News
Failed Coup at NNPC: See Olatinbo Ayinde, facilitator of multibillion dollar deals involving Dezieani, Ibe Kachikwu, PPMC’s Haruna Momoh, her attempt to oust Ojulari from office
A devious plot, said to have been masterminded by Ms. Olatinbo Ayinde, to forcefully remove the Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) of the Nigeria National Petroleum Company (NNPCL), Bayo Ojulari from office, has failed.
Over the weekend, it was reported that Ojulari was literally abducted by a combined team of the Economic and financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Department of State Security (DSS) who forced him to sign a prepared resignation letter.
However, sources at the two anti-graft agencies later denied that such a thing happened, saying they neither abducted Ojulari, nor forced him to sign any document.
But, Ojulari, an oil industry guru and consummate reformer, resumed work at the Abuja headquarters of NNPCL on Monday.
Before his return to his duty post, the story that went round said he was forced to resign on allegation of financial infractions, including that money belonging to him was found with a close associate of opposition leader, Atiku Abubakar, among other speculative stories.
Facts later emerged which made it clear that those allegations were deliberate lies, concocted and spread, to mislead the public and tarnish Ojulari’s enviable reputation.
Emerging facts also revealed that the plot to remove the NNPCL boss was hatched by a powerful oil industry cabal led by Ms. Olatinbo Ayinde, described as a mistress of a top government functionary in the presidency who worked clandestinely to remove Ojulari from office.
It was also said that Ms. Ayinde almost succeeded in using the EFCC and DSS, to remove Ojulari and to replace him with one Mr. Robinson Ewubare, a former Group Chief Operating Officer (GCOO) at NNPCL, believing he would be at her mercy to do her biddings.
It would be recalled that Ewubare recently resigned his appointment through WhatsApp message he personally sent to Ojularu but is still hanging around waiting for Ojulari’s ouster so he can take over the GCEC’s position.
The NNPCL power game played on for two days before Senator Oluremi Tinubu, wife of the President and First Lady of Nigeria reportedly got wind of Ms. Ayinde’s desperate and ambitious moves, stepped in and halted Ojulari’s persecution.
WHO IS MS. OLATINBO AYINDE?
According to her media handlers, Olatimbo Ayinde is a UK based business women who deals on oil, energy and logistics. She is said to be the ‘principal promoter and founding member of Dutchford Exploration and Production.
However, Ms. Ayinde has been described as a notorious influence peddler who has been at the centre of many multi-million Dollar corrupt deals involving prominent Nigerians in various economic fronts, mostly the nation’s oil and gas sub-sectors.
She is currently facing trial in the United Kingdom for alleged multibillion-Naira bribery deal involving former Petroleum Minister, Dezieani Alison-Madueke and former minister of state, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu. She was accused of been the facilitator of multimillion Dollars-bribe involving the two former top officials, as well as another case in which a former Managing Director of PPMC,
Haruna Momoh was alleged to have stolen over N2billion belonging to Nigeria.
In all these, Ayinda is said to be the deal anchor who facilitates dubious businesses, fix amount of money, in Dollars and Pounds to bribe Chief Executive Officers and other men/women of power and influence.
Only recently, the UK authorities were reported to be angry and furious with executives of Nigeria’s anti-graft agencies for not being as fast as expected in availing evidences in the trial of Olatinbo Ayinla as they hugely rely on evidences from Nigeria to nail her.
This was even as the agencies failed to turn over key evidence in the ongoing corruption trial of Ayinde, described in one report as a notorious influence-peddler.
Although Ayinde has been fixing high profile business deals and cutting large sum of money for herself for the past 20 years, she was the emergence of President Bola Tinubu as an opportunity to further assert herself and take a total grip of the Nigeria’s oil industry, therefore the plot and push to remove Bayo Ojulari and plant her own preferred candidate, named by a source to be Ewubare, the Group Chief Operating Officer (GCOO) at NNPCL who recently resigned from the company through text message but now making frantic efforts to return as the CEO.
According to the UK Crown Prosecution Service, Ms Ayinde delivered at least N1.3 billion in cash bribes to Mr Kachikwu while he served as minister under President Muhammadu Buhari. She was charged alongside Diezani Alison-Madueke, whom she allegedly bribed heavily in separate deals preceding the N1.3 billion to Mr Kachikwu.
Report also had it that British authorities had in 2024 sent letters to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, requesting details of Ms Ayinde’s bribes to Mr Kachikwu for use in the trial before Justice Justine Thornton of the High Court of England. The EFCC’s endorsement of the incriminating documents was required to be admissible in British courts.
“British officials had already guided Nigerian officials on how to obtain the files, and Justice Thornton, on November 25, 2024, gave them a deadline of June 2, 2025, to obtain the evidence ahead of the January 2026 trial at the King’s Bench Division.
However, despite getting the request for legal assistance on time, sources in EFCC said they were being frustrated from accessing the required trial documents due to Ayinde’s closeness to power and the influence she wields.
“They’re telling us to look away while pretending otherwise. Maybe they think it’s the only way they could help a woman so close to …, yet so close to being sent to jail for fraud,” a senior official was quoted to have said.
