The 2010 Constitution allows for a minimum of 14 and a maximum of 22 Cabinet ministries. The law also eliminated assistant ministers. The idea was to stop abuse of the Executive prerogative to appoint cabinet ministers and assistant ministers.
Before these constitutional injunctions, the president was free to appoint as many ministers and assistant ministers as he wished. The same principle was applied in appointment of permanent secretaries, parastatal chiefs and other government positions. At that time, those appointed to these positions were not vetted by parliament. They had no incentive to perform, since their loyalty to the president guaranteed their positions. Even when they bankrupted their departments, they suffered no sanctions as long as they kept singing praises to the appointing authority.
