DESPITE long queues at filling stations, a group has picked the All Progressives Congress (APC) 2023 presidential election expression of interest and nomination forms for Minister of State for Petroleum Resources Timipre Sylva.
A group, Good People of Nigeria, said they obtained the forms on behalf of Sylva, a former governor of Bayelsa.
Mohammed Abu Abaji, who heads the group, said the minister’s performance in the petroleum sector shows he has the capacity to lead the country.
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“That is why we bought these forms and called on him to come and contest in the APC primaries; I think it is one of the small things we can do for him.
“For the period he has been the minister you can see that he has spent a lot of time in the Niger Delta to talk to his people. We believe that as a President a lot will happen for oil prospects for the development of Nigeria. We are the good people of Nigeria and it is a collective donation. Everybody you see here donated money for the fund,” Abaji said.
Sylva, in his response, said he will consult widely before accepting the forms.
“It is very humbling and I must also say it is shocking. What I will do now, I will not give you a direct response. I need to consult my constituency, the leaders of this country and then I will come back to you to let you know if I have taken a position to run for the President of this country.
“I will go to my leader, for example the Ijaw leader, Edwin Clark, I will talk to him.”
Meanwhile, long queues has surfaced at filing stations in Abuja since Saturday.
The development marred school resumption on Monday as many children and their parents were stranded.
Also, many Nigerians are stuck in long queues at filling stations, despite the government’s stance on non-subsidy removal.
The Nigerian National Petroleum Ltd, which the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources supervises, said the sudden appearance of fuel queues in parts of Abuja is due to low loadouts at depots which usually happen during long public holidays, in this case, the Sallah celebrations.
The NNPC added that another factor that contributed to the sudden appearance of queues is the increased fuel purchases made by residents after the public holidays.
Harrison Edeh is a journalist with the International Centre for Investigative Reporting, always determined to drive advocacy for good governance through holding public officials and businesses accountable.