Members of the House of Representatives Committee on Finance have called on the Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke, to resign with immediate effect.
The lawmakers, who would begin oversight of government agencies soon, said they would intensify oversight on the petroleum sector and its agencies, especially the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC.
Speaking in Abuja, the Chairman, House Committee on Finance, Abdulmumin Jibrin, who wondered why questions were not being asked about the quantity of crude oil being produced from the country, said the amount of money being talked about here “comes from the oil sector and crude sales.”
He said: “I think it is hasty for (members of) the Nigerian Governors’ Forum, NGF, most of whom we have been working together with before now, to call for the resignation of the minister (Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala). I believe that is inappropriate; looking at the background of the issues that are involved.
“We are missing the point because where we should put our searchlight and lay more emphasis on is the petroleum sector; the NNPC. It is the Minister of Petroleum (Alison-Madueke) that should be called to give account of what is happening. It is not the Minister of Finance.
“Substantially, the amount of money that we are talking about comes from the oil sector, from crude sales, and until today, we keep talking. How much are we even producing per day? Nobody knows the quantity of crude oil that is being produced in this country. Nobody knows, and nobody is asking the Minister of Petroleum any question.
Jibrin added that the accountability, the transparency rate in NNPC was very low.
He said: “The system is still shrouded in absolute secrecy. Nobody understands how they operate, and these are the issues Nigerians should be raising questions over.”
The lawmaker, who wondered why Nigerians are quiet about what is going on in the oil and gas sector, said: “I think that attention should move from Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala to Diezani, the Minister of Petroleum Resources. I think all Nigerians should stand up and ask her questions.” Jibrin noted that cases were rife of massive oil theft and corruption in the oil and gas sector, even as he advised the NGF Chairman, Governor Rotimi Amaechi, and his colleagues to take a second look at the matter, articulate their position and present it to the Minister of Petroleum Resources
Source: National Mirror
