12022018 - Fuel crisis : PDP, APC in verbal war over President's role

46 — Vanguard, MONDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2018
North Central, Northwest Youths
push Turaki presidential bid
By Marie-Therese
Nanlong
JOS—YOUTHS from
the North Central and
North West geo-political
zones of the country have
called on Kabiru Turaki, the
immediate past Minister for
Special Duties during the
administration of former
President Goodluck
Jonathan to vie for the
Presidential seat in 2019.
The youths unanimously
agreed that the former
Minister has what it takes
to lead the country and
make impact on the youths
having done much for the
youths in his personal
capacity before joining
politics.
At a meeting weekend in
Jos, Plateau State, the
youths under the auspices
of Peoples Democratic Party,
PDP Transform Nigeria
Group noted that Jos was a
watershed in Nigeria
politics hence their decision
to gather in the city to call
on the former minister to
heed their call to contest for
the seat.
Addressing the gathering,
the National Coordinator of
the group, Idris Zahiri said:
“As the 2019 political
movement kick-starts, we
felt it necessary to make
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known our resolution to
support Alhaji Kabiru
Turaki as we hope that he
will heed to our clarion call
on him to accept to vie for
the seat of the President
under our great Party,
Peoples Democratic Party.
We are also calling on the
big opposition Party in
Africa, PDP to give Kabiru
Turaki the ticket as we are
sure he will deliver at the
end of time.''
L AGOS—RETURNEE
India-trained
graduate engineers of the
Dangote Refinery have
promised to deploy the
knowledge and skills
acquired during the
training to ensure Nigeria
is saved the
embarrassment of fuel
scarcity when the refinery
come on stream.
The engineers, who
described their experience
as second to none in the
history of Nigeria's oil and
gas sector said never
again would Nigeria
experience fuel scarcity
as the Dangote refinery
would be operated in the
2019 PRESIDENCY: Consensus northern candidate
impossible in 2019 — NORTHERN LEADERS
By Soni Daniel
BARELY a day after
some northern
leaders converged on
Abuja and hinted of
shopping for a consensus
candidate for next year’s
presidential election, many
northern leaders
yesterday opposed the
move, saying it was not a
workable idea.
most efficient manner.
Dangote Oil Refinery
Company had in
preparation for take-off sent
in batches local graduate
engineers to Bharat
Refinery in India, arguably
the biggest in the world for
training in refinery
operation and production.
The nation is anxiously
awaiting the Dangote
refinery with a capacity to
produce 650,000 bpd to
commence operation as the
country’s four refinery have
gone comatose.
Reliving their experience
to the management of the
company on return one
after another, at the
•Say advocates seeking relevance
They also chided the
proponents of the idea,
saying that they were
simply floating the option
to regain some level of
relevance, having lost out
in the political arena.
Among those who spoke
to Vanguard on the issue
were the Convener of the
Coalition of Northern
Dangote Refinery returnee graduate engineers
promise an end to fuel scarcity
Refinery premises at Lekki,
Lagos the engineers said
they had both theory and
practical training in India
and also a very rare
opportunity to witness a
refinery of the Dangote’s
size being built from the
scratch.
Opeyemi Oyedepo,
process engineer and Igwe
John, petroleum and gas
engineer told the
management how they
were made to be part of
trouble shooting during
their training, a
development that boosted
their confidence that
Dangote Refinery with most
modern facilities would
eradicate perennial fuel
scarcity in Nigeria.
Groups, Alhaji Abdulazeez
Suleiman and the
President of the Arewa
Youth Forum, Alhaji
Ibrahim Gambo Gujungu,
who expressed
disappointment over the
claim that the north was
shopping for a consensus
candidate for 2019.
Suleiman pointed out that
those who met in Abuja on
Saturday and broached the
idea of a consensus
northern presidential
candidate spoke for
themselves and could not
therefore ascribe their
suggestion to the entire
north.
Suleiman said: “Let us
face the reality and
accept that it is not
possible for the north to
pick a consensus
candidate for 2019. It is
not just possible. Those
talking about it want to
create confusion and in
the process become
relevant. Those who
were at the Saturday
meeting in Abuja are
simply promoting the
political interest of one of
the presidential aspirants
from Sokoto and should
therefore not try to link that
with the entire north. The
advocates are aware that
they are irrelevant in the
current political
dispensation and are
looking for public
attention.”
On his part, Gujungu
described the meeting as
strange and self-seeking
as the conveners
attempted to impose
their wishful thinking on
the entity called north to
gain attention.
Gujungu said: “Such a
warped suggestion of a
northern consensus
candidate is not only
laughable but is equally
unworkable because it
would breach the
constitutional rights of
individuals to freely choose
their leaders.
“What I believe in
strongly is that the
presidency will still come to
their north but who that
would be and on what
platform, no one can say.”
It will be recalled that top
northern leaders had
converged on Abuja on
Saturday to forge a new
direction for the region
during which they
propped up the idea of a
consensus candidate
chosen by the north.
SIGNING AGREEMENT BETWEEN NIGERIA FOOTBALL FEDERATION & NIGERIA BREWERIES PLC
The Nigeria Football Federation, NFF during the weekend signed a N2.5 billion deal with Nigeria Breweries
PLC in Lagos.
Mr Amaju Pinnick, President, Nigeria Football Federation, NFF (3rd right) and Borrut Bel, MD, Nigeria Breweries,
NB PLC (4th left); NFF 1st Vice President, Seyi Akinwunmi (3rd left); 2nd Vice President, Shehu Dikko (2nd left),
Maria Maggi, Marketing Director, Nigerian Breweries Plc (left); Mike Itemuagbor, MD Pamodzi Sports Marketing
(right) and Kufre Ekanem, Corporate Affairs Adviser, NB PLC (2nd right) at the signing.
HAPPY TO BE HERE! Bel (left) appears to be
telling Amaju Pinnick.
Bel (left) and Pinnick.
Pinnick and Bel (holding 2018), are joined by Akinwunmi (5th left), Dikko (2nd right), Ikpeme (left),
Ekanem (right) and former Nigeria internationals; Odegbami, Nwosu, Rufai, Eguavoen, Siasia, Amokachi,
Adepoju, Lawal, Chiejine and Igunbor.