A coalition of Niger Delta youth leaders on Wednesday staged a protest at the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) Towers in Abuja, demanding the resignation of the Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO), Engr. Bashir Bayo Ojulari, over alleged corruption and mismanagement.
The protesters also called for the appointment of an indigene of the Niger Delta as the next head of the national oil company.
Arriving at the NNPCL headquarters as early as 6 a.m., the youths blocked both the entrance and exit gates of the Towers. They carried banners with bold inscriptions and sang solidarity songs, accompanied by music from a local orchestra and loudspeakers mounted on a truck stationed nearby.
The demonstration disrupted traffic flow along the busy Herbert Macaulay Way in the Central Business District. Security operatives, including police officers deployed to the scene, appealed to the protesters to remain peaceful and worked to divert vehicles onto one lane of the dual carriageway.
Workers were forced to park their vehicles some distance away, as access to the Towers was restricted.
Following an appeal from a representative of the Minister of State for Petroleum (Oil), Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, the protesters cleared the highway and moved toward the exit gate of the NNPCL complex. This allowed the full reopening of the road to traffic.
Despite the disruptions, the protest remained largely peaceful.