Another report also named Attorney-General Lateef Fagbemi as directing the stalling of the records transfer, saying he didn’t seem to care whether or not Nigeria’s mutual legal assistance deal with the UK was violated.
But while she is expected to appear in the UK court on January 19, next year, Ms. Ayinde wanted to quickly grab a hold on Nigeria’s major cash how which would have availed her extra power and cash to fight her way out of the numerous bribery, money laundering and other fraud and other corruption related cases hanging on her neck.
Business
Dangote Refinery to supply 1.5bn litres of petrol monthly
….Writes NMDPRA, Engages Marketers to Stabilise Fuel Market
Photo caption: L R: Chief Executive Officer, Dangote Fertiliser Limited, Vishwajit Sinha; Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director, Dangote Petroleum Refinery, David Bird; President and Chief Executive, Dangote Industries Ltd, Aliko Dangote; Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, South South Development Commission, Usoro Akpabio, during the visit of SSDC members to the Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Fertiliser Plant in Lagos on Sunday, November 30, 2025.
Dangote Petroleum Refinery has announced plans to supply one billion five hundred million litres of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) monthly to the Nigerian market in December 2025 and January 2026, a move aimed at ensuring uninterrupted nationwide fuel availability through the festive season and into the New Year.
President and Chief Executive of Dangote Industries Limited, Aliko Dangote, disclosed the plans at the weekend, noting that the refinery will make available 50 million litres of PMS daily beginning December 1.
“In line with our commitment to national wellbeing, and consistent with our track record of ensuring a holiday season free of fuel scarcity, the Dangote Petroleum Refinery will supply 1.5 billion litres of PMS to the Nigerian market this month. This represents 50 million litres per day. We are formally notifying the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) of this commitment. We will supply another 1.5 billion litres in January and increase to 1.7 billion litres in February, which translates to about 60 million litres per day,” Dangote said.
Photo caption: L R: President and Chief Executive, Dangote Industries Ltd, Aliko Dangote; Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, South South Development Commission, Usoro Akpabio, during the visit of SSDC members to the Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Fertiliser Plant in Lagos on Sunday, November 30, 2025.
Speaking during a visit by the South-South Development Commission (SSDC) to the refinery and the Dangote Fertiliser complex, he stated that the facility currently has adequate stock and is producing between 40 and 45 million litres of PMS daily. He added that the daily supply of 50 million litres should dispel long-standing claims that domestic refineries lack the capacity to meet national demand.
Dangote also revealed ongoing engagement with petroleum marketers to strengthen distribution systems, including expanding the use of CNG-powered haulage.
“Our priority is to ensure Nigeria receives the products it needs. This is not driven by profit motives; it is about guaranteeing the availability of essential energy products. It is similar to the transformation we delivered in the cement sector,” he added.
He further noted that the refinery is progressing with its expansion plan to reach a capacity of 1.4 million barrels per day. More than 100,000 workers are expected to be involved in the expansion of both the refinery and the fertiliser complex. Dangote emphasised that the Group remains committed to its vision, driven by the strong public support for the company’s role in shaping Nigeria’s economic development.
During the visit, the Managing Director of SSDC, Usoro Offiong Akpabio, commended Dangote’s leadership and his continued contribution to strengthening Nigeria’s industrial capability, national energy security and long-term economic competitiveness.
She described the South-South region as Nigeria’s natural energy corridor, with vast crude oil reserves, gas infrastructure, maritime assets, agro-industrial activity and emerging industrial clusters. She noted that deeper collaboration between the region and the Dangote Group could unlock opportunities in product distribution, CNG infrastructure, petrochemicals, agriculture, and employment creation.
Akpabio added that such partnerships would advance the Federal Government’s energy stability agenda and position the South-South as a strategic growth hub for the Dangote Group.
“As the statutory development body for the South-South, SSDC is mandated to drive regional economic development, infrastructure integration, human capital advancement, and private-sector–led growth. In this regard, we stand prepared to support State-level policy and regulatory support for Ease-of-doing-business across our six states. Enabling environments for Dangote Group’s expansion into strategic sectors such as gas processing, agro-industrial value chains, renewable energy, logistics, and export-oriented manufacturing,” she said.
In a letter from the refinery’s Managing Director, David Bird, to the Authority Chief Executive of the NMDPRA, the company reaffirmed its readiness to host NMDPRA officials onsite at the refinery from December 1st to verify and publish its daily supply volumes. The refinery also sought the Authority’s support to ensure unhindered importation of crude, feedstocks and blending components, as well as smooth vessel loading for product evacuation.
“In the spirit of full transparency to the public we are willing to publish our daily production and stock volumes (online and print media),” Bird stated. “We seek the full support of NMDPRA to allow Dangote refinery to import our crude, feedstocks and blending components unhindered as well as support the lifting of our products by vessel. We continue to experience delays in vessel clearance which impacts not only the refinery operations but also our customers, adding unnecessary costs and inefficiencies”.
