Breaking: Tinubu Issues Appointment to Wike's Ally Magnus Abe, 21 Others as Details Emerge
- President Tinubu nominated 21 board members for NMDPRA and NUPRC as part of oil sector reforms
- Magnus Abe appointed as NUPRC board chair, emphasizing experienced leadership in petroleum regulation
- Expedited Senate confirmation requested to enhance governance in Nigeria's oil and gas industry
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has forwarded two separate letters to the Senate, requesting confirmation of 21 nominees for the boards of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) and the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC).
The nominations, which form part of ongoing reforms in the oil and gas sector, come shortly after the appointment and confirmation of new chief executive officers for both regulatory agencies.
Source: UGC
Tinubu names Magnus Abe as NUPRC board chair
The nominations were announced in a statement released via X and signed by Bayo Onanuga, special adviser to the president on Information and Strategy, dated January 5.
In the first letter addressed to the Senate, President Tinubu nominated Senator Magnus Abe as the chairman of the NUPRC Board.
Abe, a two-term senator who represented Rivers South-East, previously served on the board of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) and currently chairs the National Agency of the Great Green Wall.
The President also nominated Engineer Paul Yaro Jezhi, a former chairman of the Trade Union Congress (TUC) in Kaduna state, and Mr Sunday Adebayo Babalola, a former deputy director of the defunct Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR), as non-executive commissioners.
Tinubu appoints executive commissioners
President Tinubu further nominated several executive commissioners to the NUPRC board, including:; Muhammed Sabo Lamido – Executive commissioner, finance; Mr Edu Inyang – Executive commissioner, exploration and acreage; Justin Ezeala – Executive commissioner, economic regulation and strategic planning; Henry Darlington Oki – Executive commissioner, development and production; Indabawa Bashari Alka – Executive commissioner, corporate services and administration; Mahmood Tijani – Executive commissioner, health, safety and environment; Ms Olayemi Adeboyejo – Secretary and legal adviser.
While Lamido and Adeboyejo were first appointed in 2022 under former President Muhammadu Buhari, Alka was appointed by President Tinubu in 2023. Other nominees, including Inyang, Ezeala, Tijani, Babalola and Jezhi, are fresh appointments.
Adeniji nominated as NMDPRA board chairman
In a second letter, the President nominated Mr Adegbite Ebiowei Adeniji, a lawyer with over three decades of experience in the energy sector, as Chairman of the NMDPRA Board.
Adeniji previously served as Special Technical Adviser to the Minister of State for Petroleum and was part of the World Bank Oil and Gas Policy Team that advised Nigeria on petroleum sector reforms. He is currently the managing partner at ENR Advisory.
Ex-ministers, technocrats listed among NMDPRA nominees
Other nominees for the NMDPRA board include Chief Kenneth Kobani, a former minister of State for Trade and former Secretary to the Rivers State Government, and Mrs Asabe Ahmed, both as non-executive members.
Also nominated are: Abiodun Adeniji – Executive director, finance; Francis Ogaree – Executive director, hydrocarbon; Oluwole Adama – Executive director, midstream and downstream gas infrastructure; Dr Mustapha Lamorde – Executive director, corporate services and administration
Additional nominees include Yahaya Nasamu Yinusa, Adeyemi Murtala Aminu, Ms Modie Ogechukwu, and Barrister Olawale Dawodu, who is proposed as board secretary and legal adviser.
Tinubu urges Senate to act swiftly
President Tinubu urged the Senate to expedite action on the confirmation requests, noting that the nominations followed the recent confirmation of Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan as Chief Executive Officer of NUPRC and Engineer Saidu Aliyu Mohammed as Chief Executive Officer of NMDPRA.
Source: UGC
According to the President, all nominees are expected to discharge their duties “professionally and responsibly as regulators of Nigeria’s oil and gas sector.”
Tinubu confers national honour on Kesington Adebutu
Legit.ng earlier reported that President Bola Tinubu had conferred the national honour of the Order of the Niger on billionaire, Kesington Adebukunola Adebutu. The president, who was in the company of his wife, Oluremi Tinubu, conferred the honour on Adebutu during a presidential visit to the businessman's residence.
Adebutu's son, Ladi, who was the PDP governorship candidate in the 2023 election in Ogun state, shared the details of the notable visit to the family's dynasty.
Proofreading by Kola Muhammed, copy editor at Legit.ng.
Source: Legit.ng
