THE newly appointed non-executive Chairman of the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation Limited NNPCL, Musa Kida has asked Nigerians to give the board time to fix the oil sector.
Kida, briefing State House Journalists after their inauguration by President Bola Tinubu at the Presidential Villa on Thursday, assured that the board is ready to reform the oil sector, but asked for patience and understanding, describing the assignment as “a huge task”
“Our task is huge. But we are deeply honoured to be part of the very select few, called upon by the President to reform the oil sector. “One thing we can assure you is that we will always tell Nigerians the truth, irrespective of how bitter it will be”
Kida also assured that the oil industry will now be run as a purely limited liability company, adding that “When the Petroleum Industry Act PIA was signed into law, the nation moved the NNPCL to Limited liability and our role is to put in the best of practices . We will do all that is possible to deliver on the mandate the President gave us on production, refineries, attracting Foreign Direct Investment and corporate governance.
“We are always going to tell the nation the truth, no matter how bitter it is. We will work on our talk with Personal integrity and openness
Speaking on plans to listing the oil company on the Nigeria stock exchange, Kida stated that, that will only be done after a proper assessment of the oil sector. “Before anybody invests in any business, they must look at what the company represents, how it is managed, the governance structure and the reporting mechanisms.
We are fully prepared to launch the company’s IPO, but we must be fully prepare , and we want Nigerians on the streets to look at the NNPCL as their own
President Bola Tinubu had on Thursday inaugurates the Board of the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation Limited, with Musa Kida as non-Executive Chairman and Bayo Ojulari as Group Chief Executive Officer CEO.
The inauguration of the 11-member board had preceded the President’s engagement with the All Progressive Congress meeting at the Presidential Villa, Abu.ja
Those inaugurated included distinguished professionals from across Nigeria’s geopolitical zones, combining extensive industry expertise with balanced regional representation.
Among those appointed are Adedapo Segun and Bello Rabiu representing the North West, Yusuf Usman for the North East, and Babs Omotowa, a former Managing Director of Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG), representing the North Central region.
Others include Austin Avuru who serves as Non-Executive Director, representing the the South-South, while David Ige and Henry Obih represent the South-West and South-East, respectively.
The board also include Lydia Jafiya, Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Finance, who will serve on the board as the Ministry’s representative.
This is just as Aminu Ahmed will represent the Ministry of Petroleum Resources.
Prominent government officials present at the event included Wale Edun Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy; Mohammed Idris, Minister of Information and National Orientation, and the Minister of State for Petroleum (Gas), Heineken Lokpobiri.
All appointments are effective retroactively from April 2, 2025.