By Bonaventure Phillips Melah
Photo caption: L R: Chief Executive Officer, Dangote Fertiliser Limited, Vishwajit Sinha; Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director, Dangote Petroleum Refinery, David Bird; President and Chief Executive, Dangote Industries Ltd, Aliko Dangote; Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, South South Development Commission, Usoro Akpabio, during the visit of SSDC members to the Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Fertiliser Plant in Lagos on Sunday, November 30, 2025.
Dangote Petroleum Refinery has announced plans to supply one billion five hundred million litres of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) monthly to the Nigerian market in December 2025 and January 2026, a move aimed at ensuring uninterrupted nationwide fuel availability through the festive season and into the New Year.
President and Chief Executive of Dangote Industries Limited, Aliko Dangote, disclosed the plans at the weekend, noting that the refinery will make available 50 million litres of PMS daily beginning December 1.
“In line with our commitment to national wellbeing, and consistent with our track record of ensuring a holiday season free of fuel scarcity, the Dangote Petroleum Refinery will supply 1.5 billion litres of PMS to the Nigerian market this month. This represents 50 million litres per day. We are formally notifying the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) of this commitment. We will supply another 1.5 billion litres in January and increase to 1.7 billion litres in February, which translates to about 60 million litres per day,” Dangote said.

Photo caption: LR: President and Chief Executive, Dangote Industries Ltd, Aliko Dangote; Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, South South Development Commission, Usoro Akpabio, during the visit of SSDC members to the Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Fertiliser Plant in Lagos on Sunday, November 30, 2025.
Speaking during a visit by the South-South Development Commission (SSDC) to the refinery and the Dangote Fertiliser complex, he stated that the facility currently has adequate stock and is producing between 40 and 45 million litres of PMS daily. He added that the daily supply of 50 million litres should dispel long-standing claims that domestic refineries lack the capacity to meet national demand.
Dangote also revealed ongoing engagement with petroleum marketers to strengthen distribution systems, including expanding the use of CNG-powered haulage.
“Our priority is to ensure Nigeria receives the products it needs. This is not driven by profit motives; it is about guaranteeing the availability of essential energy products. It is similar to the transformation we delivered in the cement sector,” he added.
He further noted that the refinery is progressing with its expansion plan to reach a capacity of 1.4 million barrels per day. More than 100,000 workers are expected to be involved in the expansion of both the refinery and the fertiliser complex. Dangote emphasised that the Group remains committed to its vision, driven by the strong public support for the company’s role in shaping Nigeria’s economic development.
During the visit, the Managing Director of SSDC, Usoro Offiong Akpabio, commended Dangote’s leadership and his continued contribution to strengthening Nigeria’s industrial capability, national energy security and long-term economic competitiveness.
She described the South-South region as Nigeria’s natural energy corridor, with vast crude oil reserves, gas infrastructure, maritime assets, agro-industrial activity and emerging industrial clusters. She noted that deeper collaboration between the region and the Dangote Group could unlock opportunities in product distribution, CNG infrastructure, petrochemicals, agriculture, and employment creation.
Akpabio added that such partnerships would advance the Federal Government’s energy stability agenda and position the South-South as a strategic growth hub for the Dangote Group.
“As the statutory development body for the South-South, SSDC is mandated to drive regional economic development, infrastructure integration, human capital advancement, and private-sector–led growth. In this regard, we stand prepared to support State-level policy and regulatory support for Ease-of-doing-business across our six states. Enabling environments for Dangote Group’s expansion into strategic sectors such as gas processing, agro-industrial value chains, renewable energy, logistics, and export-oriented manufacturing,” she said.
In a letter from the refinery’s Managing Director, David Bird, to the Authority Chief Executive of the NMDPRA, the company reaffirmed its readiness to host NMDPRA officials onsite at the refinery from December 1st to verify and publish its daily supply volumes. The refinery also sought the Authority’s support to ensure unhindered importation of crude, feedstocks and blending components, as well as smooth vessel loading for product evacuation.
“In the spirit of full transparency to the public we are willing to publish our daily production and stock volumes (online and print media),” Bird stated. “We seek the full support of NMDPRA to allow Dangote refinery to import our crude, feedstocks and blending components unhindered as well as support the lifting of our products by vessel. We continue to experience delays in vessel clearance which impacts not only the refinery operations but also our customers, adding unnecessary costs and inefficiencies”.
News
Gunmen abduct five in Enugu community
Some women in Ezimo community, Udenu Local Government Area of Enugu State, on Saturday, staged a protest over the alleged kidnap of five residents and the shooting of another during an attack on the community.
The protesters, who marched through major parts of the community, said the incident had heightened fear and insecurity in the area.
One victim of the attack is currently receiving treatment in the hospital.
A social media influencer, ‘Sen.’ Chijinkem Ugwuanyi, made this known via Facebook on Saturday.
Ugwuanyi revealed that resident who confirmed the incident said recent cases of abductions and shootings had left the community unsafe, prompting the women to demand urgent government intervention.
In a video shared on Ugwuanyi’s Facebook page, the protesters called on the Enugu State Government and security agencies to step in and restore peace, warning that residents could no longer live under constant fear of attacks.
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