Business
Economic Sabotage: Over 407 Ethnic Nationalities Youth Leaders Demand Removal of Mele Kyari Over NNPCL/IOC Cabal War Against Local Refineries
The Apex umbrella body for the over 407 Ethnic Nationalities Youth Leaders in Nigeria, on Tuesday, called for the immediate sack of the General Managing Director, CEO, of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited, NNPCL, Mele Kyari.
They accused Kyari of sabotaging the fixing of indigenous refineries to the benefit of the subsidy cartel.
This formed part of a communique issued by the Nigeria Ethnic Nationality Youth Leaders Council Worldwide on Tuesday after their meeting in Abuja.
The communique made available to journalists was endorsed by Comrade Terry Obeih, President General, Niger Delta Ethnic Nationalities Youth Leaders/NENYLCW, Alhaji Balarabe Rufai, President, Northern Youth Council/ Vice President, NENYLCW, Aare Oladotun Hassan Esq, President, Yoruba Council of Youths Worldwide/ Secretary General, NENYLCW, Mazi Okwu Nnabuike, National President, Ohanaeze Ndigbo Youth Council Worldwide/ Publicity Secretary, NENYLCW, Comrade Emmanuel Zopmal, President, Middle-Belt Youth Council/ Organising Secretary, NENYLCW and Alhaji Hamisu Dass, President, North-East Youth Assembly/Treasurer, NENYLCW.
The youth leaders accused the Kyari-led NNPCL of sabotaging the smooth take-off of both the government-owned refinery and the Dangote group-owned refinery.
This stand is coming amid outcry by Devakumar Edwin, the Vice President of Oil and Gas at Dangote Industries Limited (DIL), that International Oil Companies, IOCs, were frustrating the Dangote Refinery’s commencement of fuel supply by selling crude oil at higher prices.
Edwin said the IOCs were intentionally obstructing the refinery’s efforts to purchase local crude by inflating premium prices above market rates, compelling the refinery to import crude from distant countries like the United States, leading to significantly higher costs.
The youth leaders, while describing the situation as unacceptable, said it was strange that all the hopes the citizens placed on the Dangote refinery to bring down the cost of fuel were being frustrated.
According to the group, “we met today, Tuesday, the 25th day of June, 2024 and reviewed the economic situation in the country as it affects the common masses.
“After a thorough analysis of the situation, it is our considered finding that the NNPCL is sabotaging the effort of the government towards making fuel affordable for Nigerians. There is a serious matter considering that Nigeria is operating a mono-economy, and as such whatever happens to fuel price, has a spiral effect.
“We want to start by recalling that earlier in March this year, the NNPCL CEO Mele Kyari, promised Nigerians that within two weeks, the Port Harcourt refinery would begin production.
“The CEO, who gave that assurance during his appearance before the Senate ad-hoc committee that was investigating the Nigerian Refineries’ Turn Around Maintenance (TAM) Projects, went as far as stating that more than 450,000 barrels of oil were stored at the Port Harcourt refinery.
“He said then that ‘We did a mechanical completion of the refinery; that was what we said in December. We now have crude oil already stocked in the refinery. We are doing regulatory compliance tests that must happen in every refinery before you start it, and I assure you that this Port Harcourt refinery will start in the next two weeks. Completing the mechanical work means that you are done with the rehabilitation work, now you have to test to see how it works. Of course, we have also completed the mechanical work on the Warri refinery. It is also undergoing regulatory compliance; processes that we are doing with our regulator, and this will soon be completed and it will be ready. Lastly, all the crude lines supplying crude to Port Harcourt and Warri are very active and we have delivered over 450, 000 barrels of oil into Port Harcourt refinery. We are confident of the integrity of it. There may be security issues, but the government is responding to that.’
“We then find it so strange that three months after that vague promise, there is no sign that the refinery would begin operation any time soon.
“To make the matters worse, just a few days ago, Mr Devakumar Edwin, the Vice President of Oil and Gas at Dangote Industries Limited (DIL), accused International Oil Companies, IOCs, of frustrating the Dangote Refinery’s commencement of fuel supply by selling crude oil at higher prices.
“Edwin emphatically said that the IOCs were intentionally obstructing the refinery’s efforts to purchase local crude by inflating premium prices above market rates, compelling the refinery to import crude from distant countries like the United States, leading to significantly higher costs.
