We Are Under Attack for Implementing Reforms, NNPC Chief Laments

The Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd), Mr. Bayo Ajulari, has declared that the company’s current management is facing intense attacks as a direct consequence of its ongoing reforms aimed at sanitizing the nation’s oil and gas sector.

Speaking during a visit from the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) in Abuja, Ajulari revealed that he and other top executives, including the Chief Financial Officer and Executive Vice Presidents, have been targeted with court actions, petitions, and harassment.

“We are under attack. And I repeat again, NNPC, we are under attack… It is a real formidable plan,” he stated, dismissing any suggestions that the threats were not serious.

Ajulari provided a stark justification for the recent decision to halt refinery operations, explaining that the facilities were incurring colossal monthly losses of between $300 million and $500 million.

He described the operational inefficiency as unsustainable, revealing that despite being fed 150,000 barrels of crude daily, the refineries were only producing a 40% yield of substandard products.

He attributed this poor performance to decades of neglect, comparing the refineries to an abandoned car that had been left to rust without maintenance.

Looking forward, Ajulari announced that technical and commercial reviews for all three refineries are complete. For the Port Harcourt refinery, NNPC is seeking a strategic partnership with a professional refining company to co-manage the facility on a commercially viable basis.

“It is not just about getting them to work. They must be profitable or at least break even. We are not going to throw public funds into a pit again,” he emphasized.

In his remarks, PENGASSAN President Festus Osifo commended the NNPC management for its pragmatism and highlighted improvements in pipeline security and crude production.

However, he echoed the call for private investment in the refineries, suggesting an NLNG-style model to minimize political interference.

Osifo concluded by pledging the union’s full support to Ajulari and his team, linking the prosperity of the company directly to the well-being of its members.

About The Author

Dele Fashomi

Dele Fashomi, seasoned journalist and communication teacher, is a holder of Master of Arts degree in Communication and Language Arts from the University of Ibadan in 1992/93.

Earlier, he had bagged a Bachelor degree from the same university in 1984, after which he proceeded to the Nigerian Institute of Journalism, Lagos, in 1990, for a postgraduate diploma in Journalism.

He had done many courses in communication, including the EU-BBC Editing Course in 2002.

Mr. Fashomi combines effectively the practice, research and teaching of communication. And to date, he has published two academic works in communication: Issues in Communication Technology and Policy (2010) and Economic and Social Issues in Advertising and PR (2013).

He had his first break in the Nigerian media in Concord Newspapers in 1990 and today, he has over two and half decades experience earned in several newspapers.

He has been part of many start-ups, such as The Republic (1987), The Comet (1999), The Anchor 2001 – 2002; Sun Newspapers (2003); Westerner newsmagazine (2005 – 2010) as Editor; National Life (2011) as Sunday Editor, and Newswatch Newspapers (2012- 2016) as Daily Editor.

Dele Fashomi is now the Publisher/Editor-in-Chief of Newstide247.com newspaper online, which he started in July 2015. He is also into biography writing, with many books in his trail, some of which he wrote alone and one he co- authored with his mentor, Mr Dare Babarinsa, entitled:  Olabiyi Durojaiye – DARE TO BE DiFFERENT. He also guided and collaborated with Pa Olatunji Odusanya in writing his autobiography – AGAINST ALL ODDS. There are many other books in the works under his pen.

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