The National Civil Society Council of Nigeria (NCSCN) has charged the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) to maintain transparency and accountability in its operations, following its clearance of corruption allegations.
The Council also emphasised that NNPCL must purge itself of corrupt tendencies and bad eggs, live above board at all times, and sustain transparency and accountability as its hallmark without compromise.
The NCSCN in a statement signed by the Executive Director, Amb. Blessing Akinlosotu, underscores the importance of NNPCL’s commitment to transparency and accountability, especially given its critical role in Nigeria’s economy.
“By doing so, NNPCL can regain public trust, ensure efficient management of resources and contribute to Nigeria’s economic growth and development.
“The Council’s call for transparency and accountability serves as a reminder to NNPCL to maintain the highest standards of integrity and openness in its operations.”
Akinlosotu noted that there is no gain-saying that Nigeria runs almost a mono-economy which revolves around the Oil and Gas Industry which accounts for a huge chunk of our Foreign Exchange Earnings and building the competitive strength of our nation in the global economy.
“Hence, any establishment or organization that controls the Oil and Gas concerns of the nation would automatically become the goose that lays the golden egg, and naturally be the most valuable and controversial entity in our quest for National Development.
“It is in this light that the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), which was transmuted from the erstwhile Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), has been in major spotlight of national discourse in recent times.
“Right from the days of NNPC till this era of “rebirth” and metamorphosis to a largely Private Sector driven business Organization, the NNPCL still carries a negative public image of corruption and distrust by the Nigerian masses, being bombarded with several accusations that calls for serious attention and clarifications.
“Upon receipt of disturbing complaints from some of the affiliate members of the Civil Society Council, the leadership embarked upon independent enquiries and fact-finding missions which included interactions with both the accusers and the accused, leading us to vital discoveries and authentic records of the various issues raised.”
We hereby itemised some of the major accusations and contentious matters with the outcomes of our enquiries:
“The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) recently levelled an allegation against the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited over failure to account for and explain the whereabouts of alleged missing $2.04 billion and N164 billion oil revenues.”
“This, according to SERAP, followed documented records in the recently published 2020 audited report by the Auditor-General of the Federation that the NNPC failed to remit the alleged money into the Federation Account, claiming that the money may have been diverted to unknown destinations.
“This was disclosed in a statement signed by the Deputy Director of SERAP, Kolawole Oluwadare, and made available to the Public. SERAP even went further to institute a Law Suit on this matter against NNPCL.
“In the suit, SERAP is argued that there was a legitimate public interest in providing the details sought and that NNPC has a legal responsibility to account for and explain the whereabouts of the disappeared money.
“SERAP went on to assert that without the full recovery and remittance of the missing USD$2.04 billion and N164 billion oil revenues, the economic situation of Nigeria may worsen and citizens will continue to be denied access to basic public goods and services.
“According to SERAP, the Auditor-General of the Federation has, for many years, documented reports of the disappearance of public funds from the NNPC, while the AGF feared that the money may have been diverted into private pockets, denying the government the funding needed to executive developmental projects.
“The Leadership of NCSCN had a very thorough interface with the Management of the NNPCL, calling for relevant books of accounts, while critical questions were asked.
“The tedious and non-manipulated mission revealed that as at 2020, NNPCL was not yet in existence. As at that time in question, NNPC was the establishment in existence and NAPINS was in charge of the business arm.
“NNPCL was just incorporated in September 2021 and formally unveiled on July 19, 2022. The Management of NNPCL presented to us the original Audited Account of NNPC which was found free of any verifiable fraud.
“NAPINS is now scrapped, and prior to transition from NNPC to NNPCL, proper stock-taking and audit was conducted and made public, hence, the alleged missing funds is unfounded and unsubstantial even in the said AGF Report.
“NCSCN will make records available to Members in our planned National Civil Society Conversation on the Petroleum Industry and PIA by next month where this issue shall be laid to rest once and for all among the Civil Society Community.
“We can boldly assert that the missing funds do not exist in the books and records unless there are other documents available outside all the official Audit Records.
“From the enquiries and diligent findings of the NCSCN, it is discovered that under the present Administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, and new dispensation of the NNPCL payments for Oil transactions are made directly to the Central Bank, hence, the Company is responsible for operational and administrative activities of Crude Oil transactions, while the CBN handle the financial end.
“Hence CBN does not see or manage Crude Oil, and NNPCL does not see or handle Cash, therefore, making it almost impossible for the NNPCL to misappropriate what it does not manage in the first instance.
“The records of Oil sales and purchases are clearly recorded and accounted for by the CBN records,” the statement reads.
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