Our World-Class NNPCL Reflects Strategies Of Petroleum Minister, Tinubu?

By Ikeddy ISIGUZO*

When we demand that President Bola Tinubu do better, what do we truly mean? Are we asking him to continue excelling in personalising decisions and setting standards for government business – business that should rightly belong to the people?

Do established governance standards matter to Tinubu if they don’t align with his “global standards,” derived from his experience in international businesses across two continents?

Tinubu, as a self-proclaimed strategist, seems to treat the management of the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation Plc (NNPCL) with a lack of urgency, reflected in his appointments.

More significantly, he is also the Minister of Petroleum. The NNPCL, which remains the focus, currently lacks a board. Everything is reported directly to Tinubu.

This arrangement presents potential risks. The President’s constitutional immunity shields him from investigations into his decisions and indecisions.

This isn’t entirely unprecedented.  Except for Presidents Umaru Yar’Adua and Goodluck Jonathan, previous presidents since 1999 have also served as Ministers of Petroleum. The resultant abuses have become entrenched within the company.

NNPCL markets itself as a global energy business aspiring to be the world’s energy company of choice, using the typical buzzwords: excellence, integrity, reliability, resilience, and the like.

However, aside from its sheer size and operational scope, even the smallest filling station might be managed more effectively.  The key difference lies in the fact that the owner of a small filling station has a vested interest in its profitability and sustainability.  These concepts appear largely irrelevant to how NNPCL is operated.

Recent events have portrayed NNPCL as a family-run business plagued by conflicting directives emanating from various family members, security personnel, and external figures with unclear authority.

We often celebrate NNPCL as our national oil company, the primary custodian of our oil and gas assets, which underpin the national economy and fuel the ambition of influential figures.

How can such a crucial organization be rocked by news of the purportedly forced resignation of the Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO), followed by seemingly inadequate official statements that suggest a deeper crisis than we are aware of?

Does the fact that the GCEO of this “global company” was reportedly removed and then reinstated amidst uninvestigated allegations have no impact on how it conducts its business?

Why is the government acting as if the GCEO’s return is an accomplishment? Does the President/Minister of Petroleum Resources view NNPCL as his personal company, to be managed according to his individual preferences?

Should the public not be informed of the underlying circumstances beyond the weak explanation that contracts from NNPCL were being awarded to an associate of a political opponent? Does a connection to an opposition politician automatically disqualify someone from receiving contracts, even if they are otherwise qualified?

Doesn’t that raise questions about potential abuse of office?

The President faces many unanswered questions. Numerous activities at NNPCL remain shrouded in uncertainty. If the Minister of Petroleum, who is also the President, is unwilling to address these issues as part of his own commitment to accountability and integrity, he should at least avoid adding to them.

Whatever transpired at NNPCL in the past week seems to stem from treating a global corporation like a sole proprietorship.  It allows individuals with questionable influence to disrupt the company’s operations.

Strategists can lead us down unexpected paths. There is a reluctance to disclose information about the billions of dollars squandered on refineries, fuel subsidies, and NNPCL’s own opaque accounting systems, which obscure trillions of Naira.

Could addressing these questions and pursuing those implicated open up vulnerabilities that could damage the President’s prospects in 2027?

How does the Minister of Petroleum intend to manage NNPCL in the months ahead? Can we at least learn the details of the recent events at NNPCL? Who orchestrated the events that unfolded there?

If the President is unable to sanction those involved, he could at least publicly commend them for their efforts. The Minister of Petroleum and President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria must be aware of how a significant part of his office functions.

It would be difficult to believe that he is not interested in the leadership of NNPCL and how it is run.

Finally…

JUST imagine in the ValueJet and others versus Alhaji Ayinde Marshal, more popularly known as, K1 De Ultimate, matter, if the owner of the airline and pilot were of different origin, and maybe if the airport was not Abuja. It would have been a clear case of attempted assassination, linked to a well-known presidential candidate, on whose behalf the airline acted, knowing fully well that K1 is an ardent support of the President. May the Almighty keep protecting Nigeria, and Nigerians from chaos in any form it tries to present itself.

CONGRATULATIONS D’Tigress for your fifth straight win of the African women’s basketball title. I am more included to call you Super D’Tigress. The President did not fall into the temptation of not rewarding you as he did with the football team. Let us see who will tell the President not to reward other teams in the same terms as the Super Falcons. Our money will not “finish” – we can always borrow.

IF you are in any political coalition these days, the standard code is to be in at least three different groups. The different factions – or fractions – are fusing and diffusing at a pace that primes confusion, especially as many keep talking about 2027 as if they have abolished next year, 2026.

MOTHER of the nation, as many now call the President’s wife, Mrs Remi Tinubu, is growing by the day in her welfare and philanthropic activities. Does anyone know Mrs Tinubu’s net worth? What is the source of the billions of Naira she donates? How much tax does she pay annually? We should not stand by while all manners of insinuations are made about her wealth. Or shouldn’t she speak up for herself?

PETER Obi got some roasting on X for speaking out against the arrest of another presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore, whose supporters said Obi was chasing relevance. “Did he twit about the plane crash in Ghana (he did) or the tarmac incident involving K1 De Ultimate?,” they asked. They advised Obi to learn how to bear grudges because he would need it heading to 2027.

DR. Mumini Alao, a long-term sports journalist, launches his biography, MUMINI ALAO, today 10 August at the University of Lagos. Mr. Babatunde Fashola, former Governor of Lagos, former Minister of Works, has confirmed that he will deliver the keynote address.

A COALITION of Nigeria’s aviation unions has declared an indefinite strike from Monday, 11 August. The unions blame the Federal Government’s failure to implement a long-promised salary structure for airspace management personnel of the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency, NAMA, for the strike that is expected to disrupt flight operations nationwide.

WEST African Examination Council, WAEC has joined in mangling the future of the youth. The matter will as usual be treated as of it does not matter. When JAMB released its results earlier in the year, protests attended it. Parents and their wards complained.

JAMB finally admitted something was wrong. WAEC has followed the same steps in the 2025 examinations. Will there be any consequences for those toying with our future? Not when neither the present nor the past had counted in how the authorities manage Nigeria.

*ISIGUZO is a major commentator on minor issues