Nigerian Petroleum Corporation NNPCL Boss, Ojulari Asked To Account For Alleged $1.5million Bribery, Financial Misconduct
Nigerian Petroleum Corporation NNPCL Boss, Ojulari Asked To Account For Alleged $1.5million Bribery, Financial Misconduct
Sources had told SaharaReporters that the duo allegedly facilitated access for the embattled GCEO of the NNPC Limited to meet with the President at the Presidential Villa (Aso Rock Villa), Abuja, after he reportedly paid them off.
The Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Mr. Bayo Ojulari, has again been petitioned to respond to the serious allegations involving financial misconduct and bribery against him, said to also involve top presidential security officials.
SaharaReporters had in August reported exclusively that President Bola Tinubu’s Chief Security Officer (CSO), Adegboyega Fasasi, and the Chief Personal Security Officer, Usman Shugaba, were implicated in a $1.5million bribery scandal.
Sources had told SaharaReporters that the duo allegedly facilitated access for the embattled GCEO of the NNPC Limited to meet with the President at the Presidential Villa (Aso Rock Villa), Abuja, after he reportedly paid them off.
SaharaReporters had gathered that Tinubu met with Ojulari at 11am on June 10.
The NNPC boss, Ojulari, is currently under investigation for alleged money laundering involving the transfer of millions of dollars to the account of AA&R Investment Group.
The company is owned by Abdullahi Bashir-Haske, son-in-law of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, President Tinubu’s main rival in the 2023 general elections.
In a petition obtained on Friday by the Citizens Awareness Against Corruption and Social Vices Initiative, the group expressed concerns over the “emerging developments that pose a serious threat” to the credibility of both the NNPCL and the current administration.
According to the petition, the group cited whistleblower reports and media investigations alleging the transfer of unspecified millions of U.S. dollars to AA & R Investment Group, a company reportedly linked to Bashir Haske, who is said to be a relative of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar.
The organisation raised fears that the transfer, now reportedly under investigation by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), may constitute economic sabotage and raise questions about potential political collusion.
CAACASVI called on Ojulari to issue a formal denial or clarification within seven working days.
Failure to comply, the petition warns, will trigger a coordinated nationwide protest at NNPCL offices by civil society groups.
The petition was signed by Comrade Olumuyiwa Onlede, National President of CAACASVI, and was also copied to the Director General of the Department of State Services (DSS), the Inspector General of Police, and the Chief of Staff to the President.
It partly read, “In light of the foregoing, and in the interest of justice, national stability, and the protection of the President’s reputation, we hereby demand the following: That Mr. Bayo Ojulari issue a public and unequivocal denial or clarification of the said allegations within Seven (7) working days of receiving this petition.
“That a statement be issued by the Anti Corruption unit of NNPCL immediately distancing the agency from all transactions linked to AA & R Investment Group.
“Failure to meet the demands within the stipulated period will leave us with no choice but to mobilise a coalition of civil society organisations across the country to embark on a massive nationwide protest in all NNPCL offices, calling for the immediate removal of Mr. Bayo Ojulari and for a full-scale independent probe.”
