April 02, (THEWILL) – In the wee hours of today, the President, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, announced a sweeping reconstitution of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Ltd. board, appointing the brilliant Bashir Bayo Ojulari, an indigene of Kwara State (North-central) and former Shell executive, as Group CEO, as well as Ahmadu Musa Kida, another accomplished oil executive from the North-East as non-executive Chairman. This overdue and anticipated overhaul, which ousted Chief Pius Akinyelure as Chairman, Mallam Mele Kyari, as Group CEO, and the entire board appointed in November 2023, aims to restore investors’ confidence and boost Nigeria’s oil production to 2 million barrels per day by 2027 and 3 million bpd by 2030 amongst other targets. Akinyelure is from the South-west while Kyari is from the North-East.
Sadly, the South-south region, producing over 95% of this oil, remains conspicuously absent from the three top-tier leadership of the board namely Group CEO, Chairman and Chief Finance Officer (CFO).
With an 11-member board now in place, this exclusion of the oil-rich region’s talent demands scrutiny and swift correction. The South-south zone, which is host to the Niger Delta region, is too important in the scheme of things in oil and gas to be ceded a mere non-executive director role on the board.
The zone is not just Nigeria’s oil powerhouse – it is a reservoir of skilled professionals sidelined in this reshuffle. Official data pegs the region’s oil output at over 1.67 million barrels per day of Nigeria’s current 1.75 million, with states like Rivers, Bayelsa, and Delta driving this dominance. Yet, according to a presidency statement, the new board features Adedapo Segun (CFO, South-West), Bello Rabiu (North-West), Yusuf Usman (North-East), Babs Omotowa (North-Central), David Ige (South-West), Henry Obih (South-East), and Austin Avuru (South-South), all as sole regional representative and non-executive directors among the six geopolitical zone appointees.
Ojulari’s Shell pedigree and Kida’s leadership experience are notable, but the South-South’s minimal presence, despite its unmatched stake, echoes past criticisms of bias against the region in NNPC appointments, as voiced by groups like PANDEF in 2020.
This oversight is not just a symbolic slight -it is a strategic misstep. The South-South’s exclusion from NNPC’s key and strategic board roles risks alienating a region already grappling with militancy, oil theft, and environmental devastation, issues that have long hampered production targets. The rationale for the state of emergency in Rivers State over pipeline vandalism underscores the need for leadership that understands the Niger Delta’s unique dynamics. Competent South-South professionals, deeply familiar with these local realities, could bridge the gap between policy and practice, fostering trust and stability. Instead, the appointments signal a disconnect, prioritising external pedigrees over regional representation at a time when unity is critical to achieving Tinubu’s ambitious oil goals.
Data backs the urgency of this correction. The Niger Delta, which endures the circumstances of pollution around the mining of nearly all of Nigeria’s daily crude production, should be very well rewarded at all times with either Group CEO or Chairman of the NNPCL or even both positions at all times. This is only fair to the region that provides over 80% of the country’s expenditure. Competent professionals from the region abound in the oil and gas sector.
President Tinubu should, therefore, act swiftly to rectify this imbalance, even if it means amending the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) enacted in August 2021. The Niger Delta’s competent sons and daughters are ready to lead – President Tinubu should let them.
The last appointee from the Niger Delta to occupy either the CEO or Chairman position was Chief Timipre Sylva (Chairman, 2019-2023).