“These are not matters to be swept under the carpet; they are both interconnected and have to be addressed by the Federal Government.
“The indices point that a certain cabal in the NNPCL has vowed never to allow local refinery of petroleum products in Nigeria, all in a bid to remain as the sole importer of the commodity and exploit Nigerians.
“We declare today that enough is enough; Nigerians have suffered enough, whereas a few people are feeding fat.
“The liberalization of the petroleum industry was meant to be a blessing to the country but the reverse is the case, this is not to talk of the PIB which also talks of giving consideration to local refineries, but none of this is happening.”
The youth groups said since the NNPCL had shown lack of capacity to manage the industry, “the only honourable thing for Mela Kyari, the MD to do is to resign. However, should he fail to do so, we urge the President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu to sack him without further delay.
“Should Kyari fail to resign, the youths will not hesitate to mobilize for a national protest that will shut down the country if that is the only way to rescue Nigeria.
“It is clear that NNPCL under Kyari is bent on frustrating the President’s economic agenda, thereby worsening the suffering of the citizens and this is not good for the government.
“The NNPCL is clearly frustrating indigenous refining of fuel in order to continue importation, which is benefiting the subsidy cartel.
“The National Assembly led by Senator Godswill Akpabio should immediately within 7 days summon the courage to probe Mr Mele Kyari led NNPCL.
“We know that once we have our own local petroleum production refineries working at full capacity, where our local crude oil will be supplied directly to the aforementioned refineries either privately or government owned, the suffering of the masses will be alleviated.
“As we reaffirm our support for Mr President, it is our hope that he will take this bold action in the interest of the country.”
By Chinedu Sabastine
ENUGU – Value Circle Africa (VCA), a marketing outfit dealing in organic food products, has launched operations in Enugu, promising to promote health and wealth creation among millions of Africans.
The company, which markets products including soya bean oil, swallow, fufu and Ganadima mushroom, said it was targeting 20 million Africans through its business model.
Speaking at the unveiling in Enugu, Chairman of VCA, Elder Dennis Ogbonnaya Nwankwo, claimed that participants who purchase products worth N65,000 could earn up to N550,000 over six months under the company’s reward scheme.
Nwankwo said VCA was an offshoot of Nature’s Renaissance International Limited (NRI), founded by High Chief Clinton Brown Odiagbe.
He explained that the initiative was designed to share the company’s profits with customers rather than concentrate its earnings on business expansion.
According to him, a participant who purchases products worth N65,000 would receive N50,000 initially, with subsequent monthly payments of N100,000, subject to the company’s stated terms.
He further claimed that an investment of N6.5 million could yield about N55 million within six months.
Nwankwo said the company manufactured its organic products and intended to use the proceeds to improve the financial circumstances and health of its customers.
“Every other company is marketing its products and making its profit. We manufacture our organic products, including soya bean oil, swallow, fufu and Ganadima mushroom.
“But we decided that we should not use the money to establish an airline or acquire more estates. Instead, we decided to share it with people around us,” he said.
He added that the company encouraged participants to reinvest their earnings to build sustainable financial capacity.
“We believe that if we continue to do this, we will also train people not to consume all the money they earn but to reinvest it. That is how we intend to wipe away poverty,” he said.
The VCA chairman urged interested persons to participate in the scheme, claiming that those who borrowed N65,000 to purchase the products could repay their loans from subsequent payments.
He, however, did not provide independently verified financial records to substantiate the returns being promised.
One of the company’s beneficiaries, Pastor David Ime Jesus, said he joined the scheme in June 2026 and had received payments under the arrangement.
“I began to invest in June and have been earning N100,000 every month since the initial N50,000 I earned in July,” he said.
Business
No Bad Blood Over New Cement Factories, But Our Mining Rights Run Till 2045 — Ibeto Tells Ebonyi Govt
ABAKALIKI, EBONYI STATE — Billionaire industrialist and Chairman of Ibeto Group, Dr. Cletus Ibeto, has clarified his position on plans by the Ebonyi State Government to establish a new cement manufacturing plant, saying he has no objection to fresh investment in the state provided his company’s existing mining rights are respected.
