The Minister of State for Petroleum, Dr Ibe Kachikwu, said on Saturday that the Federal Government needed 700 million dollars to upgrade its refineries to produce at maximum capacities.
Kachikwu, who is also the Group Managing Director of NNPC, disclosed this while speaking with newsmen during the re-inauguration of the Port Harcourt/Bonny Crude Supply Line at the Port Harcourt Refining Company (PHRC), Eleme, Rivers.
He said that due to the fact that the nation did not have such amount, advertisements had been signed for investors to come in.
According to him, we are not inviting foreign partners to take over the refineries; the total investment for that is up to $700 million and we don’t have that. Let us be honest about it.
”So, the best thing to do is to find a very creative way to bring in investors, who will come in, work with our team here;
‘’Investors, who have the skills to reactivate and upgrade facilities in this place and help us provide technical support and we will pay through the flow-out of the refined products over time,” he said.
Kachikwu emphasised that there should be no confusion about what the investors would be coming to do, since they would not come to run the refinery.
”They are coming to provide funds to take our performance on these refineries to 90 percent and to provide us with technical skills.
”So, the areas of intervention will be funding and technical support,” he said.
Managing Director of the NNPC, Mr. Emmanuel Kachikwu
Kachikwu said that at present, Nigerians were consuming about 45 million litres of PMS daily, while the refineries were producing 12 million litres daily as they were working at 60 per cent capacity.
He said that the nation will need to upgrade these refineries and let them develop to the point where they can perform up to 90 per cent.
He said that by the time the refineries were upgraded and they start producing at 90 per cent, about 20 million litres would be produced daily.
The minister said that with such production, it would only meet up with about half of the country’s consumption.
Kachikwu, however, apologised to Nigerians for their suffering due to the fuel scarcity and also thanked Nigerians for their patience.
He explained that the government had been able to recover the two critical crude supply pipelines; which were Escravos/Warri and Bonny/Port Harcourt crude supply pipelines.
Kachikwu said that the pipelines were down for six to seven years but had been repaired and were working and supplying crude to the refineries.
”For the first time, the refineries will get their crude, pay for it, they will sell their products and they will earn the income from that product.
”And then, they can develop and continue to maintain the refineries even after this intervention is over.
”Port Harcourt is back in production, Warri is back in production; Kaduna today is receiving and will soon be back in production. It is something of joy,” he said.
Kachikwu said, ”Lagos is easing off now from fuel scarcity and Abuja is doing the same thing; once Kaduna begins to produce, the North will see a lot of improvement.
”Over and above that, we are putting long term policies in place to ensure that while smaller marketers go out and do their stuff, we can then be the key suppliers for the rest of the country.”
He commended the workers and the contractors for a job well done; adding that he has signed the promotion letters of the PHRC staff as they deserved to be rewarded.
Kachikwu, however, said there is a lot still to be done, ”I told you I will never give up.
‘We owe Nigerians the duty to ensure that the refineries are working. We owe Nigerians that, we can’t give up,” he said.
The minister urged Nigerians to remain resilience, “support what the government is doing because this is the only way to change the system.”
An Edo State non-governmental, non-partisan group, Edo Forum of Patriots (EFP) has written an open letter to the Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari on the lingering economic situation in the country.
Edo Forum of Patriots
The group expressed worry over the near total collapse of the economy since the present administration assumed office.
In a statement signed by the Convener, Aiyamenkhue Edokpolo, copied the Senate President, Bukola Saraki, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, All Elected National Assembly Members, the Hon. Minister of State – Petroleum Resources, The Nigeria Labour Congress, and the Trade Union Congress.
The letter titled “Fuel Scarcity, How Suddenly Has Your Government Seemingly Nosedived: Being an Open Letter to Mr. President by the Edo Forum of Patriots”, lashed at the Minister of State for Petroleum, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu for what it termed “unpalatable prank” that is being played on Nigerians.
EFP said ” We write as free citizens who are concerned without partisan connotation whatsoever on the debilitating state of affairs of our fatherland; and in moving forward, we have dispassionately considered varying factors critical to resolving the logjam, and we do wish to respectfully declare as follows –
the fight against corruption which is one-sided to the fight against insurgency, the fate of the Chibok girls, the instability in economic policies of the country, the fall of the naira against dollar, skyrocketing unemployment rate, erratic and a near total absence of the electricity supply, and most recently the worsened fuel crisis that seems to have overwhelmed your government; and the worst in our nascent history.
“Based on the aforementioned reality, Nigerians are expectedly apprehensive if your government is really moving or just standing, within the context of the pyramid of CHANGE promised during your campaign and inauguration. Of recent, the Minister of state for petroleum, Dr. Ibe kachikwu has continued to apologize to Nigerians for his comments last week drawing scathing criticisms from many Nigerians, including a senior leader of the APC, Bola Tinubu, and others calling for his resignation.
“Though, we also support the Minister for delivering a frank message that lacked the usual political preference. We strongly condemn his unpalatable prank that is being played on Nigerians in the last couple of months.
“Never before has the ship of the Nigerian state been steered aground as we have it in the last couple of months. Everything has increased: paper, sugar, rice, bread, pure water and even the cover price of weekdays Newspapers is now N200 naira as against the N150 price before. Some filling stations capitalizing on the fuel crisis are now selling adulterated fuel mixed with kerosene to unsuspecting members of the public.
“These are all the more reasons to get things right once and for all sir! So you won’t continue with the vicious cycle of endless raised and dashed hopes”
The group acknowledged the effort by Buhari’s administration to stamp out corruption, insecurity, provide jobs, but worry that the problem of fuel scarcity has made life difficult for the people.
“Yes, we understand and appreciate what you are doing to make this country great. Your dedication and Governments resolve to stamp out insecurity, tackle corruption, revive the ailing economy, provide jobs and restore hope. But with long and traumatic queues, it means we have to eat with our ears.” The group stressed.
EFP urged the President to stop making excuses casting blames, but to transform the economy as expected.
EFP said: “Sir, we, therefore, suggest that you flee from making excuses and shifting blames, the expectations are high and urgent. We believe you can make this country great that is why you voted for en masse. As full blood Nigerians, we have the right to demand and we do strongly demand that you as our Nation’s leader do initiate a proactive and sustainable action in addressing this fuel palava in Nigeria”.
The Minister of State for Petroleum, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, appeared before the Senate Committee on Petroleum Resources (Downstream) on Tuesday to give reasons for the acute fuel scarcity across the country and the efforts being made by his ministry to resolve the embarrassing situation.
Managing Director of the NNPC, Mr. Emmanuel Kachikwu
He regretted the situation and apologised to Nigerians, who he said were really going through difficult moments, and promised that the scarcity would end on or before April 7.
Kachikwu said he would not resign from his position as minister and instead asked those who were threatening to stage a protest in Abuja to save their money because he took the appointment to work for his fatherland.
The minister stated, “I will not resign. I am here to do my job. Those who are planning to stage a protest against me in Abuja should save their fuel money because I have a job to do, and I am committed to doing it well.
