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As agency moves to recover $6bn, N66bn from oil Sector
By Christiana Ekpa
The Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) on Monday revealed that the agency is working in collaboration with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission to recover about six billion dollars and another N66 billion owed the Federal government by industry stakeholders in the oil sector.
But the House of Representatives Committee on Petroleum Resources was not satisfied with the N32 million budgeted by the agency to be spent on meals alone in the 2025 fiscal year.
Executive Secretary of the agency, Orji Ogbonnaya Orji who disclosed the funds recovery efforts while defending the 2025 budget before the House Committee on Petroleum Resources, Upstream said that the agency has presented all its reports in the extractive industry to the parliament.
He said that NEITI was set up to enthrone transparency and accountability in the Nigeria oil and gas as well as the mining sector adding that the agency was handed a budget envelope of N6.5 billion for the 2025 financial year.
This is made up of N2.220 billion for personnel, N1.722 billion for overhead and N2.575 billion for capital projects.
He said some of the critical activities of the agency in the year 2025 will include conducting industry report of the oil gas and mining sector, as well as fiscal allocation and statutory disbursement audit, research studies on the actual volume of PMS consumed in Nigeria, the economic impact of energy transition in Nigeria and a national perception survey EITI implementation in Nigeria.
He said from its 2020 and 2021 report alone, over 3.7 billion dollars were recovered into government coffers as outstanding liabilities from companies operting in the Oil and gas sector in the country.
However, members of the House Committee on Petroleum Resources, Upstream queried the agency for repeating items budgeted for in 2024, while also including items that are not justifiable in the current economic situation in the country.
Kafilat Ogbara (APC, Lagos) said agencies of government should ensure that what they bring to the parliament as their budget comply with the line items specified in the budget and not just see the annual budget as a ritual of appropriating money so as to get their own share of the national cake.
Ogbara queried why the agency will budget N32 million for meals in the 2025 budget when Nigerians are going through hard times saying “there is no way you can spend that amount of money for meals in a year.
She said “most of our MDAs should ensure that what they are bringing as budget proposal must actually tally with the line item and the purpose why you want to use such funds Let us not just see budget defence as, the money is there and we should share it. So, let us see how to get our own share.
Also contributing, Ademorin Kuye (APC, Lagos) said in preparing the annual budget agencies of government should be mindful of the economic situation in the country adding that the impression of Nigerians is that the National Assembly is a rubber stamp and will approve anything that is brought to them by government agencies.
Kuye said “We are all aware of the situation in the country and we must be circumspect and be prudent in our expenditure because the general feeling out there is that the National Assembly is just a rubber stamp and whatever they bring is what we approve and that is not so.
Chairman of the Committee, Alhassan Ado Doguwa also faulted the language used by the agency in the preparation of the budget and the inclusion of the National Assembly as those benefiting from its welfare package.
Doguwa said the since the committee was constituted, it has not visited the agency on oversight, wondering why they will be included in such welfare package, adding that the only welfare they House expect from them was the welfare of the Nigerian people.
“He said while I agree that the budget stops at our desk and you are just presenting a proposal, I will like to say that the economy is actually bad, the population of people for whom we are actually here are crying out. Agencies of government must be mindful of what they spend out of public resources.
“All these proposals are going to be spend at the expense of the Nigerian people. Sometimes, we come to make presentations here that sounds funny and very insultive in the eyes of the people. When you say in your projection things like welfare package inform of ex-gracia, health insurance, welfare packages to staff and some critical stakeholders during welfare packages.
He however assured that the Committee was ready to support the agency in actualising its mandate, saying your agency is a critical one and the legislature unappreciative of the work that you are doing.
“We will definitely try as much as possible to support you as long as you can justify the reasons for one expenditure or the other. Then the legislature will have no option than to support you and provide you with the enabling financial environment for you to discharge your duties and mandate.”
