Senate Rejects Panel Report on fuel scarcity 

Senate on Wednesday rejected report of its standing committee on Petroleum downstream saying the report is biased and lopsided.

The committee in its report led by Kabiru Marafa  accussed Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) of  duping the country of  not less than N784 billion through surplus volume of fuel importation of about 5.9 billion liters in 2017 alone. 

However, the lawmakers while speaking against the report said the committee should go back and do a good job that will solve the problem in the petroleum sector of the country. 

Many lawmakers who spoke were infuriated over payments of subsidy by Nigerian National Petroleum Coporation (NNPC) without the approval of National Assembly  .

Speaking against the report,  Senate Minority leader,  Senator Godswill Akpabio said that the report should be withdrawn because it does not meet up with requirements of Senate’s chamber. 

Akpabio said, “I sincerely commend Senate President efforts on the fuel scarcity situation. The Chairman of the Committee on Petroleum Downstream should withdraw his report, as it doesn’t meet the requirements.”

Also speaking Senator Stella Oduah and Senator Dino Melaye carpeted the report saying it is biased and lopesided report. 

Melaye said, “Melaye said, ” if we adopt the report,  it will continue to empower the corruption in the oil industry,  the report is energizing the corruption that is ongoing in the NNPC.  Money has been released by minister which is not appropriated,  and what  we promise the country is respect for the rule of law. 

“Million of dollars hass being released without appropriation.  The constitution must be respected. “

Senator Oduah said, ” the report is biased and cannot be accepted by the Senate. “

Senator Adeola Olamilekan in his own contribution said,“There’s fraud in NNPC, Ministry of Finance that needs to be investigated. We need a full blown investigative hearing because they are syphoning Nigeria’s money”.

Earlier , Senator Kabiru Marafa in its report said, that NNPC claimed of importing 1.206,900,000 billion litres of fuel monthly and the daily consumption of fuel in the country is 35 million litres daily. 

Marafa also revealed that marketers were supposed to bring into the country about 3.8 billion litres of PMS at landing cost of N133 in order words, marketers to serve the country for about 109 days at 35 million listens daily in 2017.

Marafa said, “The implications is that NNPC has five days surplus every month,  60 days surplus in a year , added to the marketers 109 days supply,  gives a total of 169 days supply surplus at 35 million litres/ day or 5.9 billion.  The question is who consumes this surplus before we ask of subsidy. “

After exhaustive debate on the report Senate asked the committee to go back and holistic report on the fuel scarcity in the country. 

The Senate also mandates its committee on Public account to investigate fuel subsidy in the country. 

Senate President,  Bukola Saraki in its remarks said that the issue of imported volumes of Petroleum product must be look at critically by the committee. 

He said, “There are three issues here that we need to separate: even as we speak now, there are still queues. The issue of the ongoing scarcity is one problem that the Committee needs to go back to look into so that Nigerians can be reassured that this will not reoccur.

“problem number two is that the subsidy is important, however, based on the figures that have been presented, it is clear that there is a bigger fraud that is being perpetrated. This is because the amount of PMS that is allegedly coming into Nigeria cannot be consumed by Nigerians. At the end of the day, it is Nigerians that are paying for this subsidy fraud because it is not transparent, and it is only being run by one organization.

“At the end of the day, it is Nigerians that are paying for this subsidy fraud because it is not transparent, & it is only being run by one organization. The third problem deals with the principle of MDAs incurring expenditures without approval by the legislature.”

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