The political intrigues in Imo state may have informed the president, Muhammadu Buhari’s decision to drop the name of Ifeanyi Ararume as the chairman of Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited and replace him with the wife of his former closed associate, Chuba Okadigbo.
Araume is from Imo State that is always in the news for the wrong reasons these days and where the Governor, Hope Uzodinma holds sway while seriously battling with different political enemies.
However, the names of other members of the board have been made public by the president.
This is in accordance with the power vested in him under Section 59(2) of the Petroleum Industry Act he signed on August 16, 2021.
Femi Adesina, Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, disclosed this on Wednesday in a statement titled ‘President Buhari appoints board and management of NNPC Limited’ , the names of other board members
According to Adesina, the Board’s Chairman is Margery Okadigbo (South East); Chief Executive Officer, Mele Kyari; and Chief Financial Officer, Umar Ajiya.
Other Board Members are Dr Tajudeen Umar (North East), Lami Ahmed (North Central), Mohammed Lawal (North West), Henry Obih (South East), Constance Marshal (South-South), and Chief Pius Akinyelure (South West).
Also appointed are Executive Commissioners of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission.
They include Executive Commissioner, Development and Production, Dr Nuhu Habib (Kano); Executive Commissioner, Economic Regulations and Strategic Planning, Dr Kelechi Ofoegbu (Imo); Exe Executive Commissioner, Health, Safety, Environment and Community, Captain Tonlagha John (Delta); and Executive Commissioner, Corporate Services and Administration Jide Adeola (Kogi).
Earlier appointed are the Board Chairman, CEO, Executive Commissioner, Exploration and Acreage Management, and Executive Commissioner, Finance and Accounts.
New appointees at the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority are Executive Director, Hydrocarbon Processing, Francis Ogaree (Rivers); Executive Director, Health, Safety, Environment and Community, Mustapha Lamorde (Adamawa); Executive Director, Midstream and Downstream Gas Infrastructure Fund; Mansur Kuliya (Kano); Executive Director, Corporate Services and Administration, Bashir Sadiq (Sokoto); and Executive Director, Economic Regulations and Strategic Planning, Dr Zainab Gobir (Kwara).
They join the Board Chairman, Executive Director, Downstream Systems, Storage and Retailing Infrastructure, the CEO, and Executive Director, Finance and Accounts, who had earlier been appointed.
For Midstream and Downstream Infrastructure Fund, new Council Members are; Effiong Abia (Akwa Ibom), Bobboi Ahmed (Adamawa), and Abdullahi Bukar (Katsina).
Last September, The Punch reported that the President wrote to the Senate on the administrative structure amendments to the Petroleum Industry Act, which included the appointment of Non-Executive Board Members, removal of the Ministries of Petroleum and Finance from the Board of the two new institutions, and appointment of Executive Directors.
The appointments take effect from the date of the incorporation of the NNPC Limited on September 29, 2021.
