Renowned political economist and Commonwealth Institute Director, Prof. Anthony Kila, has urged President Bola Tinubu to resign as Minister and take further action beyond simply changing the management and board of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).
The NNPC, the government-owned company responsible for harnessing Nigeria’s oil and gas reserves for sustainable national development, recently underwent a significant board overhaul.
The Chairman, Chief Pius Akinyelure, and the Group Chief Executive Officer, Mallam Mele Kolo Kyari, were replaced.
Commenting on the overhaul, the popular public affairs analyst and Prof of Strategy and Development noted that “changing the board is not enough and might not yield results if the NNPC does not undergo a proper rebirth built on accountability, transparency, and around a clear mandate of ensuring more refineries work in the country”.
The Don also criticised the amount of information disclosed regarding the board change, describing it as scant. According to Prof Kila, “When changing the board of a company that belongs to all Nigerians, it would make more sense to provide full details to the public about why the President is changing the board and what we can expect from the new board. The details of this overhaul seem too scant to me.”
Speaking on a popular TV programme, Professor Anthony Kila made a direct appeal to President Tinubu to take steps to ensure he stops acting as or being perceived as the substantive Minister for Petroleum.
“In a country of over 200 million people, it does not make sense that one person should simultaneously be President and Minister of Oil or Minister of anything. I appeal to President Tinubu to recuse himself from this role and appoint a visible, dynamic Minister to act on his behalf or give more power to the ones we currently minister,” noted the popular analyst.
On April 3, 2025, the NNPC increased the price of premium motor spirit, also known as petrol, to N950 per litre in Abuja and N925 per litre in Lagos. The new pricing structure took effect on April 2, 2025.
This adjustment marks an increase of N65 from the previous price of N860 per litre in Lagos and N70 from the N880 per litre rate in the North. The latest hike follows recent price changes by independent marketers, including MRS, which raised petrol prices to N930 per litre in Lagos and N960 per litre in northern Nigeria.
Industry analysts attribute the price hike to changes in Nigeria’s deregulated fuel market, particularly the decision by Dangote Refinery to cease selling petroleum products in naira. This shift has influenced market competition, supply costs, and global oil price fluctuations.
