…Also NUPRC Chief Executive
As allegations of regulatory abuses raised by the President of Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, against the Managing Director of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) Engr. Farouk Ahmed, have continued to raise public concerns over the past few days, the Presidency on Wednesday confirmed that Ahmed had resigned.
Similarly, the Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), Engr. Gbenga Komolafe, was also reported to have resigned his appointment
The Special Adviser to the President (Information and Strategy), in a statement, confirmed that President Bola Tinubu had received the resignation letters of the duo and nominated their successors to the Senate for approval.
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Onanuga stated that the President’s requests followed the resignation of Ahmed and Komolafe both of whom were appointed in 2021 by former President Buhari to lead the two regulatory agencies created by the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA).
According to him, to fill the two positions, the President has written to the Senate, requesting expedited confirmation of Oritsemeyiwa Amanorisewo Eyesan as CEO of NUPRC and Engineer Saidu Aliyu Mohammed as CEO of NMDPRA, both nominees being seasoned professionals in the oil and gas industry.
The statement further clarified: “Eyesan, a graduate of Economics from the University of Benin, spent nearly 33 years with the NNPC and its subsidiaries. She retired as Executive Vice President, Upstream (2023–2024), and previously served as Group General Manager, Corporate Planning and Strategy at NNPC from 2019 to 2023.
“Engineer Saidu Aliyu Mohammed, born in 1957 in Gombe, graduated from Ahmadu Bello University in 1981 with a Bachelor’s in Chemical Engineering. He was announced today as an independent non-executive director at Seplat Energy.
“His prior roles include Managing Director of Kaduna Refining and Petrochemical Company and Nigerian Gas Company, as well as Chair of the boards of West African Gas Pipeline Company, Nigeria LNG subsidiaries, and NNPC Retail.
“He also served as Group Executive Director/Chief Operating Officer, Gas & Power Directorate, where he provided strategic leadership for major gas projects and policy frameworks, including the Gas Masterplan, Gas Network Code, and contributions to the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA).
“Mohammed played a pivotal role in delivering key projects such as the Escravos–Lagos Pipeline Expansion, the Ajaokuta–Kaduna–Kano (AKK) Gas Pipeline, and Nigeria LNG Train”, Onanuga added.