Ibeto, who is also a core investor in the Nigerian Cement Company (Nigercem), said the proposed development should not interfere with areas covered by valid mining leases held by his company.
“We are not against the establishment of new cement factories in Ebonyi State. However, such developments must not interfere with or overlap the specific areas where Ibeto Group holds valid Mining Lease Licences issued by the Federal Ministry,” Ibeto stated.
He said the company’s statutory mining leases covering limestone deposits in the Nkalagu axis remain valid until 2045.
Ibeto stressed the need for proper delineation and mapping of mining areas to prevent conflicts between existing title holders and new investors seeking to establish businesses in the state.
Under Nigeria’s legal framework, mineral resources are vested in the Federal Government, with mineral titles administered through the Federal Ministry of Solid Minerals Development and the Mining Cadastre Office.
Nigercem Ready to Resume Operations
Addressing concerns over the future of the historic Nigercem plant, Ibeto said Ibeto Group remains committed to reviving the facility and is ready to commence work once outstanding administrative issues with the state government are resolved.
He said the company’s position should not be interpreted as opposition to new investment in Ebonyi, stressing that his concern was the protection of legally acquired mining rights.
The development could pave the way for both the revival of Nigercem and the entry of new investors into Ebonyi’s cement industry, provided the respective mining areas are clearly mapped out and existing legal titles are respected.
Business
Patience Jonathan Hails Azikel Boss Eruani as ‘Small Boy’ She Mentored Into Billionaire League
She said her guidance was behind his bold entry into big business at a relatively young age.
The former First Lady spoke on Tuesday in a video which went viral on Thursday during an inspection tour of the Azikel Refinery in Obunagha, Bayelsa State, alongside other dignitaries.
She said she personally introduced Eruani to billionaire businessmen, Aliko Dangote and Aminu Dantata, and pushed him to aspire to their level despite being the youngest among them.
“He’s a boy that I brought up. We are always together. Although he’s the little one among us when we are friends — Dangote, Seyi, Dantata, Eruani — among us, he’s the smallest. But I made sure he followed the Dangotes, he followed Dantata.
“Because I’m a woman in their midst, I made sure I told this small boy, ‘Go and follow them, and stop the grammar.’ But when he told me that one day he would be like Dangote, I said, ‘You’re thinking too high.’ I prayed to God to grant him his heart’s desire,” she said.
The former First Lady also recalled how the immediate past APC administration under Muhammadu Buhari initially failed to grant Eruani a refinery licence before eventually approving three.
“During the Buhari administration, he and others came to me and told me they were going to apply for a refinery. I told him, ‘Eruani, your brother, the President, did not give you a refinery.
“Is it the APC government that will give you one?’ I prayed it would happen. But later, they came back and told me they had been given three refineries,” she said.
The 25,000 barrels-per-day plant is a private hydro-skimming refinery designed to process condensate into petrol, diesel, aviation fuel, kerosene and other products.
It is set to become Nigeria’s second-largest full-slate refinery and the first major privately owned refinery in the Niger Delta.
The Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of the Niger Delta Development Commission, Samuel Ogbuku, who joined the inspection tour, commended Eruani for his perseverance, noting that he had attended the project’s groundbreaking ceremony eight years ago.
Ogbuku described the refinery as an inspiration and a potential catalyst for investment, job creation and economic growth in Bayelsa State, and urged residents, particularly youths, to key into the opportunities it would create.
He also praised the Bayelsa State Government for improving road infrastructure leading to the refinery site and called for continued support for the project.
Governor Douye Diri, who was represented at the inspection by his deputy, Peter Akpe, has consistently backed the project, which is expected to employ hundreds of workers and drive industrialisation in the state.
Other dignitaries at the event included the Chairman of the Bayelsa State Council of Traditional Rulers, King Bubaraye Dakolo; Vice President of Azikel Group, Presley Asemota; and Isaac Yalah, among others.
A market check on Tuesday showed that NNPCL outlets in Abuja and nearby areas adjusted their petrol price from N1,155 per litre to N1,270 per litre.
The latest adjustment represents an increase of N115 per litre by the state-owned oil company.
The new price change follows recent increases by depot owners and petroleum marketers, who have adjusted their rates twice within a week.
