President Muhammadu Buhari has appointed his junior media aide Bashir Ahmad to supervise a powerful and lucrative division at the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) — a role that supersedes his work experience and area of expertise, officials familiar with the development told Peoples Gazette over the weekend.
According to the people Gazette, Mr. Ahmad, 29, has served as personal assistant to Mr. Buhari on new media since 2016. Despite still retaining his presidency appointment, he recently hustled his way in as the head of the newly-established National Production Monitoring System (NPMS) of DPR – Nigeria’s preeminent oil and gas sector regulator, the Gazette learnt from four officials at the presidency and DPR with sufficient details of the appointment.
Mr. Ahmad’s appointment, which was tacitly executed in line with Buhari regime’s culture of opacity, presents a blanket remunerative boost for the young presidential aid.
However reacting to the allegation, The Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) on Tuesday said an appointment letter circulating on social media allegedly issued to Nigeria President media aide Bashir Ahmad is “fake” and a “handiwork of mischief maker.”
“We hereby advise members of the public to disregard the purported letter in its entirety as it is not from DPR,” DPR’s head of public affairs Paul Osu said in a statement.
“We wish to reiterate that employment into the Department is carried out in accordance with extant rules guiding such exercises in the Nigerian Public Service in line with due process.”
Peoples Gazzette, a digital news outlet, Monday published a report that Ahmad was appointed “to supervise a powerful and lucrative division at the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) — a role that supersedes his work experience and area of expertise.”
The report said despite Ahmad retaining his presidency appointment, “he recently hustled his way in as the head of the newly-established National Production Monitoring System (NPMS) of DPR – Nigeria’s preeminent oil and gas sector regulator, the Gazette learnt from four officials at the presidency and DPR with sufficient details of the appointment.”
