President Tinubu Nominates Board Members for NMDPRA and NUPRC
By Naija Enquirer Staff
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has written to the Senate, seeking confirmation of 21 nominees for appointment into the governing boards of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) and the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC).
In the first letter addressed to the upper legislative chamber, the President nominated former senator Magnus Abe to serve as chairman of the NUPRC board.
Mr Abe represented Rivers South-East Senatorial District for two terms and previously served as a member of the board of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC). He is currently the chairman of the National Agency of the Great Green Wall.
NUPRC Board Nominees
Other nominees to the NUPRC board include Engineer Paul Yaro Jezhi, a former chairman of the Trade Union Congress (TUC) in Kaduna State, and Mr Sunday Adebayo Babalola, a former deputy director at the defunct Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR), which was dissolved following the enactment of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) in 2021. Both are nominated as non-executive commissioners.
President Tinubu also nominated several executive commissioners to the commission’s board.
The nominees are Muhammed Sabo Lamido as executive commissioner for finance; Mr Edu Inyang as executive commissioner for exploration and acreage; Justin Ezeala as executive commissioner for economic regulation and strategic planning; and Henry Darlington Oki as executive commissioner for development and production.
Others include Indabawa Bashari Alka as executive commissioner for corporate services and administration; Mahmood Tijani as executive commissioner for health, safety and environment; and Ms Olayemi Adeboyejo, who is nominated to serve as secretary and legal adviser to the commission.
New and Returning Appointments
Mr Lamido and Ms Adeboyejo were initially appointed in 2022 by former President Muhammadu Buhari, while Mr Alka was appointed by President Tinubu in 2023.
Mr Inyang, Mr Ezeala, Mr Tijani, Mr Babalola and Engineer Jezhi are new appointees of President Tinubu.
The nominations are in line with the provisions of the Petroleum Industry Act, which established the NUPRC and NMDPRA as independent regulators for Nigeria’s upstream and midstream/downstream petroleum sectors.
Confirmation by the Senate is required before the nominees can formally assume their respective roles.
