Date Published: 07/05/11

Groups condemn attacks on Deziani Allison-Madueke
…lauds Jonathan for re-nominating her; urges Senate to confirm her

Yesterday, two Nigerian groups – Patriots for Democracy and Good Governance (PADGOG) and Nigerian Patriots in Diaspora (NPID) rose from a joint meeting in Abuja and condemned the barrage of attacks being hauled against the person of Mrs. Deziani Allison-Madueke, Nigeria’s immediate past Petroleum Minister and currently a Minister-nominee.

The meeting which was held at the Utako district of Abuja discussed a broad range of national issues, including the ongoing ministerial nominations, the menace of creeping insecurity in the land, the oil industry reforms, etc.

The statement signed by Nze Elvis Agukwe and Attorney Aloy Ejimakor, respectively for PADGOG and NPID lauded President Jonathan for re-nominating Mrs. Deziani Allison-Madueke and called on President to ignore ‘the unwarranted attacks’ on her and re-appoint her to head the Petroleum Ministry. The groups also urged the Senate not to hesitate in confirming Mrs. Allison-Madueke in the “national interest”.

Relying on what the groups called Mrs. Allison-Madueke’s “stellar credentials and potentials as a Minister-Reformer”, they urged her critics to “to see reason and open their eyes to the many reforms Mrs. Allison-Madueke brought to bear in the Petroleum sector even though she had a very short tenure”. The duo of Agukwe and Ejimakor specifically pointed to the “stability in oil products supplies since Mrs. Allison-Madueke’s tenure and the Petroleum Industry Bill she so ably advocated”.

Calling on President Jonathan to remain steadfast in re-appointing Mrs. Allison Madueke to the Petroleum Ministry, the groups stated that “such will comport with the President’s well known policy of longer tenure for Federal Ministers and continuity of policies that made the greatest impact on the common good of Nigerians”.

Calling Mrs. Allison-Madueke “a victim of unscrupulous elements in the upstream and downstream sectors of the oil industry”, the groups praised her patriotism and “deft moves to assure better participation of Nigerians in the oil industry, unlike before when the whole industry was dominated by shadowy foreigners to the exclusion of Nigerians”.

Continuing, the PADGOG and NPID said that “Mrs. Allison-Madueke is a victim of gender discrimination by a few that are intent on keeping high-performing Nigerian women down, the same way they had arrayed attacks against Mrs. Okonjo-Iweala when she was working very hard at the difficult task of garnering debt forgiveness for Nigeria”.