In the unforgiving chessboard of Nigerian politics, victory is rarely claimed in the open. It is secured in the shadows through whispers, calculated delays, and the sudden placement of pieces where the opponent least expects them.
The recent appointment of Bayo Ojulari as the Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) is not an accident, nor is it a mere bureaucratic decision. It is, in every sense, a political ambush masterminded by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, and executed with the precision of a grandmaster cornering his rival’s king.
To the untrained eye, Ojulari’s emergence at the helm of Nigeria’s most strategic economic institution may seem routine. But in truth, it is the culmination of a carefully engineered infiltration of the nation’s economic nerve centre. Ojulari’s deep ties to Bashir Haske, Atiku’s son-in-law, confidant, and political operative, are no coincidence. This is not a simple case of “appointment by merit”; it is a deliberate positioning of an ally in a place where oil, power, and politics converge.
Atiku’s fingerprints are all over this manoeuvre. His political cunning is well known, but this move demonstrates an audacity that even seasoned observers find astonishing. By inserting Ojulari into the NNPCL’s leadership, Atiku has placed a trusted hand on the spigot of Nigeria’s petroleum wealth, the single most critical lever in shaping the country’s economic and political fortunes. This is influence without portfolio, control without visibility. It is the sort of move that can shift electoral tides without a single campaign poster.
And here lies the sting, this ambush was executed under the very nose of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, a man long regarded as one of the most astute political tacticians in Nigeria. Tinubu’s political reputation was built on spotting and neutralising threats before they crystallise. Yet, in this case, Atiku’s move slipped through undetected until it was too late, leaving the Presidency in a position of reactive defence.
The stakes could not be higher. With the 2027 general elections fast approaching, influence over the NNPCL is no small prize. Fuel pricing, crude export allocations, and multi-billion-dollar contract awards are tools that can tilt the political landscape. And while Ojulari’s tenure so far has been marred by policy reversals, erratic decision-making, and visible incompetence, this matters little to the man who placed him there. For Atiku, loyalty is the coin of the realm, competence can be an afterthought.
This is not the first time Atiku has outmanoeuvred a sitting administration. His ability to weave a web of influence across multiple regimes is the hallmark of a political survivor who refuses to fade into irrelevance. The Ojulari appointment is the latest in a long line of strategic infiltrations and a reminder that Atiku’s political playbook extends well beyond campaign rallies and public speeches.
Whether President Tinubu can undo this infiltration remains to be seen. But the lesson is clear: in Nigerian politics, the most decisive defeats are rarely announced; they are engineered quietly, revealed only when the consequences begin to bite.
In that sense, the Ojulari appointment is not just a staffing decision, it is a warning shot, a declaration that Atiku is not merely waiting for 2027; he is actively reshaping the battlefield now.
In this high-stakes game, one question now looms large: has Bola Tinubu, the master player, finally been ambushed by a greater strategist?
Professor Goni, writes in from Abuja.
