President Bola Tinubu is accused by 2023 Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential contender Atiku Abubakar of forcibly seizing control of the Nigeria National Petroleum Company Limited’s (NNPCL) finances.
According to Atiku, Tinubu stole money from NNPCL and sent it to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Federal Ministry of Finance.
He stated in a post on X that Tinubu’s move is morally and legally illegitimate since it goes against the due process rights.
Atiku claims: “With this proclamation, the President has taken back control of the NNPCL’s finances and transferred them to the Federal Ministry of Finance and the Central Bank of Nigeria.”
“This is an unprecedented action with no moral or legal justification. In public administration, it also transgresses the due process concept.
“State-owned businesses have complete control over their finances within the parameters of their individual formation statutes and are not vulnerable to such arbitrary instructions.
The Petroleum Industry Act 2021 (PIA), which the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria signed into law on August 16, 2021, is what gave rise to the NNPCL.
In Sections 53 to 65 of the Act, the PIA provides comprehensive guidelines for the creation, organization, management, and functioning of the NNPCL as a stand-alone limited liability corporation.
“Therefore, in accordance with international best practices, standard corporate governance principles, and sound commercial objectives, the government must respect the provisions of the law and allow the NNPCL to run as an independent company.”