“I share the pains of Nigerians. I feel that pain every day. I walk the streets and those who are following my trajectories since I resumed office would see that even on Christmas day, I was at the refineries. On Easter Day, I was in Lagos monitoring fuel distribution at the depots.
“I have given 24/7 attention to the problems in this industry, which are unbelievable. I have continued to work with one sole purpose in mind, which is that every problem will have a solution.”
Kachikwu added, “I do apologise if a comment I make jocularly with my friends in the press about not being a magician offends some Nigerians; it wasn’t meant to be. It is a side jocular issue and I did go ahead to explain what needed to be done. I didn’t intend to create this kind of hyperbole that it did.
“Let me admit that I am not a typically experienced politician. I am a technocrat. Some of the phraseologies that I may use, while being acceptable in the arena in which I play, obviously will not be acceptable in the public political arena. If anybody’s sensitivities were offended by that, I totally apologise.”
He attributed the current petrol scarcity to the refusal by the major oil marketers to import, diversion of the product by marketers, pipeline vandalism, panic buying and non-computerisation of the distribution network to monitor trucks.
The minister lamented that since the payment of N600bn subsidy arrears, which the current administration inherited from the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan, oil marketers had stopped fuel importation.
The development, he said, had forced the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation to overstretch its capacity, human resources and facilities in order to bridge the gap, but that the corporation lacked the immediate capacity to handle the task.
Kachikwu said, “Let me put the reasons for the scarcity in three categories. First, when we came in August, this country had arrears of unpaid subsidy claims that were in excess of N600bn, which were not paid for over a year.
“Progressively, over a period of eight months, prior to my coming on board, people had been staying away from importation not at a heavy level, but by about 10 to 15 per cent of allocations were not being met.
“There was hope that ultimately, if the subsidy regime continued, they would get paid; so, some people continued to import, but by the time we came in, people had reached a breaking point and most of the companies didn’t have the liquidity even to go to the banks and open letters of credit, and that became a major issue.”
He said it was obvious that having cleared the N600bn subsidy claims, the country could no longer continue with the subsidy regime owing to dwindling oil revenue and the fact that monumental frauds were being uncovered in the system.
As of January 1 this year, the minister stated that the country was no longer paying subsidy, saving a cumulative amount of over N1tn in a one year period.
Kachikwu noted, “The second major issue was that once the N600bn subsidy money was paid, the ability of the marketers to import the product became a challenge, because they could not raise letters of credit, and up to this point, that still remains a major issue.
“So, even if they wanted to import, they needed letters of credit and adequate foreign exchange cover. Some of them were owing arrears of liabilities as a result of the commitment I had made on petroleum importation.”
As part of efforts to ensure a lasting solution to the problem, he stated that the nation was setting up for the first time strategic reserves of about two million tonnes to provide products always.
He said these would be operational as from May and would contain between five and seven cargos of fuel per reserve.
Kachikwu said, “Once we do that, we should be away from the incessant fuel crisis that we have.
We expect that between now and about the 6th to the 7th of April, the fuel queues will disappear, the DSDP will begin and the foreign exchange allocation will see us smoothly through the track.
“The refineries will be working and the volumes they will be producing will be sent to the strategic reserves to address difficult times. In April, we are expected to get 150 per cent of the volumes that will be needed. A lot of that will go to storage tanks. Hopefully, that should sort out the problem.”
He said privatisation of the refineries remained the best solution to end the fuel crisis in the country.
There are strong indications that President Muhammadu Buhari has initiated moves to forestall the escalation of the festering feud between the All Progressives Congress National Leader, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, and the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Mr. Ibe Kachikwu.
Managing Director of the NNPC, Mr. Emmanuel Kachikwu
The PUNCH reliably gathered on Monday that Buhari believed that Kachikwu’s statement and Tinubu’s criticisms could tear the party apart.
It was learnt that the President had therefore cautioned the APC chieftains and members of his cabinet against taking sides in comments and issues that could divide the party and derail his government.
A member of the cabinet, who confided in The PUNCH, said the President was of the view that any comment by the APC on the propriety or otherwise of Tinubu’s statement would divide the party and his government.
It was gathered that Buhari had told the minister that he should concentrate on how to end fuel scarcity before May, the time Kachikwu had proposed that there would be smooth fuel supply in the country.
The cabinet member stated, “I am aware that the President has moved in and cautioned ministers and party chieftains against divisive statements on the seeming feud between Tinubu and Kachikwu.
“At this time of the nation’s history, the President needs all the support of Nigerians. There should not be any distraction. The minister has been told that his main focus should be how to end fuel queues.”
Kachikwu had, in an interview with journalists in Abuja on Wednesday, said fuel queues could not be eliminated before May, adding that he was not a magician.
But Tinubu had, in a statement on Saturday, criticised the minister, saying Kachikwu’s position amounted to an act of insubordination to Nigerians, who voted public office-holders into their offices.
The National Secretariat of the APC on Monday kept mute over the controversy generated by Kachikwu on the fuel situation in the country, which was roundly condemned by Tinubu.
The National Chairman of APC, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, and the party’s National Secretary, Mai Mala Buni, could be reached for comments on Monday.
Calls to their mobile telephones indicated that they were switched off while responses to text messages sent to them were still being awaited as of the time of filing this report.
However, a source within the party said, “The statement by our revered leader is not ambiguous. I honestly don’t see any ambiguity; he issued the statement and signed it in his personal capacity.
“He, like every Nigerian, has every right to speak out when he sees anything going wrong in the polity; you cannot deny him that right.
“Besides, I understand that the matter is being handled at the highest level; it is an internal party affair.”
Meanwhile, the Senate has directed Kachikwu to appear before it on Tuesday (today) to explain the cause of the embarrassing fuel scarcity across the country.
The Senate Committee on Petroleum Resources (Downstream) issued the summons after carrying out an on-the-spot assessment of the fuel situation at major filling stations within the nation’s capital, Abuja.
Members of the committee were confronted with long queues of vehicles at many filling stations.
The operators did not dispense the product to motorists, alleging lack of supply from the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation’s depot in Suleja, Niger State.
The Acting Chairman of the committee, Senator Jibrin Barau, said the petroleum minister must appear before the panel to explain what led to the scarcity and the way to resolve it.
He said the fuel scarcity had become pathetic, forcing Senate President Bukola Saraki to call on the committee to assess the situation and the way to resolve it.
Barau added, “This situation is very bad and unacceptable, hence, the need for the minister to appear before us tomorrow (today) and unveil his plan of the way out to us.
“Even if he doesn’t have any plan yet out of the lingering problem, the Senate President and the entire members of the committee are more than ready to rub minds with him for that needed purpose.”
The Senate Minority Whip and a member of the committee, Senator Philip Aduda, called on the Federal Government to arrest the situation fast by making fuel available to Nigerians.
Aduda said, “What Nigerians need is fuel and not blame game. The government should look for petrol and ensure that it is given to the people.
