Nigeria’s Petroleum Minister, and head of the
country’s delegation to the ongoing 166th
General Meeting of the Organisation of
Petroleum Exporting Countries, OPEC, Diezani
Alison-Madueke, has been elected the
president of the international oil body.
Mrs. Alison-Madueke, who makes history as
the first female to be elected into the office,
was elected just as members of OPEC began
their meeting at the headquarters of the
group in in Vienna, Austria.
She succeeds Libyan Vice-Prime Minister for
Corporations, Abdourhman Atahar Al-Ahirish.
Until her election, Mrs. Alison-Madueke, who
would serve for one year, was OPEC’s
alternate president.
She is expected to commence work
immediately to pilot the affairs of the
organization at a time members are coming
together to find ways of curbing falling global
crude oil prices, which dropped to about
$73.07 per barrel on Wednesday.
Mr. Al-Ahirish had said at the opening of the
private meeting that apart from the impact of
speculative activities in the oil market, ample
supply, moderate demand, a stronger value of
the dollar and uncertainties about global
economic growth, were the other key factors
moderating price movement in the market in
recent times.
Mrs. Alison-Madueke, one of President
Goodluck Jonathan’s closest allies, has been
accused of mismanaging the oil sector in
Nigeria and allowing corruption to thrive.
A 2012 House of Representatives report into
the management of petrol subsidy blamed the
minister for failing to stop dubious marketers
from swindling the government to the tune of
over N2 trillion.
The minister has been one the most criticised
in Mr. Jonathan’s cabinet, and anti-corruption
bodies had protested the move by OPEC to
name her the new president of the oil bloc.
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