In a bid to carry out the President’s reform agenda for the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), the newly constituted board removed the Managing Directors (MDs) of the Port Harcourt, Warri, and Kaduna refineries, along with 200 other staff members.
The four major refineries located in Old Port Harcourt, Warri, Kaduna, and New Port Harcourt have been on a downward spiral for some years now. The decline began in the 1990s when the military regime in power at the time ordered NNPC to close its account in commercial banks and focus solely on the Central Bank. Since then, it lost its autonomy and became subject to political interference, leading to poor maintenance and delays in making turnaround decisions that could have improved the refineries.
In an attempt to revive the once impressive and fully functioning refineries, the sum of $19.6 billion was allocated to GCEO Mele Kyari and his team. The funds were meant not only to rebuild the dilapidated structures but also to make the refineries multi-dimensional—capable of producing various petroleum byproducts such as LPG, PMS, DPK, AGO, etc.
The funds were also intended to enhance security and prevent pipeline vandalization, among other objectives. However, in the eight years since these funds were allocated, there have been no visible results, as the Kaduna refinery is in fact still under rehabilitation.
The Speaker of the House of Representatives suggested privatizing the country’s refineries, as Kyari’s team has displayed ineptitude in management. He chastised them for their lack of efficiency and highlighted their excessive spending on salaries and allowances for unproductive workers, while refinery buildings and other key issues remain unresolved.
In light of this alleged misappropriation of funds, a petition was submitted to the Ministry of Finance by a group of lawyers in April. In the petition, they demanded the establishment of a judicial commission to investigate the $4 billion that Kyari and his team—including the MDs—allegedly spent on refinery repairs.
Led by one Barrister Benjamin Theophilus, the lawyers claimed that the amount spent on refinery repairs was inflated, citing a proposal by a consortium of private sector firms to repair all three refineries for about $1 billion.
The petition highlighted several areas of concern, including the alleged fraudulent allocation of crude oil proceeds, misappropriation of funds in the AKK Gas Pipeline Project, fuel subsidy fraud, and value discrepancies in NNPCL’s crude-backed loans.
“Mele Kyari is alleged to have collaborated with certain consultants and contractors involved in the refinery rehabilitation projects to conceal the actual cost of the contracts and evade taxes due to the Federal Government,” he said.
Due to the lack of efficiency and unmet goals in the last eight years, President Bola Tinubu sacked former NNPCL Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) Mele Kyari and others on the board as part of efforts to improve the sector and boost gas output. The board was replaced with new members, including a 12-man team led by Bayo Ojulari as the GCEO and Musa Ahmad-Kida as the non-executive chairman. According to PUNCH, to actualize their new strategic plans, the board has dismissed the managing directors of the three state-owned refineries.
The company also directed management staff with less than a year to retirement to proceed on exit.
According to sources within the company, those affected include Ibrahim Onoja, Managing Director of Port Harcourt Refining Company Limited (PHRC); Efifia Chu, Managing Director of Warri Refining and Petrochemical Company Limited (WRPC); and Mustafa Sugungun, Managing Director of Kaduna Refining and Petrochemical Company (KRPC).
Also affected are loyalists of former GCEO Mele Kyari, such as Bala Wunti, former Chief of National Petroleum Investment Management Services (NAPIMS), and Lawal Sade, the Chief Compliance Officer and former Managing Director of NNPC Trading.
“Replacements for their roles have yet to be officially announced. Bala Wunti, who was recently reassigned as Chief Health, Safety, and Environment Officer at NNPC Ltd, and Lawal Sade were among those affected,” a source confirmed.
Although no official statement has been released on the reason for this mass removal, it is believed that the persistent poor performance of the refineries contributed to the exit of the managing directors.
NNPCL recently came under fire as the $897 million Warri refinery revamp project flopped. Reports also revealed that the Port Harcourt refinery has been operating at under 40 percent of its production capacity.
These ongoing challenges are believed to be the driving force behind the recent shake-up within NNPCL. Many are hopeful that these changes will bring much-needed progress and stability to the nation’s petroleum sector.
Sacked MDs and Staff Arrested by the EFCC for Misappropriation of Funds
Following a few weeks since their termination from office, the Managing Directors of Port Harcourt, Kaduna, and other major refineries—alongside some of their staff—have been arrested by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The officials are under investigation over alleged mismanagement of funds earmarked for the rehabilitation of the facilities. The total amount under investigation is $2,96. Among those currently in EFCC custody are the former Managing Director of PHRC, Ibrahim Onoja, and his counterpart at WRPC, Efifia Chu. Some sources at the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) revealed that N80bn was found in the account of one of the sacked MDs.
“We are investigating the money that was released for the rehabilitation of all three refineries, money disbursed in recent times. All the principal officers within that time frame are being invited. Some have been arrested already, and we are still on the lookout for others. Nigerians are interested in seeing our refineries work. We are asking: where is the money, and what has happened to the refineries?” the official said.
The EFCC official also disclosed that one of the MDs arrested has been in their custody for over a week.
“Large amounts have been discovered in his accounts. About N80bn has so far been found in his various accounts. The way things are going, it may be bigger than Emefielegate,” the officialstated.
The investigation reportedly reaches all the way up to former GCEO Mele Kyari, as documents uncovered by the EFCC show plans to investigate him and his staff.
The EFCC document, addressed to the Group Managing Director (Group Chief Executive Officer) of the national oil company, contains the names of 13 other former senior executives of the NNPCL, namely: Abubakar Yar’Adua, Mele Kyari, Isiaka Abdulrazak, Umar Ajiya, Dikko Ahmed, Ibrahim Onoja, Ademoye Jelili, Mustapha Sugungun, Kayode Adetokunbo, Efiok Akpan, Babatunde Bakare, Jimoh Olasunkanmi, Bello Kankaya, and Desmond Inyama.
Since this breaking announcement, the spokesperson for the NNPCL, Olufemi Soneye, has remained mute over the allegations against top officials of the company and has ignored repeated enquiries on the matter.
