BEHOLD! NNPC'S QUEEN OF FRAUD AND CORRUPTION

Ms. Anthony

When it comes to forgery, fraud and illegal sales of Nigeria’s crude oil, one name readily comes to mind. Sena Anthony, a Lagos chieftaincy title holder and head of the Corporate and Legal Department of the NNPC. One who knows the inner workings of the Nigerian petroleum industry and has capitalized on the same reality to connive and make herself an accessory before and after the fact of the huge corruption and loss of Billions of Dollars to both domestic and international players in the Nigerian oil corporation. The question on every lip at this point is who is Sena Anthony? Sena Anthony studied and graduated in Law at the University of Lagos and was called to the Nigerian Bar in 1974. She has over 27 years as in-house counsel to the NNPC. In 1999, she became the Group General Manager, Corporate, Legal Affairs and Secretary to the Corporation, making her one of the most powerful women in Corporate Africa.

She readily made herself available as a questionable bulwark for various entrenched interest within the NNPC. She was always a vital link between different epochs and administration within NNPC and the nation’s leaderships at large. When former President Olusegun Obasanjo decreed himself as the head of the Nigerian oil industry Ms. Anthony was a willing and ready minion. It therefore was no surprise when at a point busy tongues started suggesting there was an affair between this strong woman and President Obasanjo. There has never been any confirmation or denial of such speculation. What is certain is that the Yeye Olofin of Lagos has never drawn a clear limit to being more than honest in protecting the nation’s interest and using whatsoever means to get a desired end. Maybe it is a flaw in her character or perhaps a nefarious enthusiasm to please the powerful people in successive administration; she runs the legal nitty-gritty at NNPC in a way that has terribly scared Nigeria’s international image when it comes to doing business.

When most prospective foreign partners view her antecedent actions, they arrive at the predictable and logical conclusion that Nigeria is a nation of fraudsters who bend the laws to accomplish their every whim and caprice. Yet we know Nigeria is a country of great and at times over-achieving people. Nigeria is greater than Sena Anthony who has taken advantage of her position at the NNPC to line her pockets at the expense of her fellow countrymen.