The Federal Government is facing mounting criticism after the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) confirmed that its refineries are not functioning, despite billions spent on their rehabilitation. Nigerian Senate and opposition parties have seized on the revelations, calling for urgent forensic audits and potential criminal probes into the wasteful expenditure.
NNPCL’s Group CEO, Bayo Ojulari, confirmed during a Bloomberg interview that decades-old infrastructure and imported technologies have under performed, complicating revival efforts. He revealed that a strategic review, expected before year-end, may lead to options including the potential sale of the Port Harcourt, Warri, and Kaduna refineries. The company has already spent an estimated US $18 billion, according to industry figures and NNPCL’s own disclosures.
Opposition leaders are demanding investigations and prosecution, condemning the repeated assurances from both the Buhari and Tinubu administrations that the refineries would operate. Those calls now viewed as misleading. They argue that without accountability (or before any sale) those responsible for the financial implosion of these national assets must face justice.
