IPAC opposes appointment of state minister of petroleum from Niger Delta

The selection of a Minister of State for Petroleum Resources from the oil-rich Niger Delta region has drawn criticism from the Inter-Party Advisory Council.

Yabagi Sani, the National Chairman of IPAC, called the appointment a “wrong signal” on Thursday during Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily breakfast program.

According to Sani, confining the appointment to a specific state will encourage a sense of entitlement among Niger Delta residents.

“Unfortunately, the Niger Delta has been used to make it appear that Niger Delta residents should be chosen to that ministry. It sends the wrong message because when you give people a sense of entitlement, their productivity is no longer valued as highly.

“I believe we need to modify that circumstance, but if he must, why not award a North Central native the Federal Capital Territory? This is not because I am from the region. If you must make a big deal out of such a crucial ministry.

What can we do to stop the theft of crude oil? he questioned. According to what we have heard so far, persons from that region are responsible for the systematic theft of crude oil.
Sani recommended that the petroleum industry be examined from a professional and a national interest perspective,” he stated.

According to Sani, the President’s duties for the Ministry of Petroleum Resources are significant and crucial. She noted that if the ministry were given sole authority to the president, there might be lingering concerns about accountability and the effectiveness of the government’s efforts to combat crude oil theft.

“If that is the president’s objective, I think that ministry is too essential for him to take on as additional job. The reason is that due to improper management of that industry (the oil and gas sector), we have had the type of setbacks we have in the economy as a whole.

“The president, who is already extremely busy, is taking over the ministry and will be in charge of it personally. We might not get the outcome we were hoping for, I’m sure. The elimination of corruption from that sector as rapidly as possible is what we seek, he said.