President Muhammadu Buhari appointed himself as the Minister of Petroleum, thereby placing himself in charge of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC). Even though he will be assisted by a junior minister in charge of day-to-day affairs, many challenges lay ahead for Nigeria’s president who will be required to act like an oil minister if he wishes to fulfill his desire to lead and improve the country’s oil and gas sector. As the President of Africa’s largest economy he is tasked with diversifying the Nigerian economy. On the other hand, his role as oil minister requires that he focuses on improving the country’s oil and gas sector from which Nigeria generates about 70 percent of its revenue.

For over two decades, Nigeria’s oil sector has been plagued by corruption, crude oil theft and massive fraud. However, while analysts have argued that this single act of appointing himself does not necessarily emphasize diversification of Nigeria’s economy, his failure to take charge of the situation would be inherently tragic for Nigeria’s economy as a whole.

The first order of business would be to tackle the role of oil marketers in sabotaging all efforts by past administrations. Members of the Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria (MOMAN) have been engaged in a battle with the Federal Government over subsidy claims running into several billions of dollars. Although the country is strapped for cash and desperate for more money to use in paying its bills, removing the subsidy – which has sucked off around $6.5 billion from the country in the past two years — still appears to be the hardest thing for the Nigerian government to do.

Oil marketers have partly been responsible for creating fuel scarcities as a way to force the hand of the Federal Government to pay back the losses they incurred from the price change of petrol; thereby demanding for outstanding payment for subsidy claims. In May, Product Petroleum Marketers in Nigeria conducted a strike which sparked a crisis that grounded several smaller businesses and forced banks to cut down on operating hours. Motorists were paying as much as N1000 for a litre of petrol while others resorted to sleeping at fuel stations, leading many to suggest that Nigeria was on the verge of national shutdown. There have also been instances where the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) was forced to sanction oil marketers for cheating the public. However in addition to addressing oil marketers, dealing other downstream players is of great importance to consolidate stability in the supply and distribution of fuel nationwide.

In what is thought to be Buhari’s first week as Minister of Petroleum Resources, there is an on-going nationwide fuel scarcity which progressively became worse over the course of the weekend with longer queues in filling stations across major cities within the country. It is alleged that the President has recently approved the payment of about N413 billion as part of the subsidy arrears to marketers‎, but Olufemi Adewole, the Executive Secretary, Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association, DAPPMA, has said they are yet to receive the money.

Secondly, Buhari needs to ensure that he follows through on his mission to clean-up the sector as well as the NNPC.

In a 2012 report, the Nuhu Ribadu-led Petroleum Revenue Special Task Force (PRSTF) showed that the NNPC might be using oil revenues for illicit purposes. The 178-page report revealed that the corporation was being used as a front for illegal dealings within Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDA’s) as well as The Presidency. The report suggested a clean-up within the system is impossible, due to the secretive processes through which the corporation carries out its procedures. Issues like these will further test Buhari’s capacity to run both offices simultaneously while making it a point of duty to ensure transparency in office.

About six months ago, President Muhammadu Buhari ordered the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) to bar 113 vessels for lifting crude oil within the Nigeria territorial waters. This was brought to light by G.O. Komolafe the Group General Manager Crude Oil Marketing Division of Nigerian NNPC, in a memo sent to  all affected terminals. Subsequently, there were a number of speculations regarding why the government banned the vessels. Some were in relation to “settling dues” such as port and maritime fees, while others hinted that this may be part of the new government’s drive to target “vessels that have not paid dues or have been involved in incidents with the Navy.

His past experience with the oil sector is an added advantage, he served as Federal Commissioner for Petroleum and Natural Resources from 1976 to 1978, under then Head of State, General Olusegun Obasanjo. Also, when the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) was inaugurated in 1977, he was appointed Chairman. However, this can only be meaningful if Buhari ensures that he is able to show a significant change in the oil sector. As the new oil minister, it is his responsibility to get it right this time. A good start may be to cause the end of the fuel subsidy ordeal involving oil marketers and the Federal Government. The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, Mr. Godwin Emefiele, said the government was doing its best to ensure that the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) become sole importer of petroleum products.

Buhari is not the first President to be the Minister of Petroleum simultaneously. Former President Olusegun Obasanjo during his tenure from 1999 to 2007 was also the Minister of Petroleum at the same time. However, the sector did not enjoy transparency at the time. According to ex-Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, the sector was cloaked in secrecy and it did not help with accountability and transparency in the oil and gas industry. “There was a time we were handed…a Ghana-must-go memo on the oil and gas and asked by the President for our input and I refused to support it”, says Atiku. According to him, Obasanjo took decisions to benefit himself. For instance, in 2005, he allocated four oil blocs, OPL 218, 219, 209 and 220 to Transcorp Hilton, a company where he had major shares, an action he could not have taken if he did not have the capacity.

The recent arrest and following humiliation of former Petroleum Minister, Diezani Alison-Madueke, trailed Nigeria and foreign media for weeks. Reports of unaccounted funds recovered from her Nigerian home as well as the United Kingdom property she was said to have purchased for over N2 billion (£12.5m) were the subject of unfavorable commentary. The NNPC as well as the Petroleum Ministry are Ministries Departments Agencies (MDAs) not strange to corrupt practice. Alison-Madueke, though cast as a major player and driver of corruption, was not a lone fish in the sea of corruption. While this arrest may have suggested that Buhari’s administration was not holding back on the promise to prosecute anyone associated with corruption, many other issues which have eaten deep into the oil sector also need to be addressed with the same veracity.

As opposed to using his capacity to make decisions that will benefit himself, Buhari should rather cease this opportunity to make a difference in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector while devising a means to also efficiently increase Nigeria’s total crude oil sales. The only challenge may be the fact that as the President, Buhari is all for the diversification of resources; meaning it would be critical that his administration implements policies which develop other sectors such as agriculture, energy, transportation, mining and steel, as they are critical to addressing critical issues in the economy. However, doubling as the minister of petroleum, this may hardly be enough.