Group Faults Agbakoba's Position On Substantive Petroleum Minister

Vanguard for Transparent Leadership and Democracy (VATLAD) has faulted Dr Olisa Agbakoba’s continued demand for President Bola Tinubu to step down as the substantive minister of Petroleum Resources.

Agbakoba had said President Tinubu is being misled to do the wrong, manifesting in the worsening crises in the upstream, midstream and downstream sectors of Nigeria’s petroleum industry.

National president, VATLAD, Engr Igbini Emmanuel, stated in an interview, that if Olisa Agbakoba is appointed substantive minister of petroleum resources, would not be able to actualise the restoration of sanity he demands in this sector.

He noted that Agbakoba no doubt means so well for the restoration of transparency, accountability and integrity in this critical petroleum sector for the economic prosperity and development of Nigeria.

“However, he is not well informed about the dangerous intrigues and politics in this sector as I am, which informed my patriotic decision to advise both Buhari and Tinubu to retain themselves, the position of substantive Ministers of Petroleum Resources in their capacities as President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Nigeria.

“The same way he demanded of former President Buhari to step down and I also countered him. The criminal activities going on for decades in our Petroleum Sector is worse than the criminal activities of the terrorists ravaging our country.

“I speak from a position of deep knowledge of this sector from my professional and working experiences in the core petroleum production department of this industry in offshore, shallow waters and onshore fields and as a veteran labour union in one of the leading IOCs.”

According to Emmanuel, what is needed right now is to sanitize the sector for President Tinubu to get the right advice from those he has so far appointed into the petroleum sector. “I will continue to insist, with due respect, that Dr Olisa Agbakoba, is dead wrong.”