops. But it was all only to lay his vision bare. In his pursuit of a win-win philosophy, he also tasked the audience to challenge him intellectually while expecting him to respond in the same manner. His ultimate target, he further assured, was to fulfil the policy thrust of the renewed hope agenda of Mr. President.
Synergy is as dear to Tunji-Ojo as his job is also dear to him. He has sought many organisations as well as individuals with whom the interior ministry could work to fashion out a wholesome arrangement to guarantee the security and well-being of all Nigerians wherever they are. He has played host and been a guest on several occasions in the pursuit of the synergy, as the case demanded. While welcoming the Director General of the Bureau of Public Procurement, Dr. Adebowale Adedokun, and his team to his office, Tunji-Ojo emphasised on the ministry’s commitment to maintaining internal security and promoting good governance in Nigeria through effective collaboration with relevant agencies, specifically saying he was poised to drive a meaningful change in which efficiency and accountability would be assured across all agencies under his ministry. He particularly charged the BPP chief to ensure that his agency became the conscience of the government to prevent corruption in procurement processes while urging the agency to embrace technology in the operation of procurement processes to seamlessly ensure efficiency, proper evaluation and accountability.
About the most remarkable feat that the interior ministry has achieved in the Tunji-Ojo era is Contactless Passport Renewal System that was launched on February 7, 2025 across Europe to avoid the human interface which hitherto brewed unnecessary corrupt practices in the system; this coming on the heels of its successful implementation in Canada. It was a pivotal success in the ministry’s commitment to streamlining and enhancing the efficiency of government services for Nigerians at home and around the world. It was also a personal triumph for Tunji-Ojo who had always dreamt of bringing the services of the Nigeria Immigration Service directly, and especially digitally. to Nigerians in the Diaspora, thereby achieving efficiency, accessibility and modernisation in one fell swoop.
Tunji-Ojo’s synergy drive led him to recently receive the Managing Director of the News Agency of Nigeria, Malam Ali Muhammad Ali, in his office. The minister tasked the agency as the government’s major news outlet to always engage the citizens on the laudable programmes of the Tinubu’s administration and not the least the interior ministry’s programmes.
On the occasion, the minister told his guest that President Tinubu had approved the establishment of National Paramilitary Academy to train young Nigerians, while also announcing that the federal government had approved the employment of 50 doctors and 100 nurses to cater to the inmates at the various correctional centers, in addition to some medical youth corps members to support the medical personnel. He spoke on the need for adequate protection of the county’s power infrastructure with a view to making Nigeria attractive to foreign investors.
When the President of Citizens United for the Rehabilitation of Errants (CURE), Mr. Sylvester Uhaa, also led a delegation to Tunji-Ojo, the minister did not mince words in emphasising to his guests the importance of aligning correctional services with the ideals enshrined in the Nigerian Correctional Service Act of 2019, insisting that the government is dedicated to transforming Nigeria’s correctional centers into institutions of rehabilitation, empowerment and reintegration, even as he also called on government agencies, private sector and civil society organisations for a collaborative approach aimed at achieving the objectives of the Correctional Service Act. The overall objective, he said, is to “ensure that inmates are rehabilitated and reintegrated as productive members of society in order that we would have solved tomorrow’s problems today.”
Early enough, Tunji-Ojo has thrown his office wide open to the public – the more he has also enabled channels for feedback as he has improved on service delivery. But the successes he has attained in less than two years in the saddle, although he would still call the successes modest, speak volume of a determined effort to excel. In specific terms, they show a man ready for the office he is occupying and little wonder his constant hands-on leadership style.
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