The House of Representatives, on Wednesday, approved an investigation into a petition from the Ohanaeze Ndi Igbo Youth Council (OYC) seeking the removal of Mrs. Sophia Mbakwe, Executive Vice President (Business Services) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), over alleged misrepresentation of the South-East region on the company’s management board.
The petition, presented by the chairman of the House Committee on Petroleum Resources (Downstream), Hon. Ikenga Imo Ugochinyere, accused Mrs. Mbakwe of occupying a position designated for the South-East despite not being from the region.
According to the OYC, the appointment of Mrs. Mbakwe, who hails from Edo State in the South-South, “is an obvious disregard for the federal character principle” enshrined in the 1999 Constitution (as amended).
The petition, signed by Comrade Igboayaka Igboayaka, President of OYC, and Comrade Ifeanyichukwu Nweke, the group’s Secretary-General, stated, “We write on behalf of the Ohanaeze Youth Council (OYC), an Igbo youths socio-cultural organization, to petition against the appointment of Sophia Mbakwe as Executive Vice President of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) to represent the South East region of Nigeria on the Board. Following the recent appointment of a new management team for the NNPCL on Friday, 7th November 2025, the Ohanaeze Youth Council has observed an obvious disregard of the South East Region in the composition of the members of the management team of the NNPCL in line with the federal character principle enshrined in the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (As Amended).”
The group further argued that Mrs. Mbakwe “is not from the South-East, neither is she married to a South-Easterner,” adding that “she hails from Edo State in the South-South region of Nigeria.”
“Accordingly, we humbly call upon you to use your good offices to address this issue and call upon the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to immediately correct this misnomer by replacing her with a proper indigene of the South East region of Nigeria,” the petition read.
The OYC also urged the National Assembly to uphold equity and fairness by ensuring that the South-East is duly represented on the NNPCL management team.
“We call for immediate removal of Sophia Mbakwe from the management team of the NNPC Limited for not being an indigene of the South East region of the country, in line with the need to reflect the federal character principle in line with the provisions of the Constitution,” the petition further demanded.
After the petition was laid, the Speaker of the House, Rt. Hon. Tajudeen Abbas, consequently referred the matter to the House Committee on Public Petitions for investigation and further legislative action.