“This situation is very and unacceptable. We are Nigerians and it will be bad for us to continue remaining in queues.
“If the APC leaders like, let them blame themselves; that is their problem, but the most important thing is for us to have fuel in the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
“That is what we are looking for and that is what we want. We want to see all these queues disappear.”
One of our correspondents observed that petrol marketers at various stations visited, lamented lack of supply and inadequate supply of petroleum products by the NNPC in recent times.
Isa Friday, the manager of Oando Filling station, Zone 4, Abuja, said it had been long the station got supply from NNPC depot in Suleja.
In a related development, the official pump price of petrol, otherwise known as Premium Motor Spirit, was largely upheld in just one state in the month of February 2016 out of the 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory, the National Bureau of Statistics has said.
According to the bureau, the average monthly price paid by consumers for petrol in Edo State was N86.5 per litre, while in Ogun, the price was close to the official rate as petrol users paid an average price of N86.53 per litre during the period under review.
The official pump price for petrol as approved by the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency is N86 per litre for petrol stations run by the NNPC, and N86.50 per litre for outlets managed by other major and independent oil marketers.
The NBS, in its PMS Price Watch for February 2016, revealed that petrol was sold for as high as N122.88 per litre during the review period.
A study of the bureau’s report showed that the average cost for the product in Abia was N112.5 per litre; Bayelsa, N120.6; Cross River, N116.65; and Yobe, N122.88. The average price of PMS in February was higher in these states.
States that recorded average prices that were close to the official pump price included Lagos, N87.03 per litre; Borno, N87.88; Delta, N87.5; Oyo, N87.21; and Katsina, N87.95.
In its bid to ensure strict adherence to approved prices, the Department of Petroleum Resources recently announced the constitution and deployment of special intelligence monitoring teams nationwide to ensure the prompt delivery of products to designated filling stations.
“The teams would enforce government approved price regime and ensure the right quantity and quality of products are dispensed,” the DPR had said in a statement issued in Abuja.
Also, motorists on Monday pleaded with the Federal Government to step up efforts in ensuring that fuel queues disappear.
Motorists, who spoke with one of our correspondents while waiting to be served petrol in front of some filling stations in Abuja, wondered why it was becoming difficult for Nigeria to complete a full year without experiencing severe fuel crisis.
“This is becoming something that we must experience every year and it’s not good at all for an oil producing country like Nigeria,” said Onyema Christopher, a motorist, who was in queue at one of the NNPC’s mega stations on the Kubwa-Zuba Expressway, Abuja.
“The government should please look for a lasting solution to this problem and let Nigerians, at least, enjoy one whole year without experiencing fuel scarcity and the problems associated with it.”
The South-South and the South-East chapters of the All Progressives Congress have supported the criticism of the Minister of State for Petroleum, Ibe Kachikwu by the APC National Leader, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu.
Managing Director of the NNPC, Mr. Emmanuel Kachikwu
The South-South APC advised the minister to resign if he was incapable of doing his job.
This was contained in a statement signed by the party’s National Vice-Chairman, South South, Hilliard Eta, a copy of which was made available to newsmen in Abuja on Sunday.
The statement entitled, “No split in APC: Tinubu right to critique Kachikwu,” the National Vice-Chairman said it was the opinion of the South-South chapter of the party that Kachikwu had yet to purge himself of his Peoples Democratic Party’s orientation.
Kachikwu, who hails from the South-South, had in an interview with journalists in Abuja on Wednesday, said fuel queues could not be eliminated with a magic wand.
He said that despite government’s efforts, fuel queues would remain in the country in the next two months, adding that he was not a magician.
Supporting Tinubu, Eta said, “The South-South Chapter of the All Progressives Congress feels that Kachikwu has not entirely cast off the orientation of the Peoples Democratic Party, where he was and this is manifest in his actions and utterances such as the recent one that attracted opprobrium from many Nigerians.
“Mr. Kachikwu must not be a cog in the wheel of progress and he should do the needful by resigning honourably if he is not capable of doing his part by effectively running the ministry assigned to him.”
The party chieftain noted that the minister, as a member of the President’s cabinet with a very important office, “it is incumbent on him to shed his haughtiness and climb down from his high horse to face his duties squarely.”
According to Eta, Tinubu’s observation about the utterances of the minister is in line with the core ideology of progressivism which the APC espouses as it is the very foundation on which the party rests.
Eta said, “This progressive ideology strongly emphasises government as a tool for service to the people who are the custodians of power in the first instance.
“In line with this, it is not wrong or out of place for Tinubu to caution the Minister of State for Petroleum, Mr. Ibe Kachikwu, owing to the anti-progressive statements he made in the Presidential Villa on Wednesday, March 23, 2016, while fielding questions from journalists on the persisting scarcity of petrol.”
The South-South leader of the APC said Tinubu’s critique of the minister did not amount to a split in the APC.
He observed that if anything, it had further strengthened the commitment of the party and the government it had formed to be fully accountable to Nigerians.
It will be recalled that Tinubu had taken exceptions to comments made by the minister with regards to the lingering fuel crisis in the country.
Also speaking on the issue, the South-East Chapter of the party stated that Tinubu had voiced the frustrations of Nigerians.
The South-East Zonal spokesman for the party, Mr. Osita Okechukwu, said this in a telephone interview with The PUNCH, in Abuja on Sunday.
He explained that Tinubu’s democratic credentials and his commitment to the Nigerian project were not in doubt.
Okechukwu, however, said calls for Kachikwu’s resignation in some quarters were hasty in the light of the realities on the ground.
He said, “Our National Leader, Asiwaju Ahmed Tinubu, re-echoed the anger of the Nigerian people about the current situation we have found ourselves with regards to the shortage of petrol.
“We have been privileged to have attended the recent meeting the President held with stakeholders in the oil and gas sector where he outlined his policies and programmes with regards to how he intends to deal with the problem.
“It was part of his commitment to resolving these issues that made him (the President) take up the responsibility of the Minister of Petroleum.
“He has visited Saudi Arabia and Qatar and he has made a personal commitment to supporting private sector investment in the sector. Having this as a background, we wish to state that calls for Kachikwu to resign are hasty at this point.”
Nsukka – Ferdral government has said it will spend zero amounts in petroleum subsidy in 2016 and would not remove the subsidy while in periods of high oil prices, expenditures were allowed to rise substantially with little ability to control spending in periods of low prices.
Managing Director of the NNPC, Mr. Emmanuel Kachikwu
The minister of state petroleum resources, Dr Emmanuel Ibe kachikwu disclosed this at the 45th convocation lecture he delivered at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka titled ‘the petroleum industry and the future of the Nigerian nation’ adding that government has started pumping oil from two out of the three refinaries in the country which would be used to provide oil and gas needed for the country.
The minister noted that it may sound unbelievable to people, explaining that it is part of change mantra of the present administration of President Mohammadu Buhari, meanwhile, 70 per cent of vandalized pipelines has been recovered which will supply more crude to the refinenaries.
