C & L Smart Energy Solutions has called on President Bola Tinubu to initiate a full-scale investigation into the activities of the Presidential Compressed Natural Gas Initiative (PCNGI) under the leadership of Engr. Michael Oluwagbemi.
The company made the appeal in a statement released yesterday in response to Premium Times’ investigative report exposing widespread corruption and malpractice within the initiative.
The July 5 exposé uncovered black market diversions, inflated costs, and serious conflicts of interest allegedly plaguing the PCNGI, an initiative launched to drive Nigeria’s transition to cleaner, more affordable energy.
“These findings are not only disturbing—they validate what many stakeholders have quietly warned about for months,” C & L Smart Energy said.
The Abuja-based company, which operates Nigeria’s largest CNG conversion centre, accused the previous leadership of enabling “Insider profiteering, internal sabotage, and policy inconsistencies” that have derailed the programme’s goals.
C & L commended President Tinubu’s broader energy reforms and applauded his recent appointment of Barrister Ismael Ahmed as executive chairman of PCNGI.
“This is a courageous first step,” the statement read. “But we urge the President to go further by launching a full investigation into Engr. Oluwagbemi’s tenure. Only with truth, transparency, and accountability can this dream be restored.”
The company further revealed that it had previously raised alarms about the initiative’s structural failures but was instead suspended from the programme.
“We have spoken publicly and privately about the issues, only to be sidelined. But the truth is now out. What we said then was not sabotage, it was foresight,” the company asserted.
C & L warned that the ongoing mismanagement threatens to squander CNG’s immense potential to transform Nigeria’s economy.
“Compressed Natural Gas can reduce fuel costs by up to 60%, empower commercial transporters, cut emissions, and create thousands of skilled jobs,” the firm said.
“But all this is being lost to inflated procurement models and a lack of transparency. It’s time to act.”
