SAN FRANCISCO, September 04, (THEWILL) – The Igbo apex socio-political organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo has urged President Muhammadu Buhari to revisit the recent reorganization of management staff at the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation NNPC, which it described as lopsided.
In a statement personally signed by its President-General, Chief John Nnia Nwodo, and issued on Sunday, Ohanaeze stated that the current leadership of the state-owned company, which ignores the South-East, does not promote peace, unity and good governance in the country.
The pan-Igbo body said it is appalled at the consistent and unrepentant disposition of disdain for the South-East by the present administration, as displayed in the recent reorganization at the NNPC.
THEWILL recalls that fifty-five top executive officers of the state-owned oil company were last Tuesday affected in the shake-up.
Group Managing Director of the Corporation, Dr. Maikanti Baru, said the exercise would not only help to position the Corporation for the challenges ahead but would also fill the gaps created due to statutory retirements of staff.
A statement signed by the Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division, Ndu Ughamadu, disclosed that under the new arrangement, Roland Ewubare, formerly managing director of the Integrated Data Services Limited, IDSL, moved to the National Petroleum Investment Management Services, NAPIMS, as the new group general manager while Diepriye Tariah, former group general manager and senior technical assistant to the NNPC GMD takes over from Ewubare as MD of IDSL.
Malami Shehu, executive director (operations) of the Kaduna Refining and Petrochemical Company, KRPC, was appointed managing director of the Port Harcourt Refining Company, PHRC, while Adewale Ladenegan, former MD of the Warri Refining and Petrochemical Company, WRPC, was moved to KRPC as MD.
In the same vein, Muhammed Abah, until recently, the executive director (operations) of WRPC succeeded Ladenegan as MD of Warri Refinery.
With the retirement of Alhaji Farouk Ahmed as the MD of the Nigerian Products Marketing Company, NPMC, Umar Ajiya, former GGM in charge of Corporate Planning and Strategy, CP&S, assumed duty as MD of NPMC while Bala Wunti, former, General Manager, Downstream, GMD’s office took charge as GGM CP&S among other changes.
Nwodo, while flaying the Buhari administration for not observing the constitutionally stipulated federal character principle in the NNPC shakeup, pointed out that such disregard for constitutional provisions fuels the lack of confidence youths in the South-east against the present governance structure.
He further expressed concern that while four out of the five states in the South-east have proven oil resources, yet the region was found fit to be adequately represented in a key corporate institution like the NNPC.
The apex Igbo body said that it had thought that after the President’s declaration in a broadcast recently that Nigeria unity is settled and not negotiable that he would take all necessary actions in his governance to achieve it but the recent NNPC shake up has not shown that the administration is walking its talk.
Nwodo maintained that favouring of the North in the appointment of the new NNPC managers with South-East totally ignored as has always been the case since the inception of the current administration, Buhari has shown that he is not serious about achieving the much-mouthed unity and cohesion in an already fragmented country.
The statement read in part, “this brazen disregard, marginalization and non compliance with the Federal character provisions in our constitution are the causes of lack of confidence which our youths have in our present governance structure.
“As long as President Buhari continues to live out his speech abroad that his government will favour those who voted 97% for him against those who voted 5% for him so long will the dissatisfaction and unrest in our polity subsist.
“There is no oil well anywhere in Northern Nigeria. Four of the five states in the South East have proven oil resources some of which provide our nation’s revenue yet our people are not found fit to be adequately represented in a key corporate institution like the NNPC.”
The Ohanaeze leader ended the statement by begging Buhari to revisit the controversial reshuffle exercise at the NNPC in the name of God and in the spirit of ongoing festivity being celebrated in the season and in promotion of unity and good governance in Nigeria.
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