Dr Kachikwu said that the objective of Buhari reform agenda in oil and gas industry in the country centered around having the right people doing the right hing at the right time for the purposes of moving the country forward.
“With the right people in petroleum sector there will be increase in revenue for the country via sales of petroleum products. The products will be affordable prices at the lowest minimum cost for factor inputs that will encourage economic growth and international competiveness. The reform agenda in the oil and other sectors will also provide more employment opportunities in the country, ‘he said.
The minister pointed out that what the country suffers now was poor management of the oil sector in the past twenty 25 years, adding that in the past the cost of production of crude oil as well as importation of fuel remained the highest in the world while weakness in the fiscal administration of the oil sector led to inadequate allocation and collection of oil and gas revenues for the government.
‘’In recent past, the oil and gas industry has emerged from the scourge of militancy in the Niger Delta when production was at a low of 1.6 million barrels per day in 2009 to its current levels of about 2.2 million barrels per day. Over the years, little attempts was made to diversify revenue base from huge oil and gas resource income’’ he minister noted.
He also said that the mainstream and downstream have witnessed challenges which was why government has focussed ite reforms on libralising the sectors, explaining that Nigeria has three refinaries with nameplate capacity of 445,000 barrels per day, 5,120 km of products and crude pipelines, 21 storage depots and one petroleum products import terminal at Atlas Cove all of which have suffered from vandalism and poor maintainance over the years because of lack of a cmmercially viable framework for cost recovery.
He explained that the oil boom of the 70’s, the country experinced large public spending and fiscal deficits that fuelled macroeconomic voattlity, noting that the countr’s budget increased from the 70’s onwards as expenditure rose faster than revenues.
Kachikwu urged Nigerians to support president Buhari in his fight against corruption in order retrieve the looted funds in the countryas the fight would restore the dignity of the county and banish poverty.
“The aim of the present administration is to leave a good legacy through fighting corruption and making judicious use of the country’s resources. Nigerians should give the president maximum support in his determination to rid the county of bribery and corruption’’ he said.
He expressed appreciation to University management for finding him worthy to present the 45th convocation lecture, adding that as an alumnous of the university he would continue to contribute meaningfully to the University.
In a welcome address, the Vice-chancellor of University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Prof Benjamin Ozumba said that the 45th convocation lecture was a unique one for the fact that the lecture was delivered by an icon in petroleum industry who had within a period of time transformed the oil sector.
Prof Ozumba said that the Nigerian National petroleum corporation (NNPC) has witnessed series of transformation within a short period of time the minister assumed duty in the industry.
By Michael Eboh, Emman Ovuakporie & Johnbosco Agbakwuru
ABUJA—THE Minister of State for Petroleum/Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, Dr. Ibe. Kachikwu, yesterday said the Federal Government did not pay any subsidy on petroleum products in January 2016.
Managing Director of the NNPC, Mr. Emmanuel Kachikwu
He also stated that the country would save $1 billion (N200 billion) from the newly introduced Direct-Sale-Direct-Purchase, DSDP, arrangement in Nigeria’s crude oil for products transaction which is to commence next month.
Kachikwu stated these when he appeared before the House of Representatives’ Ad-Hoc Committee set up to investigate the NNPC’s offshore processing and crude swap arrangement for the period from 2010 to date.
He explained that the DSDP was adopted to replace the Crude Oil Swap initiative and the Offshore Processing Arrangement so as to introduce and entrench transparency in the crude oil for product transaction by the corporation in line with global best practices.
The Direct Sale-Direct-Purchase alternative allows for the direct sale of crude oil by NNPC as well as direct purchase of petroleum products from credible international refineries.
Under the old order, crude oil was exchanged for petroleum products through third party traders at a pre-determined yield pattern.
Kachikwu stated that the DSDP option eliminated all the cost elements of middlemen and gave the NNPC the latitude to take control of sale and purchase of crude oil transaction with its partners, adding that the initiative would save one billion dollars for the Federal Government.
He said: “When I assumed duty as the Group Managing Director of NNPC, I met the Offshore Processing Arrangement (OPA) and like you know, there is always room for improvement.
“I and my team came up with the DSDP initiative with the aim of throwing open the bidding process. This initiative has brought transparency into the crude-for-product exchange matrix and it is in tandem with global best practices.”
He further stated that the DSDP initiative whittled down the influence of the minister in the selection of bid winners as it allowed all the bidders to be assessed transparently, based on their global and national track records of performance before the best companies with the requisite capacities are selected.
Need for introduction of DSDP
Commenting on the need for the introduction of the DSDP, Kachikwu maintained that the policy was aimed at reducing the gaps inherent in the OPA and the losses incurred by the NNPC in the past.
He stated that the new arrangement would help the NNPC grow indigenous capacity in the international crude oil business and generate employment opportunities for indigenous companies that were selected.
He added that the DSDP initiative gave other government agencies, such as the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) and Nigeria Extractive Industry and Transparency Initiative (NEITI) the opportunity to be part of the bidding process in order to engender adherence to due process.
Misgivings by some agencies
Speaking on some of the reported misgivings by some federal agencies over the alleged non-transparent nature of past crude-for-products exchange arrangements, Kachikwu assured that the reconciliation process was ongoing and that going forward, the ministry would deploy technology to track cargoes and trans-shipment at the reception depots in order to forestall any incidence of round tripping.
The NNPC had in November, said it had discontinued the Offshore Processing Arrangement, OPA, and had replaced it with Direct Sale-Direct-Purchase (DSDP) programme.
The NNPC had also stated that the replacement of the OPA with the more efficient DSDP was aimed at enshrining transparency and eliminating the activities of middlemen in the crude oil exchange for product matrix.
To this end, the NNPC withdrew the call for commercial bids issued to 44 bidders, made up of 34 international firms and 10 indigenous companies, earlier shortlisted.
• Brent crude rallies to $32 • Anxiety as MPC meets; devaluation, survival on the burner
ALTHOUGH the price of oil may at present be as low as $22 per barrel, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Ibe Kachikwu, says Nigeria’s case is not hopeless.
Managing Director of the NNPC, Mr. Emmanuel Kachikwu
He says Nigeria would still make profit even if oil drops to $20 as cost of producing a barrel of crude oil has been put at an average of $13 per barrel onshore.
Lower outputs from Nigeria, Iraq and Saudi Arabia may have slashed the crude oil export of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) in December, even as the cartel’s daily basket of 13 grades fell to $22.9 a barrel yesterday.
Meanwhile, with major economic indicators for the country at its record low and the investment environment tense, stakeholders in the financial sector are awaiting far-reaching decisions on the economy by the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) from today.
Besides, MPC, the policy making body of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), having on hand the naira exchange rate challenge, reserves at low level, rising inflation and widening budget deficit, must come out with a policy that will complement the current fiscal plans of the Federal Government.
The cheap oil price is, therefore, raising concerns that the shale oil production in the United States (U.S.) may be relatively unsustainable at a production cost of about $70 per barrel.
The official benchmark, Brent rallied to $32 a barrel as the prospects of new central bank stimulus and an upcoming snowstorm in the U.S. boosted expectations for fuel demand.
