Tinubu Not Nigeria’s Petroleum Minister, Onanuga Clarifies

Bayo Onanuga, the Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Information and Strategy, has rejected claims that the president is serving as Nigeria’s substantive petroleum minister.

Onanuga made this clarification during an interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today program on Sunday. When questioned about the president’s potential role as the ‘Minister of Petroleum,’ Onanuga expressed frustration, emphasizing that Tinubu has never referred to himself with that title. He noted that the country is already supported by two ministers managing the oil sector.

“I think I have answered this question somewhere. The President has never called himself the Minister of Petroleum. You people in the media gave him that position. We have two ministers there. One of them focuses on gas. That’s an area this government found in the past that Nigeria neglected the gas sector. Nigeria is more of a gas country than an oil country,” he explained.

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Onanuga also highlighted that former President Obasanjo recently acknowledged a misstep in not prioritizing the gas sector during his administration. He stated, “President Tinubu is rectifying that by making sure that we are focusing now on gas.” He added that the president supervises all his ministers, asserting, “He is in charge of everything including all the ministries under him.”

Addressing concerns about the president’s awareness of the struggles faced by Nigerians, Onanuga countered accusations of indifference. “President Tinubu feels the pain of Nigerians and assures them that relief is on the horizon. Some have resorted to calling him ‘T-pain’ out of mischief, but he is not that. He’s here to heal, not to hurt.”

He continued, “The President has never shied away from acknowledging that Nigerians are going through difficult times. He is working tirelessly to provide relief and ensure that the nation moves towards a future of prosperity. This is a painful transition, but it’s part of a long-term strategy to stabilize and grow the economy,” Onanuga clarified.