National Assembly and summoning of PMB on fuel crises By Polycarp Onwubiko

The recurring fuel crises with its crippling effects on the economy has justified the solemn exhortation of patriotic commentators on national issues who kicked against the earlier indication of President Muhammadu Buhari [PMB] to be the petroleum minister; aping the former imperial president, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, who never gave account of how he ran the behemoth and sensitive organization, even as the sector reeked with festering corruption. PMB behaved true to type as some people who had interacted with him at close quarters said that whenever he made up his mind on something, no force can deter him.
PMB flouted the constitution by not including his name in the list sent to the Senate for screening for confirmation as ministers of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Rather, he submitted the of the group managing director of NNPC as minister of state for the petroleum ministry. Since it is customary for the Senate to invite the minister of a sector which has lingering issues of national significant, Senate Enyinnaya Abaribe suggested that PMB should be invited to explain the logjam in the on-going fuel crises that plunged the country into complex dilemma. He was supported by his colleagues but to the consternation of the people, ethno-religious sentiment erupted in the read chamber and the Senate President over-ruled the invitation of PMB to the Senate to clear the fog on the lingering fuel imbroglio; even as the minister of state for the ministry was deemed unconstitutional to represent the boss.
The faux pas in the Senate has complicated the exasperation of the masses; even as the minister of state in the petroleum ministry has been fumbling from one subterfuge to the other to explain away the impasse. It is gross irresponsibility for the Senate President to shield PMB from being summoned to shed a lurid light on the fuel crises which dislocated the economic activities nation-wide. Since PMB had defied all solemn exhortation to abandon the grossly irrational step of combining the arduous duties and responsibilities attached to the behemoth petroleum ministry with the equally enormous and gargantuan demands of the presidency, he should go to the Senate and do what other ministers do to explain things to the people who are the custodian of power.
It is high time Nigeria stopped being a laughing stock of civilized and advanced countries of the world. When these civilized nations want trickle themselves, they mention Nigeria where the behemoth ministry of power was rightly occupied by a a professor of robotic engineer and later; and replaced with a professor of engineer; a renowned architect as minister of works in the immediate past administration is now headed by a lawyer; in addition to other two very large ministries of works and housing. Of course he would be repeating “I put it to you to the professional engineers in the ministries till the end of four years”. Somebody opined that the former governor ought to have taken crash programmes in electrical, mechanical and building engineering since nothing is impossible in the apparently accursed country. Also it is in Nigeria that a journalist is a minister of education while a professor of education/former vice-chancellor of university is his assistance. Again, a lawyer instead of an experienced oil and gas engineer has been the group managing director of NNPC and now the minister of state in the ministry of petroleum. Shame to Nigeria!
It is believed that the minister of power, works and housing will be very close with medical specialists to be monitoring his blood pressure and other parts of his body because the volume of mails in the three behemoth ministries and files to be perused daily; in addition to series of meetings and tours of projects and trips to foreign countries and seminars/workshops etc. would require a super human being from the Mars to be efficient and effective to live up to the lofty expectations of the three ministries. Some has revealed the truth about the grossly irrational lumping of the three ministries under somebody who is not an engineer; it is the positioning of 2019 electoral fortune since the three ministries are money-spinning entities. Who says that APC is not championing anti-corruption mantra?

Nigerians should bestir themselves and resist another imperial presidency bolstered by the feudal caliphate in the Arewa Consultative Forum [ACF] meekly and timidly supported by their vassals in the Middle-Belt who do not want to liberate themselves and their off-springs in the name of “A United North” in the lopsided National Assembly. Former President Olusegun Obasanjo brazenly defied the “Unitary-Federal Contraption” referred to as the Nigeria Constitution and did not appoint minister of petroleum and supposedly became one; even as corruption reached high heavens in the sector in the eight years of his corrupt administration.
Since the acclaimed ‘owners’ of Nigeria in the National Assembly prevailed over the rightful motion that PMB  should be invited to throw light on the fuel crises, it equally indicate that there will be no transparency and accountability in the petroleum sector of the Nigeria’s already wobbling and comatose economy. As things stands now, who are you to question PMB on the goings-on in the oil and gas sector? The actual picture of APC so-called ‘change’ is emerging; the change mantra and anti-corruption posturing is mere shadow- chasing and rhetoric. Southerners and the ethnic nationalities in the middle-belt [assuming that the ACF and NSGF cage would be thrown over-board and be liberated] must stamp their feet on the ground and demand for the immediate restructuring of Nigeria. Governor Rochas Okorocha was courageous enough to say so when he addressed the agitators of ‘Biafra’. The fundamental problem of Nigeria is not corruption but centralization of MDA’s in the imposed pseudo federalism by the feudal caliphate.
Political reform conferences have to be implemented to enable civilized ethnic groups like the Igbos to be liberated and join advanced nations of the world.  
Mr Onwubiko is a public affairs commentator,[email protected], Awka Anambra state