Aggrieved Ex-staff Demand Audit of NNPC Lagos Cooperative

Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja


Aggrieved members of the NNPC Staff Cooperative Multipurpose Society, Lagos branch, yesterday lamented their inability to access the fund for years, calling for a forensic audit of the organisation.


Speaking during a press conference in Abuja, the group led by Ante Ante and Odey Ochicha, as well as a retired NNPC employee, Bob-Manuel Kons, accused the current leadership of the cooperative of refusal to conduct its Annual General Meetings (AGMs) as required by law.


Ante stated that for over 10 years, members had not received dividends and monies contributed, which he said defeats the essence of a cooperative society, which is to provide assistance in times of financial emergencies.


He argued that it was inexplicable that the cooperative society which  declared N96 million as surplus in 2021, recorded a loss of N806 million by 2022.


“Those who retired, who have needs, to even pull out their savings, are unable to, because the money is not there. If you go for a loan, they will tell you, wait. If you want to withdraw, you cannot get a withdrawal, no dividend is paid,” he lamented.


He maintained that the current caretaker committee of the Lagos state chapter of the cooperative society was constituted illegally,  without following due process of convening a congress or Annual General Meeting (AGM).


Ante, therefore appealed to the management of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) and the Lagos state government to work with the group in the interest of the cooperative members.


He added: “We want to tell the world that all is not well with this cooperative society. We want the management of NNPC, Lagos State government, Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment to cooperate with us.”


In his intervention, an NNPC retiree and a former President of the Lagos State Chapter of the cooperative society, Odey Ochicha, said that the group was on a rescue mission, disclosing that the management committee was yet to hold an AGM for years.


He called for transparency, accountability, due diligence and justice to save cooperators funds, stressing that his contribution to the cooperative has been stuck for years and describing the situation as a betrayal of trust.


“You are managing the resources of NNPC staff, both serving and retired. We contribute our hard-earned money every month, and then nothing comes out of it. So, we are not happy about that. We are on a rescue mission. There has been no AGM since 2023, yet people claim to be elected. We want transparency, accountability, and justice,” he stated.


Also, a member of the group, Kons, said that he retired from NNPC in 2020, but was yet to access his over N15 million, expressing frustration over the cooperative’s operations.


“I have N15 million in savings I’ve not been able to access for six years. That money could’ve changed my life. Instead, we are told there is a surplus but we can’t get a kobo,” he stressed.


Another NNPC retiree and member of the group, Bola Babalola, who retired in 2021, said that the management committee of the cooperative was illegally constituted and called for a properly constituted leadership.