News
Audit Query: Reps Reject Submission From Kyari …Threaten Warrant Arrest On NNPC Subsidiaries
The House of Representatives, yesterday, told the NNPC Limited in clear terms that it must produce before it, the leadership of its 17 subsidiaries indicted by a report of the Auditor-General for the Federation over financial infractions between 2014 and 2019.
Speaking at the resumed investigative hearing on the report of the Auditor General, Chairman of the House Committee on Public Account, Hon Oluwole Oke said the action of the NNPC in shielding its subsidiaries amounted to hiding something from Nigerians.
But the Group Managing Director of the NNPC, Mele Kyari told the committee that the company was not hiding anything from Nigerians, while also dismissing earlier media reports that about 107million barrels of crude oil could not be accounted for, in 2018.
Oke said the House was shying away from invoking the provisions of the constitution to issue a warrant of arrest on the leadership of the subsidiaries who have refused to appear before the parliament to answer questions arising from the AuGF report.
Reacting to the statement by the GMD that he would take responsibility for the actions of the subsidiaries, Oke said “With due respect, the parliament differs with you because we are guided by the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Legislative Houses Privileges Act and our rules.
“Yes, you have submitted a consolidated account. But the Auditor General, who submitted his report to us, conducted an audit pursuant to Section 85 of the Constitution and audited the account of these subsidiaries, published the report and submitted same to the parliament.
“The report specifically mentioned these subsidiaries and having done so, the parliament is duty-bound to take the queries and observations as contained in the report. Aside from this, parliament can also, pursuant to the provisions of the Constitution, invite anybody to give evidence before this parliament.
“If a particular agency under your leadership is mentioned, we cannot shave their head in their absence. They have to be here. Yes, you have rendered your account which is before us. But these subsidiaries must appear before this parliament to answer the queries raised by the Auditor-General for the Federation. They have to answer their father’s name.
“With due respect, the NNPC is not in a position to dictate to parliament how it conducts its business. We have to change the impression of Nigerians about NNPC. We have listened to the comments of some governors about NNPC and we must change the narration by telling Nigerians that NNPC operates transparently.
“Except and except you have something to hide, then you can continue to shield these subsidiaries. But they must appear before Nigerians and tell them about the funds in their kitty. They have to come here and answer the queries about the abnormalities the Auditor general observed in their operations. This is our position.
“We don’t want to go through the process of invoking the necessary laws by issuing a warrant of arrest. We believe that we can jaw jaw; that we can discuss because we are all serving Nigerians.
“These companies are your subsidiaries and if we are to go by your assertion that they are registered on their own under CAMA, then it further attests to the fact that they have to appear here by themselves. That is not even the issue, but the Auditor General for the Federation specifically listed the names of these companies. That is our position. So, take a date when you are bringing them.
“Your purpose of coming today is to produce these subsidiaries because you wrote that these agencies are under you. That was why we asked you to bring the leadership of these subsidiaries. That is what we expected today.
“If they are here, they should introduce themselves and the Auditor General will be invited to read out the queries for them to answer because the queries were hot directed to you in person. They were directed to these subsidiaries. We object to your position. They must appear here because this is their parliament. If they are not here, so be it. That is why we said you should give us a date to bring them”.
In his contribution, Hon Chinyere Igwe (PDP, Rivers) said by the admittance of the GMD, he cannot legally stand-in for the subsidiaries since he admitted that they were registered under the Companies and Allied Matters Act and operating as individual companies.
He said “by the clarification of the GMD’s statement that these companies are fully registered, it means that they are entities of their own by the provision of the CAC act. As a result of that, the GMD is not totally liable. I, therefore, ask that the GMD allow them to stand on their own because he cannot speak for them.
“Any society that does not have laws, there will be anarchy and lawlessness, with the big killing the small just like we have right Russia killing Ukraine. Based on that, the constitution is the ground norm on which all Nigerians are relating. That is what gave rise to NNPC, parliament, Auditor General.
“By implication, the parliament did not make the Auditor General’s report. But these companies owned by Nigerians have refused to do what they are supposed to do. We have not asked you to come and tell us how many barrels of crude was lifted or how many of that was stolen or who has stolen them.
