By Christiana Ekpa
Conference Of Nigeria Political Parties (CNPP) has commended the move by President Muhammadu Buhari to end fuel scarcity in the country by setting up a 14-man Steering Committee to find lasting solutions to the problems surrounding the supply and distribution chain of petroleum products in the country.
In a statement signed by its Secretary General, Willy Ezugwu, the CNPP observed that “as desirable as the step taken by President Muhammadu Buhari may be, the first step to salvage the oil sector is to cleanse the newly incorporated NNPC Limited of the inherited corrupt management team who are currently overseeing the company.”
Recall that the committee which was set up by President Muhammadu Buhari which would be chaired by himself and co-chaired by the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Chief Timipre Sylva.
The CNPP, however, noted that “it is impossible to have the same people, who created the problem that manifests today as fuel scarcity, find solution to the problem which was created due to incompetence and intention to corruptly enrich a few.
“Today, NNPC has opened another channel for siphoning taxpayers’ money by venturing into road construction when the company has been unable to meet Nigeria’s OPEC oil production supply quota and has denied the country of the needed foreign exchange.
“The ripple effect of the inability of the current NNPC Limited’s management to earn foreign exchange for Nigeria is the prevailing forex scarcity, leading to continuous crash of the naira against the United States dollar.
“Therefore, if the Mallam Mele Kyari-led NNPC cannot get a single refinery in Nigeria working in nearly eight years, how can it solve the current problem of fuel scarcity?
“If President Muhammadu Buhari is seeking to end his tenure with enduring legacy in the oil industry in Nigeria, it’s about time he got rid of the current Mele Kyari-led NNPC Limited.
“Our position remains that President Buhari inaugurated and reinforced corruption the day he unveiled the new NNPC.
“The perennial fuel scarcity in the country is man-made through deliberate policies by the Mallam Mele Kyari-led NNPC management team.
“We are glad that the Department of State Services (DSS) and other security agencies are part of the committee but the committee will produce little or no positive result if the current NNPC leadership remains in office”, the CNPP stated.
