By Boluwatife Oshadiya | March 10, 2026
Key Points
- President Bola Tinubu asks Senate to confirm Taiwo Oyedele as Minister of State for Finance
- Former Rivers senator Magnus Abe nominated chairman of Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission
- Two additional nominees submitted for NUPRC non-executive commissioner positions
Main Story
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has formally requested the Senate to screen and confirm Mr. Taiwo Oyedele as Nigeria’s Minister of State for Finance, replacing Dr. Doris Uzoka-Anite, as part of adjustments within the Federal Executive Council.
The request was contained in a letter read on the Senate floor on Tuesday by Senate President Godswill Akpabio during plenary proceedings in Abuja.
Oyedele, a respected economist and tax policy specialist from Ikaram in Akoko, Ondo State, currently serves as chairman of the Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms. The committee has been leading a sweeping review of Nigeria’s tax framework aimed at simplifying the country’s complex tax structure, improving compliance, and expanding government revenue.
Before his appointment into public service, Oyedele spent more than two decades at global consulting firm PwC, joining in 2001 and rising to become Fiscal Policy Partner and Africa Tax Leader. Over the years, he has advised governments and multinational companies on tax strategy, fiscal policy reforms, and revenue administration.
In a separate letter to the Senate, President Tinubu also nominated Senator Magnus Abe, a former lawmaker who represented Rivers South-East Senatorial District, as Chairman of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC).
Abe’s nomination follows the resignation of Gbenga Komolafe, who previously headed the upstream regulator responsible for overseeing oil exploration, licensing, and production activities in Nigeria’s petroleum sector.
The President also forwarded the names of Paul Yaro Jezhi, a 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 (DPR), as nominees for non-executive commissioner positions at the NUPRC.
Following the reading of the President’s correspondence, Akpabio referred the nominations to the Senate Committee on Petroleum Upstream for legislative review and confirmation proceedings.
What’s Being Said
“The Senate has received a request from the President seeking the screening and confirmation of the nominees,” Akpabio said while reading the communication during plenary.
Policy analysts say Oyedele’s potential appointment signals continuity in the administration’s fiscal reform agenda.
“Oyedele has already been at the center of the tax reform process. His transition into the finance ministry could accelerate the implementation phase of those policies,” said Dr. Uche Uwaleke, Professor of Capital Markets at Nasarawa State University.
Energy industry observers also see Abe’s nomination as a strategic political and sectoral move.
“The NUPRC is one of the most powerful regulators in Nigeria’s oil industry. Leadership there influences licensing rounds, upstream investments, and compliance with the Petroleum Industry Act,” said Ayodele Oni, Energy Lawyer and Partner at Bloomfield Law Practice.
What’s Next
- The Senate Committee on Petroleum Upstream will conduct screening hearings for Abe and the NUPRC commissioner nominees in the coming days
- Oyedele’s confirmation hearing is expected before the Senate Committee on Finance
- If confirmed, the appointments will form part of ongoing restructuring within Tinubu’s economic management team