“There are silent questions raised by the Auditor General which they must tell us. We are not doing anything out of the ordinary, but just being guided by the ground norms in line with the constitution.”
In his remarks, the Group Managing Director of NNPC Limited, Mele Kyari said, “First, let me clarify an issue. NNPC has nothing to hide. We have nothing to hide from Nigerians. In view of that, we have published the same audited account that you have for Nigerians to see, read and comment on.
“Those accounts are a complete reflection of all our transactions, including our subsidiary companies. So, we are hiding nothing from Nigerians.
“I agree with you that we can be more transparent. Can we do something different from this? Absolutely yes. Are we doing enough? Yes, we are doing more than enough. No national oil company in this world publishes its audited statement of account. There is no company that publishes its monthly report as we do.
“Therefore, I expect that you should congratulate us that we are doing more than expectations in terms of transparency and accountability. We owe this to Nigerians because it is their company and we sincerely believe that this companies art owned by the over 200million Nigerians, we are accountable to them and we must be transparent by every means possible.
“But as we do this, we must also recognise that we are running a business on their behalf of this business has rules and responsibilities and part of it is to have a report of this nature which the Auditor General endorses by law for them to deliver on”.
On the ruling of the committee, the GMD said, “It is still very fair because I know that this is a very fair parliament. You are representatives of the people and so, have a responsibility to protect the people. You also have a responsibility to allow us to speak”.
Reacting to the reported missing of 107million barrels of crude oil, Kyari said, “I believe that this parliament represents all Nigerians collectively. We can have individual differences, but we all represent the interest of Nigerians. The image of Nigeria is very important.
“Two weeks ago, it was in all the media that 107million barrels of crude were stolen or diverted. You will not appreciate the evil of the bad image this has created for our country.
“Our lending partners have called me that this is a wrong approach and that they will not lend to us without clarifying issues. Auditor General is here and we are in the same country. We are all serving this country. You can’t declare something like that without it having an effect and if we don’t respond to this, it will be obvious that it is what is happening in our country.
“Nobody has stolen 107million barrels of crude oil. If for any reason, it was not well captured by the Auditor General, it is a different issue. So, this company is hiding nothing from none and we will appear before you as directed next week. But have it at the back of your mind that we have nothing to hide.”
The Rivers State Chief judge, Justice Simeon Chibuzor Amadi has granted pardon to six inmates standing awaiting trial at the Port Harcourt maximum correctional center.
The six lucky inmates granted pardon on Tuesday by the state Chief Judge included Nwekeala Chizoba, Samuel Emmanuel, Aniete Kelvin, Ebube Fubara and Goddey Okpara who were on awaiting trial as murder suspects and have all spent between 10 years to seven years in the custody without a proper information filed against them in the court.
Justice Amadi during a special gaol delivery exercise last Tuesday at the Port Harcourt Maximum Correctional Centre opined that the special gaol delivery was part of activities lined up to commomerate the 2024/2025 legal year in the State and restated the commitment of the state judiciary in decongesting the correctional centre and ensuring that those inmates who are not supposed to be there are removed from the custody.
The state chief judge stressed the need for all stakeholders to work together to build a society that supports rehabilitation and gives a second chance to anyone or group of people who have fallen short of the expectation of the law and have been punished accordingly.
He stressed that the National Judicial Council(NJC) encourages judges to pay more attention to criminal matters to enable them to decongests the correctional facilities, noting that since his assumption into office, his administration has been able to reduce the number of inmates in Nigerian Correctional Centres and the Port Harcourt Correctional Centre in particular, to less than 2,000 as against the over 4,000 inmates previously in the faculty.
According to him, “as they release the deserving inmates, they affirm their commitment to justice, compassion and rule of law but that they must not forget the fundamental principles of justice delivery system which is truth and fairness, integrity and equality before the law.”
