President Goodluck Jonathan has received with much sadness and a feeling of great national loss, news of the passing away of the former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Alhaji Rilwanu Lukman.
President Jonathan, in a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati, commiserates with the former minister’s family, the Government and people of his home state, Kaduna, as well as his friends, associates and all those he mentored over the years in the domestic and global oil industry.
The statement reads: “The President shares their sorrow as they mourn the brilliant engineer, technocrat and administrator who spent almost all of his working life serving his country and the global community in various capacities including Minister, Special Adviser, Secretary-General and President of the Organisation of Oil Exporting Countries (OPEC).
“As Alhaji Lukman’s soul returns to its Maker, President Jonathan joins all who knew him in giving thanks to God Almighty for bestowing him on the nation and for the great intelligence, integrity, competence and humility with which he distinguished himself in all his national and international assignments.
“Nigeria, the President firmly believes, will always owe a huge debt of gratitude to the late Petroleum Minister for his very significant contributions to the development of the country’s oil and gas industry, and for serving with acclaimed distinction as the nation’s representative at the helm of OPEC affairs over many years.”
President Jonathan prays that the Almighty God would receive Alhaji Lukman’s gentle soul and grant him eternal rest in Paradise.
