NNPCL: Mele Kyari survives Tinubu’s hammer
Mele Kyari, Group Chief Executive Officer of Nigeria National Petroleum Company NNPCL, has survived the brunt of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu after being reappointed along with eight other directors.
DAILY POST reported that Kyari, Chief Pius Akinyelure (non-executive board chairman) and others were appointed on Monday, according to a statement signed by Presidential Spokesperson Adjuli Ngerale.
Kyari and Chief Financial Officer Umar Aziya are the only remaining members of the group’s board of directors since their appointment by former President Muhammadu Buhari in June 2019.
Under the Kyari administration, the Petroleum Industry Act was signed into law by President Buhari, which led to the corporatization of NNPCL and reforms to the industry.
However, from 2019 to the first quarter of 2023, the country spent N8.9 trillion on the fuel subsidy scheme.
Accordingly, fuel subsidies increased from 350 billion naira in 2019 to 1,573 billion naira in 2021.
In 2022 alone, fuel subsidies amounted to N4 trillion. In the first half of 2023, the country disbursed N3.35 trillion on fuel subsidies included in the Medium Term Expenditure Framework 2023-2035 and the Fiscal Strategy Paper MTEF & FSP.
Meanwhile, the abolition of fuel subsidy in June ushered in a new era, increasing the pump price of the product from N189 to over N617 per liter.
Reacting to the announcement of the new NNPCL board, oil and gas industry expert Zacca Bala criticized President Tinubu for retaining the same people who contributed to issues in the sector.
“This is what happens when leaders without vision run national politics,” he told DAILY POST in a chat on Monday.
Source: dailypost.ng