TINUBU BLAST KACHIKWU
Ex-former governor of Lagos State and national
leader of the All Progressives Congress, APC,
yesterday, lampooned Ibe Kachikwu, Minister of
State, Petroleum, for telling Nigerians that he
“was not trained as a magician”, a reference to the
lingering fuel scarcity that appears to be defying
efforts of the Nigerian National Petroleum
Corporation, NNPC.
Tinubu, who is not known for flippancy, wondered
why a public servant would talk down on those he
was meant to serve, charging: “Kachikwu’s
flippancy was out-of-line. He was basically telling
Nigerians that they should be lucky that they are
getting the inadequate supply they now suffer
and that they should just be quiet and endure the
shortage for several weeks more”.
The ten paragraph statement, titled: “KACHIKWU
NEEDS TO KNOW THAT RESPECT AND GOOD
PERFORMANCE WILL DO WHAT MAGIC
CANNOT” , dripping with venomous pillory,
nevertheless, attempted to inspire hope that,
whereas tough times were here, “we must all
realize that they would be even harder and much
darker would be the immediate horizon had we
allowed the venal, kleptocracy of the PDP to
continue to lord over the land solely for their
selfish benefit and not for the common good.”
The APC leader went on: “I am confident that
President Buhari and this government can resolve
the issues that press us. From establishing full
security and safety to staking a claim to true
economic prosperity and fairness, this
government shall salvage our national pride and
purpose”.
Tinubu’s statement reads:
“1.The art of governance is difficult and complex,
especially during trying times. The steep reduction
in global oil prices from over 100 dollars per
barrel to roughly 40 presents a hard challenge.
We can no longer afford past practices. Nigeria
now requires creative reform, materially changing
the substance of national economic policy as well
as the objectives of that policy and how the policy
is presented to the people. Therein lies the
essence of progressive democratic governance.
“2.The Buhari administration represents the last
best hope we have to install such governance in
Nigeria and avert the catastrophe that would
have befallen us had the prior government
remained in place. Had the nation continued with
the spendthrift corruption and vagabond
economic policies of that administration, we
would have soon experienced such a collision
with the harsh consequences of that
government’s malign ways that our very
institutions of government may have been
distorted beyond fixture and repair.
“3.In this effort, there may be no economic
matter more difficult to unravel and more
sensitive to the purse of the average person than
the current fuel scarcity. Even here I am confident
of progress because I know the commitment of
the president to resolving this matter. I make no
attempt to hide it. I am an avid and partisan
supporter of this government and of the
progressive policies of the party, the APC, upon
which this government is based.
“4. With that I do reserve the right and the duty as
a Nigerian to voice my opinion when I believe a
member of this government has strayed from the
progressive calling required of this
administration. I do this because my greater
devotion and love are for this nation and its
people. Party and politics fall secondary.
“5.Much public ire has been drawn to the
statement made by minister of state Ibe kachikwu
that he was not trained as a magician and that
basically Nigerians should count themselves
fortunate that the NNPC under his stewardship
has been able to bring in the amount of petrol
fuel it is currently doing.
“6.Perhaps the statement by Kachikwu was made
in a moment of unguarded frustration or was an
awkward attempt at a joke. Whatever the motive,
it was untimely and off-putting. The remark did
not sit well with the Nigerian people; they were as
right to feel insulted as the Minister was wrong to
have said such a thing. The fuel shortage is
severely biting for the average person. They are
forced to remain in lines far too long, for too
much time, to pay too much money for too little
fuel. This is no joking matter. Livelihoods and
people’s welfare are at stake. With so much on
the line, Kachikwu’s flippancy was out-of-line. He
was basically telling Nigerians that they should be
lucky that they are getting the inadequate supply
they now suffer and that they should just be quiet
and endure the shortage for several weeks more.
“7.Kachikwu’s intervention was unhelpful. It
panicked and disappointed the public as to the
duration of the crisis. It insulted the people by its
tonality. He spoke with the imperious nature of a
member of the elitist government the people
voted out last year and not the progressive one
they voted in. Kachikwu must be reminded that
he was not coerced to take this job. He accepted
the job and its responsibilities knowingly. He also
must remember that he does not own NNPC. This
also is not a private company that owes nothing
to the public except the duty of fair dealing. He is
a public servant. The seat he sits upon is owned
by Nigerians not by him. The company he runs is
owned by Nigerians not by him. They are his boss.
