20100810
reuters

ABUJA (Reuters) - Nigeria's Senate approved three new cabinet nominees on Tuesday including two opposition politicians from the north, a region whose support President Goodluck Jonathan needs if he is to contest polls next year.

Presidency sources said last week that Jonathan planned a minor cabinet reshuffle, less than six months ahead of the presidential and parliamentary elections, and that three new names would be added to his team.

The three nominees approved by the Senate include former women's affairs minister Salamatu Suleiman and Yabawa Wabi, both female members of the opposition All Nigeria People Party (ANPP) from the northern states of Kebbi and Borno respectively.

Nigerian cabinets have in the past included opposition members, but the timing of the latest nominations could serve to placate some elements in the north while also undermining the strength of the ANPP in its home region, ahead of the polls.

"In the past, appointments to cabinet from the ANPP have deepened fissures and caused rancour in the party," said Kayode Akindele, a director of Lagos-based consultancy Greengate Strategic Partners.

"With a long-delayed ANPP convention due in September ... one has to wonder if this is a move designed to amplify the current divisions within the only opposition party with a northern base," he said.

Jonathan, who is from the southern Niger Delta, has not yet said whether he will contest next year's elections, but northern support will be vital if he decides to do so.

An unwritten agreement in the ruling party dictates that Nigeria's highest office should rotate between the Muslim north and Christian south every two terms.