By Onwa Ekor
The National Patriotic Front for Tinubu, NPFFT, has called for an urgent review of the 2026 promotion exercise conducted by the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, NUPRC, over the alleged exclusion of Cross River indigenes.
The group made the call on Tuesday during a world press conference held at the Ernest Etim Bassey NUJ Press Centre, Calabar.
Addressing journalists, the Director-General of NPFFT, Castro Ezama, said no state should be excluded from opportunities in a federal institution and no qualified Nigerian should be denied fair consideration on the basis of state of origin.
He called on the Federal Character Commission, relevant Senate oversight committees and the Federal Government to review and correct the anomaly.
According to Ezama, information available to the group indicates that the NUPRC promoted 106 staff across four management levels – from Manager to Senior Manager, Senior Manager to Assistant Director, Assistant Director to Deputy Director, and Deputy Director to Director.
“We are informed that Cross River indigenes were represented at each of these levels, yet not one was promoted. We are further informed that every other South-South state recorded at least three successful officers in the same exercise. If these facts are confirmed by official records, the result is an extraordinary disparity that demands an immediate, transparent and independent review,” he said.
Ezama stressed that while federal character must operate alongside merit and cannot be used to reward unqualified candidates, the exercise must be able to withstand constitutional, administrative and professional scrutiny.
He appealed to the Presidency and other supervising authorities to ensure that federal institutions apply merit, due process and federal character fairly and transparently.
The NPFFT DG also urged the Chairmen of the Senate Committees on Petroleum Resources (Upstream) and Gas to give the matter a fair and timely hearing in line with their oversight responsibilities.
Giving a breakdown of the exercise, Ezama alleged that Rivers had eight officers promoted, Edo and Delta six each, while Bayelsa and Akwa Ibom had three each, whereas Cross River, with not less than seven officers due for promotion, had none.
He clarified that the press conference was not an attack on the NUPRC or its leadership, but a demand for facts, accountability and lawful redress.
“If the reported figures are inaccurate, NUPRC should publish the correct position. If the figures are accurate but the decisions were justified by consistently applied criteria, the Commission should demonstrate that through an independent review. If errors, bias, unequal treatment or non-compliance are established, the affected decisions should be corrected without delay,” he stated.
