The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL) has raised an alarm about an emerging coordinated sabotage campaign aimed at discrediting its new management and derailing its ongoing transformation. According to a communique from the NNPCL, a syndicate comprising both known and faceless actors, operating from within and outside the organization, is actively spreading lies and misinformation. Their tactics involve planting scandalous and fabricated reports designed to distract leadership, mislead the public, and undermine the commitment of its dedicated workforce. The NNPCL views these efforts as calculated attempts by those threatened by its reform, transparency, and accountability agenda, which is aligned with President Bola Tinubu's mandate for a corruption-free, performance-driven energy company. Despite anticipating a surge of defamatory content, the NNPCL remains undeterred, urging its staff, stakeholders, and patriotic Nigerians to stay focused as the transformation is underway.

This internal struggle unfolds amidst external scrutiny, particularly from the Nigerian Senate. The Senate Committee on Public Accounts, led by Mr. Aliyu Wadada, has expressed severe frustration with the NNPCL's handling of an audit query concerning alleged missing funds totaling N210 trillion. This investigation pertains to significant discrepancies in the company’s audited financial statements from 2017 to 2023, specifically N103 trillion listed as accrued expenses and N107 trillion as receivables. The NNPCL had requested two months to compile documents and cited a corporate retreat for its failure to appear, a response the committee deemed unacceptable and disrespectful. Mr. Adedapo Segun, the Chief Financial Officer of the NNPC, explained that the N107 trillion discrepancy stemmed from unreconciled Joint Venture (JV) cash calls due to governance delays. The committee has threatened to issue an arrest warrant for NNPCL's chief executive, Mr. Bayo Ojulari, if he fails to appear by July 10, 2025. This situation also follows reports of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) arresting former Chief Finance Officer Mr. Umar Ajiya Isa in connection with an alleged $7.2 billion fraud linked to refinery rehabilitation, charges Mr. Isa has denied.

In unrelated but equally significant national developments, the Competition and Consumer Protection Tribunal (CCPT) in Abuja recently dismissed a class action suit against MultiChoice Nigeria. The suit, filed by Uche Diala and 961 other DStv and GOtv subscribers, challenged MultiChoice’s subscription price increases in November 2023 and May 2024, which they described as arbitrary, exploitative, and unfair. The claimants sought to reverse these hikes and compel the company to adopt a pay-as-you-view billing model, accusing MultiChoice of price discrimination. MultiChoice, through its counsel, raised a preliminary objection, arguing that pricing decisions are not within the tribunal's remit and that the suit was improperly filed as a class action. The three-member panel, led by Justice Thomas Okosun, ruled that it lacked jurisdiction over the matter. The tribunal clarified that price regulation falls under the exclusive purview of the President, as stipulated by the Price Control Act, and while it holds jurisdiction under the FCCPC Act, this does not extend to general price control unless abuse of market dominance is established, which the claimants failed to prove. This ruling aligns with a prior Federal High Court decision from May 8, which also upheld MultiChoice's price increases, stating the FCCPC lacked the authority to fix or suspend subscription rates.

Concurrently, Nigeria is grappling with a severe environmental crisis caused by plastic waste, primarily due to a poor waste management culture. Mr. Sunday Kolawole Sholanke, co-founder and CEO of PETsPoint Recycling Nigeria, highlighted that Nigeria generates an estimated 596 million metric tonnes of waste annually, with a staggering 88 percent neither reclaimed nor recycled. This places Nigeria as the ninth-highest contributor to global plastic pollution, leading to extensive environmental damage, increased risks of flooding, climate disruption, and serious health hazards as plastic waste accumulates in landfills, drainage systems, and water bodies. Globally, over one million plastic bottles and ten million plastic bags are produced every minute, with less than 30 percent collected and under 10 percent recycled, leaving the vast majority to pollute the environment. Mr. Sholanke identified low public awareness and a lack of community collection infrastructure as key factors aggravating the crisis. During a Unity Bank webinar for World Environment Day 2025, experts called on the financial services sector to invest more proactively in green financing, offering affordable credit for eco-friendly initiatives. Omoh Alokwe of Street Waste Company Limited emphasized the critical role of regulators in strengthening enforcement and updating policy frameworks. Mr. Ibukun Coker, Head of Strategy and Innovation at Unity Bank, reiterated the bank's commitment to sustainable practices, recognizing plastic pollution not just as an environmental issue, but as an economic and public health crisis.