7th January, 2014
The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, has continued to live up to its name as the shrine of corruption in Nigeria, given the current revelation regarding the disappearance of almost $11 billion out of the alleged unremitted $49.8 billion crude oil fund. NNPC’s attempt to dismiss the claim appears to be an exercise in futility and a wrong approach to accounting for the missing fund.
The corporation claimed that the money has been spent on the various services it renders for the government, such as the unpaid subsidies on kerosene and premium motor spirit (PMS), bulk importation of the PMS, the maintenance of national strategic reserves for petroleum products and the repairing and maintenance of vandalised pipelines.
There is something about NNPC’s explanation that does not add up. NNPC cannot claim to be bearing these responsibilities on behalf of the Federal Government and claiming that the figures are being reconciled without following a proper procedure in the first instance. Because the corporation is awash with petro dollars, it believes it has the liberty to spend the money outside its statutory appropriation by the National Assembly.
NNPC ought to remit the revenue it generates into the Federation Account from which allocations could be made to it rather than unilaterally dipping its hands into its coffers and taking any amount it likes and giving puerile explanations afterward to justify such fraudulent act.
The rekcless spending by NNPC dates back to the military era when no one was accountable to anybody as money accruing from crude oil sales was not remitted into the Federation Account but was brazenly stolen by military leaders and their civilian collaborators in the petroleum ministry and the industry. That culture has been sustained to date and now NNPC hides under various guises to divert crude oil revenue.
If a government agency such as the Nigeria Customs Service chooses to divert its revenue like NNPC is doing instead of remitting it into the Federation Account, won’t the nation go bankcrupt? NNPC is becoming an albatross to our nation and the earlier the corporation is whipped into line, the better for our economy. The corporation does not deserve the autonomy it currently enjoys. It has thoroughly abused the autonomy and this is dangerous for the nation’s economy.
There is no justification for the diversion of $11 billion, no matter what the Petroleum Minister, Diezani Alison-Madueke and her aides are saying. Nigerians cannot be hoodwinked by such blatant lies. It is time the National Assembly wielded the big stick. NNPC should be called to order now.