The OPEC basket represents the average crude price of the member grades, and has been lower on a free fall against the Brent, reaching a 13-year low.
Kachikwu, according to Bloomberg, said Nigeria had not “suffered too badly in terms of investments, as most of the projects we have are still on track.
“The deep off-shore projects, obviously we are putting on hold, given the fact that the returns on those, would not match the prices today.”
Speaking in Davos, Switzerland, Kachikwu said: “Everybody is sort of coming back on land so this is time to put a lot of investments on ground, put a lot of incentives on ground, make everybody return on ground, where in fact our average cost of production is about $13 per barrel.
“So we need more on that, bringing those numbers down from $13 to somewhere $10. Obviously we won’t get the Saudi figures of about $6 or $7, but we can get it much lower,” he said.
OPEC said persistently low prices would finally begin to bite hard on shale oil rival producers in 2016, forcing the U.S. and Canada to cut back production.
The Executive Director, Corporate Finance, BGL Capital Limited, Femi Ademola , said the market would naturally switch into a cautious mood immediately the meeting begins.
This is because with the condition of the economy, the credit system and rising pressure to devalue the currency, both the local and foreign investors would want to see the end of the meeting before staking more.
“Some are arguing that the interest rate should go down further and others are concerned about the naira exchange. So, there is uncertainty and the market would slow down, awaiting the decision.
“If the rate goes down, it will help the equities market, but if it goes up, the bond market will have it. But the market will not want to preempt the committee. Some people will still buy, but activities will remain low, marked by cautious decisions,” he said.
A top bank chief had told The Guardian that “the meeting is not for small and medium enterprises discussion. It is not about the real sector. It is not even about banks. It is for the economy as a whole, because there is one issue that has overarching influence on all now – the country’s sustainability.
“We don’t have savings to fall back on and our means of earnings is ebbing. We cannot transact freely due to foreign exchange scarcity, while general prices are gradually hitting the roof. Surely, the market’s expectations of drastic decisions are not misplaced,” he said.
But the renewed expectations, besides the economic realities on ground, were heightened as the Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, said: “We know that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) will just have to do the right thing at this time. The bank has told us, and it was announced even in the President’s budget speech, that they intend to take a flexible approach and deploy whatever tools are necessary to ensure that we stay competitive.”
The Finance Minister, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, at the same event, also said: “We have a completely independent Central Bank. They have a Monetary Policy Committee. We’re waiting to see what they’ll do.”
The minister said that Nigeria planned to borrow up to $5 billion from multiple sources, including the Eurobond market, to plug the widening budget deficit, as crude oil prices had fallen in the last few days to 2003 levels at about $27 a barrel, while the 2016 budget was based on $38 per barrel.
Nigeria’s currency has been hit by the foreign exchange scarcity and speculations to a record low of N300 per dollar on the parallel market last week, compared with the official rate of N197, a development that spurred calls for devaluation and suspicion that this meeting might be the opportunity.
A fortnight ago, the CBN had suddenly announced the end of its dollar intervention in BDC segment, after it had earlier in December 2015, unveiled a new guideline for their operations, which served as false hope to the operators.
The Managing Director of Afrinvest Securities Limited, Ike Chioke, while expressing optimism on the rebound of the economy, said this could only be achieved with strategic decisions from both the fiscal and monetary authorities.
According to him, the banking sector will be facing more challenges through weaker margins with the end of commission on turnover and faltering non-interest revenue, low oil prices, devaluation threats and its implications for capital and asset quality.
“The banks are the toll gates of the economy. When the economy does well, the banks collect higher toll and vice versa. In the recent past, there have been shifting and repositioning, which have had various effects on the industry.”
The Managing Director of Cowry Asset Management Limited, Johnson Chukwu, also told The Guardian that the market today would be tentative, as operators would be awaiting the outcome of the monetary policy meeting.
“The market is optimistic that there would be a realistic review of the exchange rate and possible adjustment to the current foreign exchange earnings capacity of the economy.”
The suggestion on Tuesday by Nigeria’s Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, for an emergency meeting of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries amid the sustained oil price slump met with opposition from another member of the cartel, the United Arab Emirates.
The global benchmark Brent crude extended its decline on Tuesday, slipping towards $30 per barrel for the first time since April 2004, before rising slightly above $31 per barrel. But the pick-up was short-lived as Brent later fell below $31.
Kachikwu, who briefly served as OPEC president last year before Nigeria’s tenure expired on December 31, was quoted as saying that OPEC would soon make efforts to convene before the next scheduled meeting in June as the slump in oil prices was hurting producers, including the world’s biggest exporter, Saudi Arabia.
The 13 members of the OPEC will work toward meeting in early March, Kachikwu said in an interview in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday.
Bloomberg quoted him to have said that members were already engaged in informal discussions with some non-OPEC producers, including Russia, to join any future production cut to shore up prices, he said.
“We are definitely looking at a time frame in very early March. You will very necessarily have to have an OPEC meeting because the group first has to meet and decide on its position before having formal meetings with other producers to coordinate a cut,” he said.
Brent crude closed at $43 per barrel on the day of the last OPEC meeting on December 4, and was trading at $30.54 per barrel at 6.10pm Nigerian time on Tuesday.
OPEC, which supplies about 40 per cent of the world’s oil, decided not to cut production in December, potentially worsening a glut created after producers from the US to Russia and Saudi Arabia pumped more than demand warranted.
The UAE, one of the Gulf nations in OPEC, has moved to quash the talk of a potential emergency meeting, with its Energy Minister, Suhail bin Mohammed al-Mazrou, saying the current strategy by the cartel was working.
“I’m not convinced OPEC alone can change or can solely unilaterally change this strategy just because we have seen a low in the market,” Mazroui was quoted by Reuters as saying.
He stated that while the first half of 2016 would be tough for the oil market, there would be a gradual recovery later in the year, aided by an expected drop in non-OPEC production.
“I think all the members, including Iran, have the right to increase their production. I don’t think we are going to restrict anyone,” Mazroui said.
A former Director of Research at OPEC, Chief Mike Olorunfemi, said in a telephone interview with one of our correspondents, “If the price should go below $30, there is likelihood that OPEC will want to meet. But the Iran and Saudi Arabia tension has added a new dimension to the problem.
“So, Saudi Arabia will not really want to come and meet because the fall in oil price affects Iran more than Saudi Arabia. And wherever Saudi Arabia moves to, that is where you will find the UAE and Kuwait.”
The Head of energy Research, Ecobank Capital, Mr. Dolapo Oni, is of the view that OPEC is really not somewhere where Nigeria has a lot of clout.”
Fashola calls for state police, apologises on deportation of Igbos
By Henry Umoru & Joseph Erunke
ABUJA — FORMER Lagos State Governor, Babatunde Fashola (SAN), Group Managing Director of the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, Dr Ibe Kachikwu and Mrs Kemi Adeosun were clearly the star attractions at the screening of ministerial nominees, yesterday, as the Senate cleared 18 nominees for ministerial appointment.
