In five years, Nigeria will witness less corruption- Kachikwu

Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Emmanuel Ibe Kachukwu, has expressed the optimism that in the next five years, Nigeria will witness less corruption as the President Buhari-led Government has been dedicated to fighting corruption in the oil sector.

Speaking on Bloomberg TV, Kachukwu stated that the present administration is committed to fighting corruption, by placing greater emphasis for due process, “due compliance, and deliveries on expectations in terms of legal requirements.

The Minister, who was responding to specific questions about oil contracts at a time when Nigeria is seriously exploring offshore exploration, said that the Government “absolutely respects contracts.”

According to him, every time the Government has had any reason to suspect that corruption has occurred in the sector, swift actions were always taken towards addressing it.

“In Nigeria, an oil contract is something we absolutely respect. As a lawyer, for instance, I understand that keeping to contract is key. In terms of fighting corruption, you know that that is the mantra on which Mr. President ran for office. It will continue to be one of his laudable achievements during his tenure.”

He went further to assure that several investigations are into corruption cases are currently ongoing. Some of these cases happened before the present administration came to power, he said.

He also stated that the Government is cooperating with the international agencies and countries who are also pushing persecution of those convicted of corruption.

The Minister also spoke about developments in the international oil market, asserting that there is an unnecessary emphasis on the Iran-Venezuela shortfall. In order words, he believes that there has been an overestimation of the possible drop in the production and supply of crude.

The Minister said there is nothing to worry about as far as the demand for crude oil is concerned. This is because, despite the developments in solar and other forms of cleaner energy, several projections show that in the next ten years, “crude is what to what”.