This is what happened when minister met NNPC GMD

The 23rd National Economic Summit (NES) couldn’t have commenced on a more awkward note last Tuesday, October 10, 2017.

Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu and Group Managing Director (GMD) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Maikanti Baru, had dominated social and mainstream media chatter for days on end.

To put it mildly, they had both hurled plenty of mud at the other.

It is not very often that two top government officials serving in the same administration and pursuing the actualisation of the same agenda (at least on paper), get to dance naked in the market square.

So, the public could have been forgiven for lapping up the drama like there wouldn’t be a tomorrow.

Back to the venue of the 23rd NES in Abuja. Kachikwu and Baru had been pencilled as resource persons at the Energy Committee breakout session. Days before, they had been summoned by the presidency to explain how it had reached the point where they had to be fighting nasty in public.

Baru was the first to arrive the venue of the 23rd NES, with Kachikwu walking in some 20 minutes later.

Time stood still because between both men, there was no love lost. At least so the story went.

Kachikwu had written this very lengthy memo in which he accused Baru of not showing him respect--the kind of respect befitting a minister of the federal republic of Nigeria.

But as soon as Kachikwu walked in, Baru stood up to welcome him with a smile so wide, it could have melted the coldest of hearts.

Everyone stopped whatever it is they were doing and watched. The cameras rolled and clicked. Journalists scribbled away furiously. A few persons watched in utter admiration.

There was a hug here and a pose for the cameras there. Kachikwu pointed at Baru as though to say 'he's the man'. It was a PR, photo-op stunt alright, but it still felt good watching it all play out before more than a dozen pair of eyes.

Kachikwu and Baru exchanged pleasantries and shared a laugh or two.

According to a account of events hereafter, “Kachikwu offered that he should be represented at the second session of the dialogue by Baru, a request the organisers politely declined because Baru was to chair a session and it would have affected his participation.

“However, Kachikwu left before the end of the session and Baru represented him. But the minister returned and joined Baru in chairing an event. After the event, both men engaged in a brief chat before departing”.

Did we hear the swords getting sheathed?

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Kachikwu had levelled charges bordering on disregard for due process and non-transparency as it pertains to running the NNPC, against Baru.

The NNPC GMD made public his own response as well, saying the minister couldn’t have been more wrong concerning the issues he raised in his memo to Buhari.

Honours even?