Tinubu Requests Senate Approval for Oyedele as Finance Minister, Abe as NUPRC Chief

President Bola Tinubu has officially sent the Senate a request to screen and confirm Mr. Taiwo Oyedele as Minister of State for Finance, succeeding Dr. Doris Uzoka-Anite. The request was included in two letters read during plenary by Senate President Godswill Akpabio, with Tinubu noting that the nominations are part of ongoing adjustments within the Federal Executive Council.

Oyedele, who previously chaired the Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms, played a key role in efforts to reform Nigeria’s tax system. In the same letters, the President sought the Senate’s confirmation of former Rivers South-East senator Magnus Abe as chairman of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), following the resignation of Gbenga Komolafe.

In addition, Tinubu submitted two other nominees: Paul Yaro Jezhi, former chairman of the Trade Union Congress in Kaduna State, and Sunday Adebayo Babalola, a former deputy director at the now-defunct Department of Petroleum Resources. These appointments are part of broader leadership changes in crucial ministerial and regulatory positions.

The Senate is expected to carry out its constitutional responsibility by screening the candidates to verify their suitability. Confirming these appointments will strengthen the government’s oversight and management of the country’s fiscal and petroleum sectors.