‘He must go home’: Nigerians in UK protest, call for Mele Kyari’s deportation for corruption probe

Many Nigerians, on Monday, May 12, 2025, stormed the Nigerian High Commission and the United Kingdom Home Office in London and called for the deportation of the immediate past Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited, Mele Kyari, for his investigation on alleged corruption.

President Bola Tinubu had, in April 2025, removed Kyari, who had been at the helm of the national oil company since 2019.

Kyari was removed as part of a broader overhaul, which the Presidency said was aimed at boosting Nigeria’s crude and gas output.

The president also appointed Bashir Ojulari as the new Group CEO, effective from April 2, 2025.

However, some Nigerians in the UK, on Monday, demanded that Kyari be deported to Nigeria to face corruption investigations.

The protesters, under the banner of Rescue Nigeria Now, gathered outside the Nigerian High Commission and the UK Home Office, submitting formal petitions to both institutions.

The demonstrators carried placards with bold inscriptions such as “Withdraw Mele Kyari’s residency now!”, “Mele Kyari go home and face EFCC now!”, and “London is not for public officials who abused public trust.”

They accused Kyari of fleeing Nigeria to evade accountability for alleged financial misconduct during his tenure at NNPC Limited.

The protesters further alleged that Kyari transferred illicit funds to UK bank accounts.

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They detailed several allegations against Kyari, including the misappropriation of funds earmarked for refinery rehabilitation.

The group stated: “We are profoundly disillusioned and appalled by the effrontery with which Mr. Kyari has been walking in the street of London with impunity, while the tables of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and other anti-corruption agencies in Nigeria are flooded with so much petitions, audit queries, and evidences on the many alleged corrupt financial dealings and infraction that have been attached to his tenure which spanned from 2019 to 2025.

“We see this as an affront to the people of Nigeria and an insult to the esteemed anti-corruption crusade of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, that an individual of such notoriety whose tenure in NNPCL was marred by unprecedented corruption and international embarrassment should not be allowed to roam freely on British soil without facing the consequences of his actions.

“Your Excellency, this letter is not merely a petition – it is a demand – A moral, civic, and nationalistic demand.

“We, therefore, demand in the strongest terms that the Nigerian High Commission in the United Kingdom refrains from according him any form of official reception, recognition, or diplomatic courtesy until he returns to Nigeria to submit himself to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and other relevant investigative bodies for the myriad allegations that trail his tenure.”

The group, therefore, called on the UK authorities to act in accordance with international anti-corruption agreements.

The Star