He is not theirs. Power is vested in the people. He
is a mere custodian or agent of their will. In
talking to us in such a manner, he committed an
act of insubordination. If he had talked so
cavalierly to his boss in the private sector, he
would have been reprimanded or worse. If wise,
the man should refrain from such interjections in
the future.
“8.As his ultimate bosses, the people have a right
to demand the requisite performance and respect
from him. He should apologize for treating them
so lightly in this instance. His portfolio being a
strategically important one, he needs to
reestablish the correct relationship with the
public. They no longer feel he is working for their
optimal benefit as their servant. Instead, he
seems to be standing above them, telling them to
take it or leave it. For his policies and stint in
office to be successful and a help to this
government, he must have the support and belief
of the people at this tough time. He must talk to
them in a way that they believe he seeks their
best interest and understands the hardship
weighing upon them. He must ask them to work
with him and perhaps to endure a bit longer but
with the knowledge that he is working to resolve
this matter as fast as he can and as permanently
as possible. That he is dedicated to the position
that once these current lines are gone that never
again shall they reappear as long as he has any
influence in the matter. To do this, requires no
magic nor training in that strange craft. It requires
empathy, compassion and the willpower to forge
a better Nigeria. These must be the common
trademarks of those serving in a progressive
government for these attributes are integral parts
of the spirit and ideals upon which the APC was
founded. Upon such notions was this
administration voted into office by the Nigerian
people in the operation of their sovereign will to
seek a national leadership that would pursue
their interests to the utmost and give them every
fair chance to live in a better Nigeria.
“9.Even though times are hard we must all realize
that they would be even harder and much darker
would be the immediate horiz
on had we allowed the venal, kleptocracy of the
PDP to continue to lord over the land solely for
their selfish benefit and not for the common
good.
“10. I am confident that President Buhari and this
government can resolve the issues that press us.
From establishing full security and safety to
staking a claim to true economic prosperity and
fairness, this government shall salvage our
national pride and purpose. “Let all of us, in and
out, of government never forget this. If we adhere
to this remembrance, we shall see that magic will
not be needed to bring the progress we seek.
Share
leader of the All Progressives Congress, APC,
yesterday, lampooned Ibe Kachikwu, Minister of
State, Petroleum, for telling Nigerians that he
“was not trained as a magician”, a reference to the
lingering fuel scarcity that appears to be defying
efforts of the Nigerian National Petroleum
Corporation, NNPC.
Tinubu, who is not known for flippancy, wondered
why a public servant would talk down on those he
was meant to serve, charging: “Kachikwu’s
flippancy was out-of-line. He was basically telling
Nigerians that they should be lucky that they are
getting the inadequate supply they now suffer
and that they should just be quiet and endure the
shortage for several weeks more”.
The ten paragraph statement, titled: “KACHIKWU
NEEDS TO KNOW THAT RESPECT AND GOOD
PERFORMANCE WILL DO WHAT MAGIC
CANNOT” , dripping with venomous pillory,
nevertheless, attempted to inspire hope that,
whereas tough times were here, “we must all
realize that they would be even harder and much
darker would be the immediate horizon had we
allowed the venal, kleptocracy of the PDP to
continue to lord over the land solely for their
selfish benefit and not for the common good.”
The APC leader went on: “I am confident that
President Buhari and this government can resolve
the issues that press us. From establishing full
security and safety to staking a claim to true
economic prosperity and fairness, this
government shall salvage our national pride and
purpose”.
Tinubu’s statement reads:
“1.The art of governance is difficult and complex,
especially during trying times. The steep reduction
in global oil prices from over 100 dollars per
barrel to roughly 40 presents a hard challenge.
We can no longer afford past practices. Nigeria
now requires creative reform, materially changing
the substance of national economic policy as well
as the objectives of that policy and how the policy
is presented to the people. Therein lies the
essence of progressive democratic governance.
“2.The Buhari administration represents the last
best hope we have to install such governance in
Nigeria and avert the catastrophe that would
have befallen us had the prior government
remained in place. Had the nation continued with
the spendthrift corruption and vagabond
economic policies of that administration, we
would have soon experienced such a collision
with the harsh consequences of that
government’s malign ways that our very
institutions of government may have been
distorted beyond fixture and repair.