I encourage you all the released inmates to return to your families and become better citizens. You must not engage in action that will return you all back to prison. Let me say that while the judges show empathy to you all, it does not absolved individuals from being held accountable for actions against individuals, corporate organisations and state which the law frowns at, ”he stated
The Chief Judge thereafter stood down the exercise to enable the DPP to intervene to case files following the fact that majority of the persons listed to benefit from the exercise are facing murder charges and adjourned to a date that will come before December.
Earlier in his goodwill message, the outgoing state Comptroller of Nigerian Correctional Centre, Port Harcourt, Felix Lawrence, who was recently promoted to the rank of Assistant Controller General, commended the state judiciary led by Chief Judge, Justice Simeon Chibuzor Amadi for their continuous effort aimed at ensuring justice and decongesting the facilities.
Other activities lined up for the event included special church service at St Paul’s Cathedral , Anglican Communion, Rebisi Port Harcourt, inspection of guard of honour by the state Chief Judge mounted by officers of the Nigerian police and a special court session held at the ceremonial court hall.
By: AkujobiAmadi
The Director General of Rivers State Bureau on Public Procurement (RBoPP), Dr. Ine Briggs, has explained that the Sir Siminalayi Fubara administration plans to enforce transparency in governance through public procurement.
Speaking at a one-day Public Procurement Enlightenment workshop organised in collaboration with the State Local Government Service Commission for newly elected chairmen, vice chairmen, secretaries and leaders of legislative assemblies, Dr. Briggs said it is key for grassroot development.
She stated that the Sir. Fubara administration plans to reduce wastage and at same time infuse efficiency in public expenditure.
The RSoPP DG said the local government political office holders remain key drivers in the new vision hence the workshop is to arm them with knowledge on how to execute projects in tandem with needs of the people.
“ Your role in the prudent management of public resources is, therefore, not just administrative it’s the cornerstone of delivering the dividends of democracy. Every procurement decision you make must reflect a commitment to fairness, transparency and accountability” Dr. Briggs submitted.
One of the key goals of the administration she further reminded the participants was to use their offices to foster economic growth through public procurement.
She warned that the law establishing the agency empowers it to penalise defaulters, but that what is more important is voluntary compliance to the laws.
In addition to that, she said urged the local government council leaders that champion the practice and implementation of public procurement law.
On his part, Acting Chairman of Local Government Service Commission, Pastor GoodLife Ben Iduoku averred that the aim of the workshop is to arm key stakeholders in the local government system to generate new ideas, innovation and strategies in tandem with government policies and programmes.
The workshop dealt on various topics on procurement planning, methods, Understanding Bid Process, including types of Construction Contracts and law.
Some participants were awarded excellence and meritorious awards as part of the programme.
By: Kevin Nengia
The 19th anniversary of the National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools (NAPPS), Rivers State Chapter, recently ended in Port Harcourt in grand style, with participants from various schools including proprietors, the academia, civil society groups and top government functionaries charting the way forward for educational improvement.
The 19th NAPPS anniversary christened, ‘Innovation and Adaptation: Transforming Challenges Into Opportunities’ was held at Casoni Hotels, Port Harcourt.
In his remarks, the Chairman of the Rivers State Chapter of the association, Dr. Jaja Adafe Sunday expressed gratitude to the members and executives for their untiring efforts towards the achievements of the body.
He sought the intervention of government on the lingering crisis on the economy as it is affecting the running of schools.
He decried high cost of things including fuel and raw materials which has adversely affected the running of schools and payment of teachers.
Dr. Sunday hinted that the current economic situation in the nation is biting hard on the operations of schools, saying inflation, removal of fuel subsidy, fuel scarcity, poor electricity supply, tariffs and lack of government grants are some of the challenges faced by schools, and urged the members to brace up to the challenges, as it is the panacea to building a brighter future.
Guest speakers from the health sector and the academia thrilled the gathering on the essence of basic education which they said is the key to national development.
Former Dean of the Ignatius Ajuru University of Education, Professor Azuru and the Chief Medical Director of Meridian Hospitals, Dr. Odo Iyke were some notable guest speakers who delivered lectures at the occasion.
Some distinguished proprietors also got special recognitions and awards.
The 19th anniversary cake was cut by the Rivers State NAPPS Chairman with representatives of the state government assisting.
