From Victor Seyi, Ilorin
National Deputy President, Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Comrade Issa Aremu has advised President Muhammadu Buhari to rescind his decision to make himself the petroleum minister.
He said Buhari will be sending a wrong signal that the nation’s economy will still largely depend on oil and gas sector if he goes ahead to be petroleum minister.
Instead, Aremu urged the federal government to revive the rail transportation system, noting that ” we can create job through rail transportation more than jobs created from the oil and gas industry.
The labour leader spoke with newsmen in Ilorin, Kwara state on the side line of the 7th day fidau prayer for the repose of the soul of his late mother, Alhaja Afusatu Aremu.
He added: “I went through the ministerial list and saw that President Buhari wants to be another minister of petroleum resources. He does not need that; he should rather be minister of railway or textile.
“What I am saying is that the future of Nigeria lies in the manufacturing. I think he should rather manage the real sector of the economy. With the best of efforts oil is exhaustible, Japan, China don’t have oil and gas yet they are producing all the electronics and cars we are using.
“For him to assume the ministerial position of the petroleum resources means that we are still oil dependent in our focus. We should not reduce resources to exhaustible oil and gas.
“The greatest resource God gives all is the human resources. For me oil and gas is being
mismanaged because the human resources are not well managed. President Buhari has promised ‘change’ but I have not seen change in that his decision at all. He is just going the way of former President Olusegun Obasanjo and there is danger in that because the oil and gas sector is murky. It is corruption driven. Who will take care of the corrupt people when the person that should do that is also involved? The point I am raising is that we want a new approach to handle the oil and gas sector”.
However, Aremu described Buhari’s independence speech as “a very remarkable one.”
“What I am saying in essence is that in spite of numerous challenges that we have in the country, I agree with President Buhari that there is a lot to celebrate. First a united Nigeria and secondly that we have imbibed the sense of democracy; I agree that for the first time
an incumbent was democratically voted out. We now have a democracy without war.
“I also reckon with Buhari for recognizing his predecessor; no matter the imperfections of the past former President Goodluck Jonathan, he did a good job to have accepted the outcome of the elections faithfully even though some members of his party did not agree. So
there is cause for celebration.
“All we need to do is to rebuild Nigeria to the next level and some of the points the President raised in that his speech I agree with them; that we need to do things methodically not to be in a hurry. Nigerians are expecting ministers but we have never been short of
ministers. We have been short of good governance. I think we should concentrate on good governance. For me I found that remarkable”.
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