By Etuka Sunday
Senate Committee on Gas, has asked the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to provide the details of operations of the NLNG Dividend Account before the end of November.
The Chairman, Senate Committee on Gas, Senator Bassey Akpan, said the committee’s terms of reference mandated it to look at the operations of the account from 2015 till date.
This is even as the NNPC has offered to provide details of the Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) Dividends Account from 1999 till date to give the Senate and the general public a comprehensive insight into the operations of the account.
Group Managing Director of NNPC, Dr. Maikanti Baru, stated this at the hearing of Senate Committee on Gas which has been mandated to probe the alleged unauthorized disbursement from the account to support importation of petroleum products to avert scarcity.
The GMD who was represented by the corporation’s Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Mr. Isiaka Abdulrasaq, in his presentation at the hearing in Abuja, insisted that there was need to take a holistic look at the NLNG Dividends Account from inception rather than a limited view from 2015 as requested by the Senate Committee.
He said the corporation was ready to provide details of operations of the account in terms of revenues and withdrawal mandates form 1999 till date.
The Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division, NNPC, Ndu Ughamadu in a statement quoted the GMD to have also informed that the fuel supply situation in the country was very robust with about 2.2 billion liters of fuel in stock, representing over 45-day sufficiency.
In his response, Chairman Senate Committee on Gas, Senator Bassey Akpan, said the committee’s terms of reference mandated it to look at the operations of the account from 2015 till date.
He, however, added that should the NNPC decide to provide details from 1999 till date, it was welcomed.
The Senate committee adjourned the hearing to 4thDecember, 2018, with a mandate to NNPC and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to provide the details of operations of the NLNG Dividend Account before the end of November.
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Dr. Maikanti Baru has emphasized the need for a comprehensive review of the NLNG Dividend Account. How do you respond to the NNPC’s offer to provide a wider time frame for review?