The Presidential Candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the last election, Atiku Abubakar, has accused President Bola Tinubu to have mortgaged the future of Nigerians, with the support of his family, and associates
Penpushing reports that Abubakar, a former Vice President of the country made the allegation in a statement signed by his Media Adviser, Paul Ibe, expressing fear that he believes that even after Tinubu leaves office, breaking these shackles will be nearly impossible.
The opposition leader in the statement compares Tinubu’s integration of his business interests into Lagos’s public enterprises to his efforts at the federal level, adding that the President is managing critical sectors and generating revenue for him and his family,
“Just as Alpha Beta, Primero, and others act as Tinubu’s proxies in Lagos, managing critical sectors and generating revenue for him and his family, he has begun to replicate this at the federal level’, Abubakar said.
Penpushing further reports that the former number two citizen of Nigeria expressed astonishment at the operations of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd) and how the government-owned oil company had put its retail arm under the control of OVH, a company in which Oando, led by Wale Tinubu, a relative of the President, owns 49 per cent.
The statement added that Atiku regretted that his intention to privatise the National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) and increase its transparency has been overshadowed by what he describes as the criminal hijacking of the National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) by corporate cabals around the current president.”
‘In October 2022, just five months before the elections, the NNPC Retail controversially announced it had acquired OVH and all its filling stations. NNPCL already had about 550 filling stations across the country but claimed it was enhancing its capacity by acquiring OVH, which had only 94 stations and 100 others leased’, he stated.
‘The NNPC did not disclose the purchase price of OVH or the terms of the acquisition. A Freedom of Information request by Premium Times was also rejected by the NNPC, which claimed to be a private company despite still being government-owned,” he said.
Penpushing also reports that Abubakar argued that following this controversial deal, Mele Kyari, the NNOC boss, was controversially retained as National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) Group Managing Director despite his incompetence.
“Tinubu then appointed his former boss at Mobil, turned ally, Pius Akinyelure, as NNPC Chairman, while he took on the role of Minister of Petroleum. In a move that defies economic logic, OVH, previously owned by NNPC Retail, has now acquired NNPC Retail. This absurd situation means that Wale Tinubu’s Oando now owns 49 per cent of NNPC Retail’, he said.
Penpushing reports that Atiku alleged that Nigeria paid Wale Tinubu a significant sum to facilitate the Tinubu family’s acquisition of the national oil company, stressing that this represents a clear case of illogical business transactions and abuse of office by Tinubu, who has prevented National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) from becoming a public liability company as stipulated by the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA).
The former Vice President acknowledged that the National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) and its leadership are under legislative investigation but expressed scepticism about the process’s credibility due to the vested interests of those conducting the investigation.
“Senator Opeyemi Bamidele, who is heading the National Assembly panel, is a known supporter of Tinubu. He served as a commissioner under Tinubu in Lagos State and publicly called him his godfather’, he added.
Penpushing further reports that Abubakar pointed out that since Tinubu is the petroleum minister, he should be held responsible for the sector’s issues, adding that he doubt Bamidele will conduct a thorough investigation that might implicate his patron
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Chieftain while reacting on the recent revelation that the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway project is under litigation, explained that the Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), a global network of investigative journalists, reported that the coastal highway project has been taken to court and revealed a close relationship between Tinubu’s son, Seyi, and Gilbert Chagoury, who was awarded the contract without competitive bidding.
“I had earlier claimed that the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway project was fraudulent, but the government denied it. Now, the matter is in court. It is also concerning that Chagoury and Tinubu have a business relationship, and their children are business partners, as revealed by the OCCRP’, he said
“It is no surprise that the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway and the Sokoto-Badagry Coastal Highway, which together will cost over $24 billion, were approved without competitive bidding. It seems that whatever Tinubu wants, he gets,” he said.
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