THE House of Representatives Ad-Hoc Committee probing revenue leakages in the oil and gas sector from January 2016 to January 2017 has demanded that the Pipeline Products Marketing Company (PPMC) take responsibility for all outstanding revenues yet to be remitted into government’s consolidated fund as the sole trading arm of the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC.

Consequently, the panel gave the agency seven days to furnish it with all available receipts of $245million payment arising from products sold in the period under review.

The panel also rejected attempts by the Head of Planning at the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR), Mrs Folasade Onanuga, to respond to questions on behalf of the director who was absent, as the lawmakers insisted that he appears before them in person.

Taking on the issue of products allocation of products and level of remittances to government coffers, the Chairman of the panel, Honourable Jarigbe Agom Jarigbe (PDP, Cross River), stated that the known trading arm of the NNPC is the PPMC. “That, we all know.”

His argument came on the heels of attempts by the Managing Director of the PPMC, Mr. Umar Ajiya, to explain to the panel that the difficulties his agency faces are in the reluctance of the trading firms such as Duke Oil who delay remittances to government coffers.

“But Duke Oil shouldn’t be an issue before this Committee since it’s not known to any law of the Parliament, this Panel will deal squarely with issues of evidence of payments on special products such as Fuel Oil, Naphtha and so on which the PPMC is claiming has been made.

“The reason is that the PPMC is a subsidiary of the NNPC which was created by an Act of Parliament, and we also know that PPMC is the trading arm of the NNPC, and they both do business on behalf of government,” Jarigbe said.

The MD, however, concurred with the Panel Chairman, saying that the PPMC being an offshoot of the NNPC is under obligation to provide answers to questions flowing from its dealings with other entities.

He said his office is willing to provide available documents that would substantiate all the submissions already made before the Committee as additional responses to the issues raised.

Asked if any of the up-takers still owe, he answered in the affirmative, adding that efforts are being made to recover outstanding debts.

Documents demanded by the panel have to do with payment receipts as evidence of remittances of $205million from the sale of special products (Fuel Oil, Naphtha) among others in 2016 to the consolidated revenue fund, as well as another $40million remitted in 2017.

The Committee also declined audience with officials of the Department of Petroleum Resources (DP), who were led by the Head, Planning, Mrs. Folasade Onanuga, following the inability of the Director, Modecai Landan, to show up for the hearing.

Their anger stemmed from the fact that at every meeting, the DPR Director had found reasons to send representatives instead of appearing in person.

The Committee Chairman said the panel would be interfacing with IOCs which are supposed to make remittances but aren’t doing so, adding that the panel may not be in a good stead to take them on without hearing from the DPR.   –   Independent

– Nov 9, 2017 @ 18:12 GMT |