The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has congratulated President Goodluck Jonathan on the election of the Minister of Petroleum, Mrs Diezani Alison-Madueke as President of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC).
A statement by Olisa Metuh,national publicity secretary of the party said her election as the first female president of OPEC is, indeed, a confirmation of the successes of the Transformation Agenda of the present administration and the global confidence in Nigeria under the leadership of President Goodluck Jonathan.
“Alison-Madueke’s determined growth of the Nigerian operational capacity and local content in exploration and production, particularly through the facilitation and approval of large-scale divestments by oil majors to indigenous companies is unprecedented in Africa’s oil history. This is indeed part of the many landmark achievements of the exemplary government of President Goodluck Jonathan.
“Moreover, as a leading exporter of oil, Nigeria is now advantageously positioned to contribute and help shape major decisions in the global oil market. Indeed, the decision by the OPEC member nations to hand the task of presiding over their affairs to a prominent cabinet member in our government speaks volumes of the trust reposed in us by the international community.
Metuh said further, “We note with happiness that with the vigorous implementation of the Transformation Agenda, our economy now ranks as one of the fastest growing in the world. Our nation has become a top investment destination, the largest economy in Africa as well as the 26th largest economy in the world, with Nigerians and Nigerian businesses excelling in all critical sectors of the global economy.
“Since the signing into law of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development Act by President Jonathan, our Government has, among other achievements in the sector, increased the level of indigenous Nigerian participation in upstream and downstream activities by over 45 percent, thereby increasing employment opportunities for our youth.
“Our Government has also succeeded in eliminating long queues at our fuel stations through regular and sustained product supply, which is a demonstration of our commitment to the wellbeing of our citizens.
PDP said “Today, gas infrastructure for the gas-to-power and gas-to-industry is being aggressively put in place. Over 450 kilometres of gas pipelines have been installed in the last three years with another 2,000 kilometres planned over the next four years.
“As a people-oriented government, we had already begun gas supply, growing from less than 500 million cubic feet per day, over four years, to about 1.5 billion cubic feet per day at the moment, with our goal being to attain four billion cubic feet per day over the next four years.
The PDP assured that it will continue to consolidate on the gains of the successes so far achieved in all sectors of the economy through meticulous implementation of our policies and manifesto.