Governor Fashola
Fashola’s suggestions on state police, review of the Abuja Master plan and apology to the Igbo over the deportation of some Igbo residents of Lagos during his second term marked one of the major highlights of yesterday’s screening of the nominees.
So also were Kachikwu’s comments on the oil industry and Adeosun’s remarks on the economy, devaluation of the Naira and Treasury Single Account, TSA, foreign direct investment and how to improve Nigeria’s alternative sources of revenue.
Their robust comments paved the way for the approval and confirmation of 18 of the 36 nominees for appointments as ministers after two days of screening. President Muhammadu Buhari had first sent a list of 21 names. He later sent a list containing 16 names, from which he yesterday withdrew the name of former Deputy Governor of Niger State, Ahmed Isa Ibeto.
Those screened, cleared and confirmed by the Senators as full time ministers to be assigned portfolios by the President were Senator Udoma Udo Udoma (Akwa Ibom); Dr. Kayode Fayemi (Ekiti); Chief Audu Ogbeh (Benue); Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu (Ebonyi); Dr. Osagie Ehanire (Edo); Lt.Gen. Abdulrahman Dambazzau (Kano); Alhaji Lai Mohammed (Kwara); Hajia Amina Ibrahim Mohammed (Gombe); Engr. Suleiman Hussaini Adamu (Jigawa); and Ibrahim Usman Jibril (Nasarawa).
Also cleared and confirmed as ministers were former governor of Lagos State, Babatunde Raji Fashola; Group Managing Director, Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, Dr. Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu (Delta); Abubakar Malami, SAN (Kebbi); Senator Chris Nwabueze Ngige (Anambra); Senator Aisha Jummai Alhassan (Taraba); Barrister Solomon Dalong (Plateau); Mrs Kemi Adeosun (Ogun); and Senator Hadi Sirika (Katsina).
After yesterday’s screening exercise which started at 11.48am and ended at 5.10pm, Senate President Bukola Saraki called for a voice vote to approve and confirm the nominees.
Those Awaiting Screening
Rotimi Amaechi, Barr. Adebayo Shittu, Bukar Ibrahim, Cladius Omoleye Daramola, Prof Anthony Onwuka, Geoffrey Onyema, Dan Ali, Barr James Ocholi, Zainab Ahmed, Okechukwu Enelamah, Muhammadu Bello, Mustapha Baba Shehuri, Aisha Abubakar, Heineken Lokpobiri, Adamu Adamu, Isaac Adewole, Abubakar Bawa and Pastor Usani Uguru.
Drama over Lai Mohammed’s confirmation
There was, however, a mild drama when Saraki called for yes or nay chant over the National Publicity Secretary of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Alhaji Lai Mohammed as nay chants from Senators of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP appeared to have overtaken that of the ayes during the Committee of the Whole because of their large number in the chambers, but Senate President Saraki had his way and confirmed Mohammed. The nominee from Oyo State, Barrister Adebayo Shittu whose name was number nine on the Order Paper was however not called for confirmation, probably for lack of time.
Ibeto’s nomination withdrawn
Before the commencement of yesterday’s screening exercise, Senate President Saraki announced that President Buhari in a letter to him had withdrawn the name of the immediate past Deputy Governor of Niger State, Ahmed Musa Ibeto. Ibeto’s name was one of the 21 ministerial nominees first sent to the Senate on September 30, 2015. No reasons were given for the withdrawal of Ibeto’s name. Senate President Saraki had on Tuesday read the final list from the President containing 16 names and on the list was Abubakar Bwari Bawa from Niger State, obviously the replacement for Ibeto.
Why senators will screen Amaechi today
Meanwhile, contrary to the Order Paper which had former governor of Rivers State, Rotimi Amaechi as one of those to be screened yesterday, the Senate shelved his appearance.
Chairman, Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions, Senator Samuel Anyanwu said that it was not possible to screen Amaechi because the report on the petition against Amaechi was not ready. Senate President Saraki, however, urged members of the Committee to ensure that the report was ready today.
How Fashola rattled Senators
Former governor of Lagos state who appeared before the Senators from 11. 48am to1pm told the Senators of the need to review the Abuja Master Plan which has been distorted, just as he said that it has become imperative to decentralize the Nigerian Police as he advocated the establishment of a state policing system if the nation’s insecurity problem must be addressed.
Fashola who defended allegations concerning a N78 million website and N258 million borehole, said that throughout his stay as governor for eight years, nobody has so far come out to accuse him of enriching himself corruptly, even as he said that he did not personally sign any cheque as well as his commissioners. He also apologised to Nigerians for deporting some citizens of the state,particularly from the South-East to their states of origin.
He said: “The number available to me is that we have probably a standing Police force of about 500,000, les than a million in every event to a population that is heading to 180 million. So, we are under-policed and if the Federal Government decide to take up these responsibilities on its own, can it do so in the micro level that is necessary at the state and local government levels?
“My recommendation is a compelling urgency for decentralization. I have made those recommendations to some of the committees on constitution amendment where I was privileged to make presentations. There have been arguments about why we should not go there but those argument did not go far. They did not address the fundamental responsibilities that government has. I have heard the argument that government will abuse the Police for political purposes.
“The abuse of political power is not as important as loss of lives, and everything we do to advance that cause makes us more respected as government that cares. There is a process for curing abuse of institution but there is no process known to me today for recovering lives already lost. These are challenges that are before us as a people and as a nation. At the state level, you can also wonder what governors are going through.
“They have parliaments that make laws but they have no capacity to enforce their own laws. We are talking about domestic issues — rape and domestic violence — there are criminal offences in many states across the country but who is prosecuting them? This is because the Police officer is too busy chasing a robbery. Our mothers, daughters and sisters are expected to tolerate rape. If we are afraid of abuse, one of the things I will suggest is that we start a state Police.
“I proposed a system where we have six zonal commands from existing the Police force. It is not every state that can start if it cannot fund it. States who can fund can decide to employ 1,000 men, the Police Service Commission will train and graduate and if at the end of the training, only 800 pass the exam, they would be employed. The state buys their uniforms, there is a national license.”
On security, Fashola said, “ As far as security is concerned, that is the primary purpose of every government. It is the purpose for which government exists, to protect the citizens and their assets and it is the toughest job that any government can have. It is the challenge that leaders across the world are facing — terrorism, youthful gangs, cults and so on.
“My attitude was to see criminals as my competitors and in a competition, my desire was to use my resources to outspend my competitors, out-think the competition and out-maneovre the competition. But our risks are different. As a governor, my job was to ensure that nobody died, my job was to ensure that nobody robs. So, I have no magic for error. Every citizen that was robbed, I have failed that citizen. So, I have to be right every time, the criminal has to be right only once.
“So, we brought all the stakeholders — from the banks who were being robbed everyday then without the capacity to respond and one of the things I told one of the bankers was that if he could protect and bullet-proof his banks, if he cared about his workers and customers, can the government bullet-proof every home? If you bring some of this money and we put it in a pool and give these Policemen, it will help us and so, the point here is that there is a necessity here to decentralize.
