By Joyce Remi-Babayeju
After the expiration of the 24-hour ultimatum given by the aggrieved staff of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), formerly Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR), today in a protest picketed and barricaded the Commission, to call for the immediate sack of the Chief Executive, Engr. Gbenga Komolafe over alleged fraud and abuse of office.
The protesting staff who dressed in black and red attire, besieged and placed a casket bearing ‘RIP Fraud’ at the main entrance to the NUPRC complex, at Idris Ibrahim Crescent, off the major road leading to Lifecamp/Wuse axis in Jabi, Abuja.
The aggrieved staff who chanted “Komolafe must go”, in a deliberate effort to drum their issue and to avoid open channels of communication with the Commission over mismanagement and poor employees welfare through the two years of his tenure.
Meanwhile, the staff have called on President Bola Tinubu to sack Komolafe or order him to resign, to pave way for an urgent unrestrained forensic audit of all contract processes and payments by the commission under his watch.
National Treasurer, Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, (PENGASSAN), Comrade Owan David, who participated in the protest, reiterated that despite efforts to resolve burning issues threatening the function of the Commission and industry, the Komolafe’s led NUPRC was unresponsive , thereby pushing the union to a peaceful protest, to register their grievances.
However, David warned that if nothing was done to address the issues , workers would not hesitate to apply the instrumentality of the union to withdraw staff from their duty posts nationwide, and mobilize to join the protest in Abuja, until the authorities take necessary action to save the commission from total collapse.
The branch Chairman of the NUPRC workers’ union, Comrade Okechukwu Anya, lamented that instead of the management to urgently engage and address their grievances, had resulted to intimidating the staff union leaders for speaking up and asking for improved working conditions at the commission.
Anya disclosed that NUPRC under Komolafe, has recorded depths of corruption, staff neglect, sexual
harassment, and gross mismanagement of its funds.
He added that the neglect of staff welfare is highlighted by the commission’s inability to cover medical services for staff due to
heavy unpaid debts, non-payment of statutory group life insurance and pension claims, and chronic underpayment of staff entitlements.
He stated that the NUPRC has been turned into a hotbed of favouritism and patronage, with the recruitment of over 140 individuals, without proper procedures and in violation of the Federal Public Service rules and the Federal Character Commission’s policies on equal opportunities.
In a long outlined alleged fraudulent activities of the NUPRC boss, the workers’ union states, “Our investigation reveals that Engr. Gbenga has utilized his position to continually exploit the commission’s coffers to satisfy his personal interests.”
“His flagrant disregard for the plight of his staff and the well-being
of the nation is nothing short of scandalous deserving of an urgent
unrestrained forensic audit of all contract processes and payments.”
“Top on the list of his nefarious activities is the shameful non-payment of gratuities to staff who retired in 2022.”
“Despite numerous pleas from these retirees and securing virement of about 10 billion Naira from the National Assembly intended to cover these payments, he instead
misappropriated these funds, donating an astonishing 4 billion Naira to political parties in the run-up to elections, in a blatant bid to retain his position and squandering the rest.”
Gbenga and the Commission’s Board Secretary, Mrs. Anyanechi Olayemi, are enmeshed in multiple instances of financial racketeering, using inflated contracts to
legal firms to siphon corporate and collective funds from the commission, amounting to over 1 billion Naira in 2023 alone.
The staff also alleged that despite the commission’s technical mandate, Gbenga and his cronies have wasted a staggering 900 million Naira on dubious ‘sensitization workshops’, a further 500 million Naira on office renovations and furniture
procurement, and an unconscionable 1.5 billion Naira on luxury transportation including private jet travel and first-class flights, in violation of presidential directives.
“In addition to these issues, the NUPRC under Gbenga is mired in infrastructural deficiencies and a decline in crude oil production, plunging from a daily production of 1.672M bopd in 2021 to a worrying average of 1.452M bopd. This decline speaks volumes about the mismanagement and incompetence of the NUPRC under Gbenga’s leadership.”
“This report represents the latest in a long line of scandals tied to the leadership of Engr. Komolafe Gbenga. It is high time for thorough scrutiny, forensic audit of the Commission and decisive action to end these outrageous abuses of power. The employees of the NUPRC and the people of Nigeria deserve better. The question that remains: will the authorities take action?”.
Meanwhile, when contacted for reaction, Head, Public Affairs Unit (PAU), of the commission, Adamu Garba, declined commenting on the matter.
When asked to comment on the issues, Garba said he was not in the know of the development, stressing that he had embarked on the leave for about a month period, however offered to provide the contact of his deputy, Carol Chika, who should be in a better positionto react to such request, aimed at balancing this report.
As at the time of filling this report, NUPRC’s head of PAU, failed to provide his deputy’s contact.
