Victor EzejaFormer Nigeria’s Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, has alleged that the Nigeria National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), has been hijacked by “corporate cabals” that surround President Bola Tinubu.
Atiku accused President Tinubu of putting measures in place to effectively mortgage the country to his family, and associates such that by the time he lives office, it would be difficult to shake off the vestiges of his influence.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelAtiku, who ran for president in the 2023 general election, under the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), claimed that the president is replicating what he allegedly did in Lagos State in terms of economic and business interests.
A statement signed by Atiku’s Media Adviser, Paul Ibe, quoted the former vice president as saying that “Just as Alpha Beta, Primero, and others act as Tinubu’s proxies in Lagos, managing critical sectors and generating revenue for him and his family, he has begun to replicate this at the federal level.”
Atiku expressed dismay over the management of NNPCL. According to him, operations of the NNPCL, a national oil company had put its retail arm under the control of OVH, a company in which Oando, led by Wale Tinubu, owns 49 per cent.
He said it is curious that NNPCL, which had in October 2022 declared that it acquired OVH and all its assets including petrol stations, suddenly has its retail arm under the control of the same company.
He said NNPCL did not disclose the terms of the acquisition and rebuffed every attempts to make it do so.
“In October 2022, just five months before the elections, the NNPC Retail controversially announced it had acquired OVH and all its filling stations. NNPCL already had about 550 filling stations across the country but claimed it was enhancing its capacity by acquiring OVH, which had only 94 stations and 100 others leased,” Atiku stated.
He further stated that after what he described as a “dubious deal,” NNPCL GCEO, Mele Kyari, was retained as under controversial circumstance while Tinubu went ahead and appointed his former boss at Mobil, who later became ally, Pius Akinyelure, as NNPC Chairman, while he himself became the Minister of Petroleum just like Buhari did.
READ ALSO: We Need Total Deregulation Of Petroleum Sector Not Only Subsidy Removal – Ezekwesili
The former vice president asserted that contrary to provisions of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), on NNPCL becoming a public liability company, Tinubu has prevented it from becoming a reality.
“In a move that defies economic logic, OVH, previously owned by NNPC Retail, has now acquired NNPC Retail. This absurd situation means that Wale Tinubu’s Oando now owns 49% of NNPC Retail. Moreover, Nigeria paid Wale Tinubu a significant sum to facilitate the Tinubu family’s acquisition of the national oil company. This represents a clear case of illogical business transactions and abuse of office by President Tinubu, who has prevented NNPC from becoming a public liability company as stipulated by the PIA.”
Atiku, who noted that that the NNPC and its leadership are currently undergoing legislative probe, expressed doubt about the credibility of the exercise, claiming that Senator Opeyemi Bamidele, who is heading the National Assembly panel on the probe is a staunch supporter of Tinubu.
“Given that Tinubu is the Petroleum Minister, he should be held responsible for the sector’s issues. I doubt Bamidele will conduct a thorough investigation that might implicate his patron,” Atiku said.
Victor Ezeja is a passionate journalist with six years of experience writing on economy, politics and energy. He holds a Masters degree in Mass Communication.
Follow Us