Mallam Mele Kyari, the Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Commission (NNPC) Limited has said that every Nigerian is a shareholder in the newly privatized national oil company.
All Nigerians are shareholders in the recently commercialized national oil company, according to Mallam Mele Kyari, Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Commission Limited (NNPC).
Speaking about recent organizational changes in an ARISE TV interview, the NNPC boss made it clear that the oil corporation has undergone a complete turnaround in its operating procedures as mandated by a legislative act, and not in any way rebranding.
“First of all, we are not rebranding. Rebranding means that there’s something about the colors, a few things you don’t like you want to change. That’s not what we did. It is simply a total turnaround because you’re dealing with a corporation that was established by the act of the National Assembly to operate as as a business and as an agency of government,” Kyari said.
“So, when you abandoned that position to come to a clearly commercial position backed by laws that are not necessarily act of establishing a company but a complete turnaround of our fiscal an regulatory framework in the oil and gas sector, and beyond subjecting this company to the rules that other players in the oil sector are doing.
“That brings with it another layer of control such as governance issues that’s common to all other businesses. So, it’s a brand new situation, but we are not rebranding. You’re moving from a past that’s clearly of a definite and different expectation to a new expectation where this company must deliver value to its shareholders.”
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Kyari stated that the new NNPC Limited arrangement, counts all Nigerians as shareholders, but that they are only represented by the Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Petroleum.
“NNNP is owned by the over 200m Nigerians. We are the shareholders of the NNPC. The shareholders are always represented. And in this context, it’s now represented by the ministry of petroleum (incorporated) and the ministry of finance (incorporated) on behalf of the rest of the federation. That’s on behalf of all of us.
“The federation includes the state and the local governments, and by implication, the whole body of the 200 million Nigerians. But all of us cannot sit in the board of this company. The Petroleum Industry Act has clearly indicated that the President is delegated with the responsibly to appoint a board on behalf of the 200 million shareholders, to appoint the leadership of this company and to also appoint board of directors for this company.
“So, it’s a delegated responsibility,” he said.
On Tuesday, President Muhammadu Buhari unveiled the new Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, a historic occasion that marked the oil business’s transition from a totally state-run organization to a commercial oil company limited by shares.
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