- Femi Falana advises President Bola Tinubu not to present himself as the Minister of Petroleum Resources without National Assembly screening
- Falana cites constitutional concerns and echoes former CBN Governor Sanusi’s reservations about accountability for NNPC Limited
Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana, SAN, has urged President Bola Tinubu to refrain from presenting himself as the Minister of Petroleum Resources. Falana stressed that this step is imperative because the President did not undergo screening by the National Assembly before assuming the role.
Speaking in Abuja during the public presentation of the book titled, “Dis Life No Balance; An Anthropology of Nigerian Diaspora Voices,” co-authored by Professors Farooq Kperogi, Moses Ochonu, and Dr. Osmund Agbo, Falana cautioned Tinubu against emulating former Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo and Muhammadu Buhari, who held the position of petroleum ministers during their tenures.
Arguing that Tinubu’s role as a minister of petroleum goes against section 147 of the Constitution, Falana echoed the recent stance of the former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Muhammadu Sanusi II. Sanusi had advised against Tinubu’s role, stating that such an arrangement hampers accountability for the NNPC Limited.
“President Bola Tinubu is not the Minister of Petroleum Resources, as his nomination was never sent to the senate for screening as mandatorily required by section 147 of the Constitution. My advice is that the President should not parade himself as the Minister of Petroleum Resources like President Olusegun Obasanjo and President Muhammadu Buhari,” Falana emphasized.
The book reviewer, Mr. Segun Adeniyi, a former presidential spokesman, lauded the 381-page book for its well-edited and quality content. He noted that the book expresses the authors’ disappointment with the country’s unfolding events.
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