The latest development also comes days after Dangote Refinery resumed the sale of refined petroleum products in dollars, a move that has raised concerns among industry players over the direction of fuel pricing in the country.
The Federal Government has disclosed that 13 of the 50 oil and gas blocks offered in the 2025 Licensing Round will be returned to the licensing basket after failing to attract bids from prospective investors.
The Chief Executive of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan, disclosed this on Tuesday at the 2025 Commercial Bid Conference in Abuja.
Eyesan said that although 50 blocks were initially put up for bidding, prospective investors showed interest in only 37.
“At the end of the exercise, we had 50 blocks on offer, but we only had representation for 37 of those 50 blocks. Thirteen of those blocks will be returning back to the basket,” she said.
She further disclosed that 143 companies participated in the commercial bid process, submitting about 200 bids for the available oil and gas assets.
“We have a total of 143 companies showing interest for 200 bids. That, for us, was remarkable, and I must say thank you,” Eyesan stated.
According to her, nearly 300 companies initially expressed interest in the licensing round, which she described as a sign of renewed investor confidence in Nigeria’s upstream petroleum sector.
“When we started the journey, we got interest from almost 300 companies. I repeat, almost 300 companies. That, in my view, was an indication that the tide has turned for Nigeria,” she said.
She explained that the number of interested companies was reduced to 196 following the prequalification stage, before the process moved to the technical and commercial evaluation phases.
“From the almost 300 interests that we got, we moved to the pre-qualification stage, and that number was pruned down to 196,” she added.
The 2025 Licensing Round was launched on November 11, 2025, in accordance with the Petroleum Industry Act 2021, with 50 oil and gas blocks put up for bidding across seven sedimentary basins.
The assets comprise 16 Niger Delta onshore blocks, 18 shallow-water blocks, one deep offshore block, three blocks in the Benin Basin, four in the Anambra Basin, four in the Chad Basin and four in the Benue Trough.
The bid portal opened on December 1, 2025, while a pre-bid conference was held in Lagos on January 14, 2026, to provide prospective investors with guidance on the bidding requirements.
Registration and prequalification submissions closed on February 27, 2026, with the prequalification process completed on March 16.
The NUPRC said winning bids are being determined through a weighted evaluation that considers signature bonus commitments, proposed work programmes and performance security. The process combines technical and commercial scores rather than relying solely on financial offers.
The framework is aimed at ensuring that Nigeria’s petroleum assets are awarded to investors with the financial capacity, technical expertise and operational strength required to accelerate exploration and production in the country’s upstream sector.
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Kingsley Ugwu
June 26, 2024 at 12:07 pm
When I alerted Nigerians in Jan 2023 that Tinubu had reached a compromise with fulani at INEC and NNPC to rig the presidential election for Tinubu so Tinubu can protect fulani interests in Nigeria, I knew what I was talking because the data I had on that was so clear: Tinubu had bitterly wept in Abeokuta about how Emefiele used cashless policy to deny him winning d presidential election, but about 14 days later in Oyo the same Tinubu had stopped crying and started really smiling by saying what amounted to “praises” to NNPC, INEC, etc, all being controlled or managed by fulanis. Go Google Tinubu ulterances during d month of Jan 2023 to see what I am talking or claiming here. It was so clear that Tinubu had bought fulani that control INEC, NNPC etc the vital organs of Nigeria to rig d election for him! Fulani INEC Mahmoud declared BVAS suffered unknown glitch on Feb 35, 2023 that made him use his Constitutional right tov use manual method collate presidential results only! Tinubu was declared winner by Mahmoud, and Tinubu went on to declare fuel subsidy is gone during his inauguration speech, Mele Kyari of NNPC in June 2023 went on to tell Nigerians that NNPC would operate like an LLC not minding that NNPC CEO himself is appointed by Tinubu and NNPC never pay dividends to shareholders or Nigerians, and Tinubu has easily renewed tenure of Mele Kyari when it expired few months ago in 2024! What more evidence do we need to know that Tinubu had taken an oath to never go against fulani or Mahmoud, Buhari, Mele Kyari? Anybody looking forward to Tinubu sacking Mele Kyari, Mahmoud, etc, better have a rethink because Tinubu will never do it, otherwise he will be impeached by fulani who control the NASS!