- Murray-Bruce urged Tinubu to appoint more results-driven officials
- He called for urgent action on Nigeria’s refineries
- He also demanded higher crude oil production targets
Senator Ben Murray-Bruce has called on President Bola Tinubu to bring more unconventional and highly driven people into his government, arguing that Nigeria needs officials who are prepared to challenge established interests and deliver measurable results.
Eko Hot Blog gathered that the Murray-Bruce made the appeal in an open letter to the President published on his X account on Wednesday.
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He described himself as a supporter of the administration but said genuine support should include honest criticism and constructive advice.
According to the former senator, Tinubu needs more people who are bold enough to confront inefficient systems and refuse to accept poor performance as normal.
By “mad men,” Murray-Bruce explained that he was referring to men and women with the courage to challenge powerful interests, disrupt ineffective structures and pursue ambitious targets despite resistance.
He identified Central Bank of Nigeria Governor Olayemi Cardoso and National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu as examples of officials who, in his assessment, had demonstrated the determination required to tackle difficult national problems.
Murray-Bruce said the changes under Cardoso had brought greater discipline and credibility to monetary policy, while Ribadu had introduced what he described as stronger coordination and direction within Nigeria’s security framework.
However, he argued that the country of more than 200 million people required many more officials with similar drive and willingness to act.
The former lawmaker particularly urged Tinubu to appoint additional officials to tackle challenges in the petroleum industry, especially the long-running problems surrounding Nigeria’s government-owned refineries.
He called for the Port Harcourt, Warri and Kaduna refineries to be restored to commercially sustainable operations, saying Nigerians were tired of repeated explanations about rehabilitation contracts, technical assessments and turnaround timelines.
Murray-Bruce argued that the government should focus on ensuring that the facilities actually produce refined petroleum products rather than continuing to announce plans for their rehabilitation.
He pointed to the Dangote Refinery as evidence of the scale of refining capacity that can be developed in Nigeria. The former senator proposed that the three government-owned refineries should collectively achieve at least half of the Dangote Refinery’s 650,000-barrel-per-day installed capacity.
That target, he noted, would amount to about 325,000 barrels per day of consistent and commercially viable production.
Beyond satisfying domestic fuel requirements, Murray-Bruce said Nigeria should position itself as a major refining centre capable of supplying refined petroleum products to other African countries and international markets.
He also challenged the President to appoint someone capable of aggressively pursuing the administration’s target of increasing crude oil production to four million barrels per day by 2030.
The former senator said Nigeria should not settle for production levels around 1.5 million barrels per day when the government had set a much higher national target.
He urged Tinubu to select officials who would focus on achieving the target rather than spending years explaining why it could not be achieved.
Murray-Bruce further advised the President to hold ministers, regulators, heads of government agencies and other political appointees accountable through clearly defined and measurable performance targets.
He maintained that Nigeria needed public officials who would take responsibility for delivering results in critical sectors rather than simply managing existing problems.
The former lawmaker said his appeal was motivated by his desire to see the Tinubu administration succeed, stressing that supporting a government should not prevent citizens from pointing out areas requiring improvement.
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