“3.In this effort, there may be no economic
matter more difficult to unravel and more
sensitive to the purse of the average person than
the current fuel scarcity. Even here I am confident
of progress because I know the commitment of
the president to resolving this matter. I make no
attempt to hide it. I am an avid and partisan
supporter of this government and of the
progressive policies of the party, the APC, upon
which this government is based.
“4. With that I do reserve the right and the duty as
a Nigerian to voice my opinion when I believe a
member of this government has strayed from the
progressive calling required of this
administration. I do this because my greater
devotion and love are for this nation and its
people. Party and politics fall secondary.
“5.Much public ire has been drawn to the
statement made by minister of state Ibe kachikwu
that he was not trained as a magician and that
basically Nigerians should count themselves
fortunate that the NNPC under his stewardship
has been able to bring in the amount of petrol
fuel it is currently doing.
“6.Perhaps the statement by Kachikwu was made
in a moment of unguarded frustration or was an
awkward attempt at a joke. Whatever the motive,
it was untimely and off-putting. The remark did
not sit well with the Nigerian people; they were as
right to feel insulted as the Minister was wrong to
have said such a thing. The fuel shortage is
severely biting for the average person. They are
forced to remain in lines far too long, for too
much time, to pay too much money for too little
fuel. This is no joking matter. Livelihoods and
people’s welfare are at stake. With so much on
the line, Kachikwu’s flippancy was out-of-line. He
was basically telling Nigerians that they should be
lucky that they are getting the inadequate supply
they now suffer and that they should just be quiet
and endure the shortage for several weeks more.
“7.Kachikwu’s intervention was unhelpful. It
panicked and disappointed the public as to the
duration of the crisis. It insulted the people by its
tonality. He spoke with the imperious nature of a
member of the elitist government the people
voted out last year and not the progressive one
they voted in. Kachikwu must be reminded that
he was not coerced to take this job. He accepted
the job and its responsibilities knowingly. He also
must remember that he does not own NNPC. This
also is not a private company that owes nothing
to the public except the duty of fair dealing. He is
a public servant. The seat he sits upon is owned
by Nigerians not by him. The company he runs is
owned by Nigerians not by him. They are his boss.
He is not theirs. Power is vested in the people. He
is a mere custodian or agent of their will. In
talking to us in such a manner, he committed an
act of insubordination. If he had talked so
cavalierly to his boss in the private sector, he
would have been reprimanded or worse. If wise,
the man should refrain from such interjections in
the future.
“8.As his ultimate bosses, the people have a right
to demand the requisite performance and respect
from him. He should apologize for treating them
so lightly in this instance. His portfolio being a
strategically important one, he needs to
reestablish the correct relationship with the
public. They no longer feel he is working for their
optimal benefit as their servant. Instead, he
seems to be standing above them, telling them to
take it or leave it. For his policies and stint in
office to be successful and a help to this
government, he must have the support and belief
of the people at this tough time. He must talk to
them in a way that they believe he seeks their
best interest and understands the hardship
weighing upon them. He must ask them to work
with him and perhaps to endure a bit longer but
with the knowledge that he is working to resolve
this matter as fast as he can and as permanently
as possible. That he is dedicated to the position
that once these current lines are gone that never
again shall they reappear as long as he has any
influence in the matter. To do this, requires no
magic nor training in that strange craft. It requires
empathy, compassion and the willpower to forge
a better Nigeria. These must be the common
trademarks of those serving in a progressive
government for these attributes are integral parts
of the spirit and ideals upon which the APC was
founded. Upon such notions was this
administration voted into office by the Nigerian
people in the operation of their sovereign will to
seek a national leadership that would pursue
their interests to the utmost and give them every
fair chance to live in a better Nigeria.
“9.Even though times are hard we must all realize
that they would be even harder and much darker
would be the immediate horiz
on had we allowed the venal, kleptocracy of the
PDP to continue to lord over the land solely for
their selfish benefit and not for the common
good.
“10. I am confident that President Buhari and this
government can resolve the issues that press us.
From establishing full security and safety to
staking a claim to true economic prosperity and
fairness, this government shall salvage our
national pride and purpose. “Let all of us, in and
out, of government never forget this. If we adhere
to this remembrance, we shall see that magic will
not be needed to bring the progress we seek.
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