Let Bashir Ojulari Drive NNPC Reforms By Abdullahi Mohammed
In the theatre of power, suspicion is often the currency of influence, and contrived narratives are the blades with which reputations are severed.
In recent days, the name of Bashir Bayo Ojulari, Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited, has been thrust into the arena of orchestrated speculation. A string of rumours — some dressed up as news — has been peddled with theatrical suspense and cloaked in unverified claims, threatening to erode the credibility of a man whose only “offence” appears to be his refusal to bow before the altar of entrenched interests.
Some of these reports read less like journalism and more like verdicts without trial. Laden with insinuations instead of evidence, they proclaim Ojulari’s days in office to be numbered — his supposed crime being nothing more than a professional interaction with Abdullahi Bashir-Haske, son-in-law to a former Vice-President. In our current climate, it seems competence can be condemned simply by association.
No crime has been proven. No breach of law established. Yet the public is being fed a script more fitting for a political thriller than a sober discourse on the management of the nation’s oil wealth. The innuendo is that Ojulari, through transactions involving a company led by a man married to a former Vice-President’s daughter, is “sleeping with the enemy.” This is not intelligence; it is paranoia in masquerade.
Consider that the daughter of the National Security Adviser (NSA), Malam Nuhu Ribadu, is married to the son of a former Vice-President — yet Nigeria has recorded remarkable progress in security under his watch. Clearly, family connections do not automatically translate to compromised national service.
To argue that a legitimate business transaction between NNPC and a private energy company amounts to betrayal because of familial ties is to criminalise commerce. Nigeria’s economy thrives on intersecting relationships. In a country where almost everyone is someone’s relative, neighbour, schoolmate, or colleague, disqualifying partnerships on the basis of political lineage is to throw merit into the abyss of absurdity.
Ojulari was not appointed to appease a faction or dance to a political tune. He was chosen because he embodies a rare blend of international and indigenous expertise. In his brief time at NNPC, he has begun shifting the narrative from opacity to accountability. His leadership has introduced fresh air into a space long suffocated by backroom deals and entrenched power blocs. But the deeper he digs into reform, the louder the resistance grows — a telling sign that he is confronting interests that have long thrived in the shadows.
His emergence came at a critical juncture: post-Petroleum Industry Act, post-corporatisation, and post-public confidence. He inherited a system bloated by inefficiency and allergic to change. Instead of serving as a ceremonial head, he rolled up his sleeves, dismantling empires built on excess, initiating audits, trimming fat, and tackling inefficiencies. These are not the actions of a compromised man — they are the marks of a reformer who understands that real progress requires stepping on toes.
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In Plato’s allegory of the cave, those chained in darkness often attack the one who escapes to see the light. Ojulari is that figure — the man who broke free from institutional complacency to glimpse what real reform could be. Those still tethered to the old ways are now trying to drag him back into the shadows. They will not succeed unless we let them.
The allegations of political betrayal are not only baseless but laughably shallow. Business dealings between NNPC and AA&R Investment Group predate Ojulari’s tenure. That the company’s founder is related by marriage to a political figure does not amount to treason. Such reasoning is scandal-by-stretching — the favourite pastime in a country where conspiracy is currency.
Worse still is the attempt to portray an alleged EFCC “investigation” as a conclusive indictment. No formal accusation has been made against Ojulari, and no judicial process has found him guilty. Yet the mere whisper of a probe is now enough to trigger headlines, fuel speculation, and invite character assassination. This is not justice; it is trial by hearsay.
Investigations, if they exist, are meant to establish facts, not frame scapegoats. If every reformer is hounded out of office because an anonymous source whispers to the media, we are setting a precedent that will scare away the very technocrats we claim to need. What message does this send to future leaders? That excellence will be punished? That patriotism must be filtered through political loyalty? That suspicion will always triumph over truth?
Ojulari’s track record speaks louder than rumours. From his impeccable leadership at SNEPCo to his current restructuring efforts at NNPC, his career is defined by competence, not controversy. He was appointed on merit, not as a political pawn. Since taking office, his focus has remained firmly on the national interest.
Those engineering his downfall are not patriots — they are beneficiaries of stagnation. They seek to tarnish him not because he has failed, but precisely because he has dared to succeed. In Ojulari, they see a threat to the comfort of old habits, preferential deals, and informal power networks. And so they beat the drums of false outrage, hoping that noise will replace reason.
Nigerians must not be co-opted into this theatre of deceit. We must insist on facts, not fables. If there is evidence, let it be presented. If there is a case, let it be prosecuted. But to rely on speculation, conflate business with betrayal, and turn legitimate transactions into charges of treachery is nothing more than gangsterism disguised as guardianship.
Ojulari deserves more than a whisper campaign. He deserves a fair hearing, not a fixed narrative. His reforms at NNPC deserve encouragement, not ambush. His commitment to transforming Nigeria’s energy sector into a globally respected enterprise deserves applause, not suspicion.
Let it be clear: Ojulari is not the problem — he is part of the solution. If we allow him to be taken down by whispers and insinuations, we will only confirm Nigeria’s tragic tendency to destroy reformers before they can deliver.
Reputation is fragile, and trust even more so. But shadows do not stain the sun. Ojulari stands tall today not because he is flawless, but because he has dared to be different. And in these times, difference is dangerous — which is precisely why they fear him.
History will vindicate. Facts will outlive fiction. And when the fog of propaganda clears, Nigeria may well realise that it came dangerously close to losing a national asset — not because he failed, but because he refused to fail those who placed their hope in him.
Let Ojulari work. Let integrity triumph. Let the sun rise.
Abdullahi Mohammed writes from Abuja.
