An MP who serves as a minister of state has a higher chance of re-election than one who does not hold a ministerial position because those with ministerial positions are more likely to have more resources than those who serve solely as MPs.
For reasons of resource mobilisation, lobbyists for ministers of state are not just interested in being ministers.
Some specific ministries are said to be more lucrative than others. Some ministries are said to be dry, while others have a lot of “soup” to be scooped by those who get those positions.
They are the ministries with juicy contracts and heavy budgetary allocations.
The Finance, Defence, Communications, and Local Government ministries are some of the ministries with “soup” across all regimes.
When the Youth Employment Programme was a cash cow for governments due to corruption, the sector ministries under which it fell (Youth and Sports and the Employment ministries) were also considered very lucrative.
They are still considered lucrative ministries. The joy of being a minister and the extent of the celebration depends on which ministry one is nominated to serve.
Generally speaking, however, it is better to serve in a dry ministry than to be left out of the ministerial enclave.”
Manasseh Azure Awuni
Page 78 of “The Fourth John: Reign, Rejection & Rebound”