TUC Ask Buhari To Resign As Petroleum Minister
The Trade Union Congress (TUC), on Tuesday, urged President Muhammadu Buhari to give up his position as Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources.
President of the congress, Comrade Bobboi Bala Kaigama, while speaking at the Save Nigeria Oil and Gas Industry Round Table in Abuja, said that Buhari should relinquish the office because it is too critical to the economy to be combined with the office of the President and Commander-In -Chief.
Advising the president further, Kaigama said that a qualified candidate, with the knowledge, experience and competence who will report directly to the president should occupy the position.
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The TUC noted that although the position of the Minister of State for Petroleum and Mineral Resources should remain as a junior minister in the ministry, a different Group Managing Director (GMD) of Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) should also be appointed to directly supervise the affairs of the NNPC.
He said: “There is urgent need for the appointment of a substantive Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources; the ideal candidate for this should be someone who has the necessary knowledge, experience and competence, and who would directly oversee the affairs of the ministry and report regularly to the President.
“That position is too important to the economy to be subsumed as one of the many offices or portfolios of the President and Commander-in-Chief. Of course the position of the Minister of State for Petroleum and Mineral Resources should continue to exist as a junior minister in the ministry. A separate Group Managing Director (GMD) of Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) should also be appointed to directly supervise the affairs of the NNPC.”
While reiterating that the cabals in the sector emerged due to corruption, Kaigama said, “It is high time we halt the ugly trend whereby members of the cabal are paid billions of naira for ‘fuel imports’ that never reach our shores.”