Speaking on Abuja, the nominee said, “ In deciding what to do about Abuja, these are the real issue. First, getting a hold of its resources, knowing its districts and its problems, knowing the people, sharing with them what the thoughts are. The Master Plan itself may perhaps need to be reviewed. Plans are not static documents, they must be reviewed periodically. A level of consultation and knowledge would be necessary in order to accurately say this is where Abuja should be heading. In spite of our complaints, it is still a beautiful city, getting it to be better than it is, is a matter of choice for all of us. Laws have to be enforced and it should be rigorously followed.”
On old and young politician and how they relate to economic development, he said, “The sum total of every nation is its people. The more elderly ones are the more matured ones. No matter how hard we try, we will never discount the experience, the maturity, counselling and guiding support of people who are older than us. We must continue to interface with them. I must walk away from the tendency to condemn the level of our national development. We must begin to see our cup as half full rather than half empty.”
On the alleged website project, Fashola said: “Let me say first that it raises the question of public understanding of the role governors, public servants and some have a surprise to learn that as a governor of Lagos State, I didn’t sign cheques, none of my commissioners signed cheques. I didn’t fix contract prices. It is an institutional process.
“The only training I have is that of a lawyer. Nobody can award contract over benchmark price. Throughout my tenure, I have been confronted with the price of things and the reality is that when you design a road, what you meet in reality when construction starts is usually not what you end up with. In all of these, nobody has alleged that I have corruptly enriched myself. I could not have been a master in computer and technology. I need something to do my work.”
When asked about his definition of loyalty, Fashola who noted that he remained loyal to causes he believed in said: “As for loyalty, the concept of loyalty is a strange one. The real answer to that question is, may your loyalty not be tested. I always pray that my loyalty will not be tested because you might have to take a bullet for somebody. We discuss it loosely, but in public service, I have remained loyal to causes that I have signed onto and in all my life, nobody can fairly accuse me of giving my word and going back on my word.”
Fashola calls for state police, apologises on deportation of Igbos
On deportation of Igbo people, he said: “In a federation, the right to free movement is not absolute, it carries with it a responsibility not to be a nuisance.” He said those moved to their states of origin were those who asked to be taken home. Fashola concluded his submission by saying he apologised in the interest of national cohesion.
No palliatives, no fuel subsidy removal
Also answering questions from Senators when he appeared before them, Dr. Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu who noted that there will be no removal of subsidy until palliatives were put in place, disclosed that with the non-passage of Petroleum Industry Bill, PIB, Nigeria was losing 15 billion dollars yearly, adding that the Federal Government has no plans to reduce the price of fuel.
Kachikwu who disclosed that plans were on to distribute free cylinders to every home with gas stations closer to homes, said that over 40 percent of what NNPC makes is used by the corporation, adding, “in the next one, two days, you find that individuals will open their stations and products are there. We have enough storage in this country that will last us for the next 40, 50 days.
“First of all, let me say that one of the things I’ve said to myself since resuming as GMD of NNPC is that I will not be constrained by the lack of PIB in making sure that holistic solutions to the industry continue to be propelled. So, using existing laws, we have continued to make changes.
Because at the end of the day, whether or not PIB is available and passed, it really doesn’t lie within the umbrella of the executive, it lies with this revered Assembly. But I also do not think that the problem with PIB has been the facts of the versions. By the time the last Senate was rounding off, it had gotten a version that was clearly the version that both houses were looking at. Am I going to create a new version? Not really. What I will need to do is take the version that you have, look at it again and make changes.
“The key issue is that as long as we continue to want to pass a holistic PIB, it is going to be a very major challenge. But once you begin to break it up into critical aspects, you begin to make a faster run to passing PIB. Fiscal regime, for example, you ask yourself, why would you want to have fiscal regime inside the PIB? Because to change those fiscal regimes, which are very dynamic environment, you have to come back to this Assembly to also make changes.
“You must find a way of pulling out fiscal regimes and leave them to existing tax laws which you can amend. And additionally, look at the PSCs and Joint Venture Agreements to enable you determine fiscal regimes. The advantage in that is that you have the flexibility of changing with the times.
“At the time when oil prices was so low that nobody was willing to invest in your country, you may give some incentives. At the time when they are so high that people are making outrageous profits, you may increase your taxes. But so long as you leave it in a holistic blue-barrelled, high voluminous PIB, you are stuck in terms of how you are going to get the required votes each time to make amendment. I think the way to go is, first of all, take what is there, look at it in the context of where we are today.”
We need creative solutions – Adeosun
Mrs. Kemi Adeosun expressed the need for creative, innovative solutions to add value to our country and economy. Responding to questions, Mrs Adeosun said that to block leakages, we need to ‘chase out cash. Every where that people transact in cash, there are leakages.”
She said the country needs to adopt other forms of cash transfer that phases out physical cash, adding that there is need to invest primarily in infrastructure. She also said that banks are not in business to sit on government money, it’s bad economics.”
“TSA was introduced in Ogun State in 2011, which consequently reduced borrowing by the state government,” Mrs. Adeosun said. Speaking about foreign investment, she said that the major challenge of foreign investment is infrastructure.
“We need to establish public-private-partnerships to develop Nigeria’s infrastructure. If we get our infrastructure right, there are opportunities,” adding that Nigeria has to increase its revenues and improve on things like audits.
“Increase revenues, better cost efficiency and seek out other sources of funding to avert recession”, Mrs Adeosun said. Advising the government on cost-reduction, Mrs. Adeosun said that we all need to eat, drink, and focus on ‘Made in Nigeria. Addressing funding to non-oil sectors of the economy, she said that our interest rates are far too high. It’s very difficult to make a profit with these interest rates.
“Markets tend to over-react when there is a shock or a slight depression, hence, the recent recession projections”, Mrs. Adeosun said. She added that unemployment Solutions, jobs and entrepreneurship are what she intends to capitalize on while crashing interest rates.
“TSA was introduced in Ogun State in 2011, which consequently reduced borrowing by the state government,” Mrs. Adeosun said. Speaking about foreign investment, she said that the major challenge of foreign investment is infrastructure.
“We need to establish public-private-partnerships to develop Nigeria’s infrastructure. If we get our infrastructure right, there are opportunities,” adding that Nigeria has to increase its revenues and improve on things like audits.
“Increase revenues, better cost efficiency and seek out other sources of funding to avert recession”, Mrs Adeosun said. Advising the government on cost-reduction, Mrs. Adeosun said that we all need to eat, drink, and focus on ‘Made in Nigeria. Addressing funding to non-oil sectors of the economy, she said that our interest rates are far too high. It’s very difficult to make a profit with these interest rates.
“Markets tend to over-react when there is a shock or a slight depression, hence, the recent recession projections”, Mrs. Adeosun said. She added that unemployment Solutions, jobs and entrepreneurship are what she intends to capitalize on while crashing interest rates.
