President Bola Tinubu has congratulated the former Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Dr Jackson Gaius-Obaseki, on his 80th birthday, describing him as a patriot whose decades of service have helped shape Nigeria’s oil and gas landscape.

In a goodwill message to the elder statesman, the President said attaining 80 was “a rare blessing” that follows a lifetime of hard work, discipline, and an unwavering commitment to excellence.

Tinubu celebrated Gaius-Obaseki’s outstanding accomplishments in the nation’s petroleum industry, where he began his career as a geologist with the then Nigerian National Oil Company before rising through the ranks.

He noted that Gaius-Obaseki became the first manager of the National Reserve Evaluation Project through sheer dedication and competence.

The President recalled the celebrant’s elevation to Managing Director of the Nigerian Gas Company and later Group General Manager of the Crude Oil Marketing Division at NNPC in 1998, appointments that underscored his deep knowledge and mastery of the industry.

In 1999, Gaius-Obaseki emerged as NNPC’s Group Managing Director, during which he spearheaded wide-ranging reforms aimed at repositioning the oil and gas sector.