By Francis Sadhere

An oil monitoring group, the Niger Delta Indigenous Movement For Radical Change (NDIMRC) has urged President Muhammadu Buhari to disregard the latest call to fire the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr Ibe Kachikwu.

Dr. Ibe Kachikwu

The Managing Director of Oil Mogul Nigeria Limited, Nkemjika R. Igbikiowubo Esq had in an open letter to President Buhari on Wednesday, April 6,2016 called for the sack of the Minister, accusing him of gross misconduct.

But in a swift reaction, NDIMRC in a press statement signed by its President, Nelly Emma, Secretary, John Sailor and Public Relations Officer (PRO), Stanley Mukoro, absorbed the Minister of the sea of accusations levelled against him.

The group said that; “We are surprised that some Stakeholders in the Oil and Gas Industry have refused to see anything good in the Petroleum Resources Minister. Dr Kachikwu is busy right now trying to ensure that we overcome the lingering fuel crisis in the country and yet somebody is calling on the President to sack him. We should allow the Minister to remain focused on his national assignment. These unnecessary distractions from some disgruntled Stakeholders in the Oil and Gas Industry are not healthy in our present situation in the country.”

While rising to the defence of the Minister, the group averred that; “All the issues raised against the Minister by the author of the letter are all tissues of lies and we implore the President to ignore him for he do not know what he is doing”

“The Minister for Petroleum Resources that we know is not personally involved in the selection and imposition of Contractors without regard to due process or competence and it is also not true that under Dr Kachikwu’s watch, NAPIMS ” has shamelessly ” allotted high evaluation numbers to companies without proven technical track record or experience to undertake Offshore work on a ‘live production platform’. These are cheap lies against the God-fearing Minister who wants the best for the Oil and Gas Industry”, the group said.

According to the group also; ” We are amazed that the Minister is being accused of using a private jet at the expense of the State and using Consultants to run the NNPC and embarked on changes in NNPC without carrying the staff along. People should stop painting the Minister in bad light; he should be encouraged. It should be noted that the Minister was the Vice Chairman of ExxonMobil before his appointment and now he is the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources and same time the Group Managing Director of the NNPC, is it too much for him to use a hired jet for in the critical Oil and Gas Industry? We are calling on the President to be wary of the author of the letter against the Minister and his likes who have vested interests in the Oil and Gas Industry and ready to do everything and anything to frustrate the dynamic Minister.”

“Mr President, you know very well that the Minister being hated for no reason is committed to the Change you promised Nigerians and he is doing everything possible not to disappoint you and Nigerians. Dr Kachikwu that we know very well, Mr President, is a man with foresight and his Reform in NNPC is hurting the likes of the author of the letter who have skeletons in their cupboard and still thinking that it is still going to be business as usual,” the group added.

The group while advising the author of the letter to tender unreserved apology to the Minister said that ; “This recent attack on the Minister is uncalled for and unacceptable to us. People must resist change and this is what the author who must apologise to the Minister for the unprovoked attack on him has exhibited in his open letter to the president. Our President is too familiar with the tricks and selfish motivated interests of the likes of the author and therefore his letter must be ignored by our amiable President.”

The group also wrote that ;”NAPIMS has played major roles in the upliftment of our Local Contractors and has continued to do it’s best for our people. Without NAPIMS,it would have been very difficult for Nigerian Local Contractors to be awarded contracts and therefore,nobody should give NAPIMS a bad name for selfish reasons and we hereby once again give NAPIMS a Clean Bill Of Health”.

“It is unfortunate that people do not want to key into the Change and the Reform in NNPC. But the Minister must go ahead with his mission to better the lives of Nigerians”, the group posited.