Oil exploration activities started in the Lake Chad basin in 1976, but there have been major setbacks.
The Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) was heading the exploration and had made a considerable impact on the project under then President Shehu Shagari until 1984 with military intervention.
The military government showed little interest in the project, until the Muhammadu Buhari administration in 2015 when the exploration of oil and development of the Lake Chad was restarted.
However, the efforts made by the Buhari administration from 2015 to 2023 did not yield the desired result due to security challenges. The project had to be suspended.
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Borno State Governor, Prof Babagana Zulum, who is now in his second and final term, will no doubt wish to see this project concluded in his tenure. His name will be written in gold and remain permanently etched on the sand of history.
The governor should therefore create a Ministry of Energy to, as a focal point of his administration, facilitate the exploration. The mandate of the ministry should also include the mining of abundant but untapped resources. Subsequently, the governor should appoint a commissioner with experience and exposure in the industry to head the ministry.
This approach will yield the desired results, considering the fact that time is of the essence.
Mohammed Zannah, 33 Kinshasa Street, Wuse Zone 6, FCT Abuja ([email protected])
