Is Nigeria Winding Up for Grab by Vested Interests? By Umar Sani
Nigeria stands once again on the edge of a tragic misadventure. The Federal Government, through the Ministry of Petroleum Incorporated (MOPI) and the Ministry of Finance Incorporated (MOFI), is plotting to dispose of some of the nation’s crown jewels—its equity in strategic upstream oil and gas joint ventures. At the same time, there is an active push to amend the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), a law barely two years old. Both actions, if allowed to proceed, threaten not just the economy but Nigeria’s sovereignty, stability, and future.
The plan is as brazen as it is reckless. In the Renaissance Africa Energy Company Joint Venture (RAEC JV), Nigeria currently holds 55% equity. Out of this, 25% is to be sold to Sterling Global Oil Company, an Indian firm, leaving Nigeria with a diminished 30%. In the Oando JV, the government proposes to dispose of 25% of its 60% stake—handing it directly to Oando itself, led by Wale Tinubu. In the Seplat Energy Producing Nigeria Unlimited JV, 35% of the government’s 60% equity will be ceded to a company linked to Gilbert Chagoury, leaving the federation with just 25%.
These joint ventures are not just financial shares on paper. They are the backbone of Nigeria’s oil and gas sector, guaranteeing foreign exchange inflows, government revenue, jobs, technology transfer, skills, and national security. By ceding control to a privileged clique and their foreign partners, the government risks auctioning off the very soul of the Nigerian economy. Once lost, such assets will be nearly impossible to recover. Worse still, this “fire sale” sets a dangerous precedent that could embolden future administrations to dispose of other critical national assets, robbing generations unborn of their rightful inheritance.
Equally alarming is the government’s rush to amend the Petroleum Industry Act. The PIA was painstakingly designed to bring stability, transparency, and predictability to Nigeria’s oil and gas sector after decades of uncertainty. Yet, barely out of the cradle, it is now under assault. Sections 8, 9, 53, 63, 64, and 85 are reportedly targeted for amendment. The underlying motive is clear: to transfer deepwater resources into the hands of a few insiders. Such reckless tampering undermines investor confidence, erodes trust, and paints Nigeria as a lawless terrain where even landmark reforms are disposable at the whims of those in power. This signals not reform but regression.
Is Nigeria so bankrupt that pawning off its most valuable assets has become the only option? Why the indecent haste to strip the nation bare at a time when the economy is already gasping for survival? How far will this administration go before even Aso Rock is mortgaged for soft loans with punishing terms? These are not idle fears. The pattern unfolding suggests liquidation disguised as governance. President Bola Tinubu, rather than being seen as a national leader, is increasingly appearing as Nigeria’s chief liquidator.
Yet, amid the gloom, there is a flicker of hope. Some patriotic insiders within the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) have raised the alarm. These whistleblowers, at great personal risk, have exposed the dangerous deals being dressed up as policy. Their courage must be commended. They remind us that Nigeria is not yet bereft of voices willing to defend the national interest. But their voices alone are not enough. The burden falls on all citizens, civil society, labour unions, professional bodies, and the media to rise in unison.
These assets do not belong to a ruling clique or their cronies; they belong to the Nigerian people. To sell them off in secrecy is to betray the very foundation of our collective existence. If this brazen fire sale is not halted, Nigeria risks winding up as a state—liquidated in pieces for the benefit of a few. Once that process begins, the journey back to sovereignty and economic independence will be long, costly, and perhaps impossible. The time to resist is now.
By Umar Sani
@UmarSanithecat