Esele says Buhari should not be petroleum minister

Former president of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN), Peter Esele says President Muhammdu Buhari should not be the petroleum minister.

Esele made the remarks on programme, Sunrise Daily, while reacting to Ibe Kachikwu’s leaked letter to President Buhari where he accused the NNPC GMD, Maikanti Baru of insubordination.

Esele said President Buhari already has a lot on his plate which makes it difficult for him to properly oversee the activities of various players in the petroleum industry.

“Ideally, President Buhari should not be the petroleum minister; he should also not oversee the NNPC,” Esele said.

“The chief of staff to the president is also on the NNPC board and this is responsible for the several conflicts of interest within the NNPC," he added.

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Esele noted that the political elites also interfere in the working of the NNPC for personal gains.

“The political elites and those who are supposed to oversee NNPC are also those undermining the institution for their own gains. There are so many interferences in the workings and processes of the NNPC."

He urged President Buhari to take decisive steps to end the problems within the NNPC.

“If we are able to solve the problem within the NNPC, we would have solved forty percent of Nigeria’s problems.

"Right now, the ball is in President Buhari’s court and he needs to take decisive steps in line with his anti-corruption crusade. NNPC has always been opaque and that is why they cannot come out to state the exact amount of crude produced per day. At the NNPC, it is the more you see, the less you see. The finances of NNPC has always been opaque,” Esele added.

Meanwhile, the Senate has begun investigation into alleged corruption in the NNPC.