Abuja – National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Olisa Metuh, said on Monday that it was immediate past President Goodluck Jonathan, and not President Muhammadu Buhari, who discovered the current Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu.
Olisah Metuh
Metuh said Jonathan was preparing Kachikwu as a replacement for ex-petroleum minister, Diezani Alison-Madueke, who headed the ministry till last May.
Metuh made the claims in a Channels Television discussion programme, SunriseDaily, monitored in Abuja.
The PDP spokesman, who was reacting to the decision of Buhari to supervise the Petroleum Ministsery, said that the NNPC helmsman was not a new discovery by the president.
Metuh said that the party would closely monitor Buhari as the minister of petroleum and would not hesitate to expose any wrongdoing in the oil industry under the president.
Metuh said: The PDP under Jonathan discovered the incumbent group managing director of Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), over two years ago.
“Ibe Kachikwu was supposed to be Minister of Petroleum under PDP two years ago; he is not a new discovery.
“If the President handles the petroleum industry and does anything dishonest, we will expose him and tell Nigerians,” Metuh said.”
The publicist said that his party was committed to constructive criticism and not unnecessary opposition of every government policy.
“The style we are bringing is constructive criticisms because the essence is not about winning. It is about serving the people. We want to serve the Nigerian people – that is why we are in politics.
“When we were in government, the then opposition government (APC) did certain things that were indecent and not good for the progress or unity of our country.
“Anytime there was a terrorist attack on the country, we had lots of condemnation of the government and it made the terrorists emboldened. The insurgents were dividing us along ethnic and religious lines and the APC was promoting it.
“As an opposition party, we have decided that we will not adopt the same tactics. We have not abused Mr. President; we do not abuse his office. We limit ourselves to issues, providing alternatives and options to his policies and programmes, although we haven’t seen any yet.”
He said the PDP had no problem with the people he had chosen as his ministers, knowing fully well they those he could vouch for and where their strength and capacity lies.
But he frowned at the delay in choosing the ministers early enough to make way for the smooth running of the country.
“At this time, we are still discussing ministers as if it’s a big deal,” the PDP spokesman said.
The All Progressives Congress in the South-East on Friday said the appointment of Dr. Ibe Kachikwu as the Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation had shown that President Muhammadu Buhari does not bear any grudge against the Igbos.
KACHIKWU nnpc
Buhari got few votes in the South-East during the elections and there are insinuations that the President would sideline the Igbos as a result of the development.
The insinuations were further strengthened by reports quoting Buhari as saying, during his recent visit to the United States, that he would not give equal treatment to those that did not vote for him.
However, the South-East chapter of the APC said Buhari would give all sections of the country equal treatment.
In a statement signed by its spokesman, Mr. Osita Okechukwu, it maintained that Kachikwu’s appointment, and some other recent decisions taken by Buhari, had vindicated its belief that the President would not marginalise the Igbos.
“The appointment of Dr. Ibe Kachikwu and Engr. Dennis Ajulu as Group Managing Director, and Group Executive Director, Exploration and Production of the NNPC, respectively, and enlistment of Enugu Airport among those to be upgraded, are clear indication and demonstration that Mr. President bears no grudge against Ndigbo for not voting for him.
“South-East Zone of the All Progressives Congress salutes President Muhammadu Buhari for vindicating its position that every region of the country under his watch would receive equal and fair treatment,” Okechukwu said.
Okechukwu recalled that the South-East APC had earlier issued statements assuring Ndigbo that Buhari would not marginalise them for not voting for him.
He therefore urged Ndigbo to disregard “gossip-terrorists and ethnic merchants who peddle the falsehood that President Buhari hates Ndigbo.”
Okechukwu noted that Buhari had, in the course of his presidential campaign, held various meetings with Igbo leaders, where he (Buhari) promised to address the problem of the Igbos.
He added that Buhari addressed a letter dated November 7, 2014, to leaders of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, the foremost socio-political body of the Igbos.
According to Okechukwu, parts of the said letter read, “Since I cannot assume to know all the pressing issues facing Ndigbo or what Ndigbo expect of the new Nigeria we wish to build; I would greatly appreciate if you could kindly arrange a consultative meeting with Ohaneze Ndigbo where we could discuss and try to determine how this could best be done.
“I considered it pertinent to hold consultations with all communities nationwide in order to build a mutually acceptable national consensus. Needless to add, no national consultation will be complete or meaningful without a meeting with the leadership of Ohaneze Ndigbo.”
Okechukwu also expressed the belief of the South-East APC in Buhari’s inaugural address, particularly where the President said he “he belongs to everybody.”
“He (Buhari) doesn’t take prisoners, his word is his bond,” Okechukwu added, stressing that the President’s “rapid response to implement the United Nations Environment Programme Report, which recommended the cleansing of hazardous Oil polluted Ogoni land, almost consigned to the dustbin of history by the previous regime, couldn’t have attracted his attention, if otherwise.”
Okechukwu, however, noted that like Oliver Twist, the South-East APC is appealing to Buhari to take note of the dilapidated federal roads in the geopolitical zone, Second Niger Bridge, revamping of Enugu Coal, resolution of the tangle between Geometric Power and Interstate Electric in Aba, among others.
President Muhammadu Buhari has appointed Dr. Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu as the Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).
KACHIKWU nnpc
Dr. Kachikwu, who was the Executive Vice Chairman and General Counsel of Exxon-Mobil (Africa), will take over from Dr. Joseph Thlama Dawha.
Dr. Kachikwu, according to a statement issued by the Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to the President, Femi Adesina, hails from Onicha-Ugbo in Delta State.
The statement reads: “He is a First Class Graduate of Law from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka and the Nigerian Law School.
“The new NNPC Chief Executive also has Masters and Doctorate Degrees in Law from the Harvard Law School.
“He started his working career with the Nigerian/American Merchant Bank before moving on to Texaco Nigeria Limited from where he joined Exxon-Mobil.
President Buhari has also approved the appointment of Prof. Umaru Garba Danbatta as the new Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC).
“Prof. Danbatta, who holds a Doctorate Degree in Electronic Engineering, takes over from Dr. Eugene Juwah whose tenure expired on July 29.
“The new NCC Chief Executive’s other academic qualifications include a Bachelors Degree in Electronic Engineering and Telecommunications as well as a Masters Degree in the same field.
“He is a Fellow of the Nigerian Society of Engineers and has had a meritorious career in which he rose to become Professor of Electrical Engineering and Electronics at Bayero University, Kano, specializing in Telecommunications Engineering and Information and Communications Technology.
“Before his new appointment, Prof. Danbatta held top management and leadership positions at different times including Head of Department, Dean Of Faculty, Director, Centre for Information Technology, Chairman of the Nigerian Society of Engineers (Kano Branch), Deputy Vice Chancellor and Acting Vice Chancellor,” the statement added.
The global benchmark Brent crude extended its decline on Tuesday, slipping towards $30 per barrel for the first time since April 2004, before rising slightly above $31 per barrel. But the pick-up was short-lived as Brent later fell below $31.
