The leader of the Niger Delta Ethnic Nationalities, Jonathan Lokpobiri on Tuesday mobilised youths from the region to stage a protest at the headquarters of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) in Abuja, calling for the removal of the Group Chief Executive Officer, Engr. Bashir Bayo Ojulari, and the Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), Engr. Felix Omatsola Ogbe.
The protesters accused both top officials of non-performance and financial mismanagement, alleging that their leadership has failed to deliver visible benefits to the Niger Delta despite the region being the mainstay of Nigeria’s oil wealth.
Carrying placards with inscriptions such as “Sack Ineffective Leaders” and “The Niger Delta Deserves Accountability”, the youths chanted solidarity songs as they demanded government action against what they described as “systemic neglect and administrative failure.”
Speaking to journalists during the protest, Lokpobiri said the region has continued to suffer underdevelopment, environmental degradation, and exclusion from key oil and gas decision-making processes despite years of promises from successive administrations.
“The NNPCL and NCDMB under their current leadership have shown no meaningful progress in tackling the real issues facing our people,” he declared. “From rising oil theft to lack of transparency in project execution, what we see is failure wrapped in bureaucracy. We demand change now.”
Lokpobiri alleged that billions meant for local content development and oil sector reforms have not translated into tangible results for oil-bearing communities, insisting that an independent audit should be conducted to expose the scale of mismanagement.
He listed four key demands from the protesters:
- The immediate sack of Ojulari and Ogbe
- A forensic audit of NNPCL and NCDMB finances.
- Direct inclusion of Niger Delta youths in oil sector governance.
- Urgent intervention from President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to address what they termed “gross leadership failure.”
Ojulari, appointed as NNPCL GCEO in April 2025, came into the office with promises of driving efficiency and transparency in the national oil company.
Ogbe, who has been leading the NCDMB since December 2023, has championed local content initiatives and represented Nigeria at regional oil and gas forums.
Lokpobiri argued that whatever achievements they claim at the federal level have not translated to practical improvements in Niger Delta communities. “We still live with poverty, unemployment, pollution, and lack of infrastructure while our resources are carted away,” he said.
Lokpobiri warned that the demonstration marked only the beginning of a broader mobilisation across the Niger Delta. “This is just the first step,” he said. “If nothing changes, we will take this campaign back home and sustain it until justice is done.”
The action underscores deepening frustrations in the region, where resource control, equity in oil wealth distribution, and accountability from federal agencies remain contentious issues.
