NNPC: Reps Probe Missing $1.5b From NLNG

By Tosin Olatokunbo

The House of Representatives has launched a probe into the alleged illegal withdrawal of $1.5 billion from the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas and Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC accounts.

The lawmakers launched the investigations following a motion sponsored by Minority Leader, Nduidi Elumelu on the “need  to investigate illegal withdrawals from the NLNG dividends account by the management of NNPC.”

Dividends from the NLNG are supposed to be paid into the consolidated Revenue Account, owned by states and federal government, to be shared on specified percentages as required by the Constitution.

The House said this was not done in this particular case and has therefore, directed its Committee on Public Accounts to undertake a probe and report back to the House within four weeks.

The committee will, in the course of the investigations, interface with management of NNPC and NLNG to find out how the $1.5 billion transactions were carried out.

Elumelu,  in his motion, insist that it was wrong for the NNPC to withdraw such a huge amount from NLNG, jointly owned by the Federal Government represented by the NNPC,  Shell Gas B.V, Total LNG Nigeria Ltd and Eni International.

The NNPC, he said also disregarded the power of the National Assembly to appropriate funds by tampering with NLNG funds without its knowledge.

What the NNPC did, he said is “extra budgetary spending  as only the Group Managing Director and the Corporation’s chief financial officer had the knowledge of how the $1.05 billion was spent.”

He said the probe is necessary to forestall any plan by NNPC in the future to unilaterally spends government funds with no regards to appropriate authority.

Elumelu said, “the NLNG is jointly owned by the Government of Nigeria ably represented by the NNPC with a shareholding of 49 per cent, shell gas B.V 25.6per cent, Total LNG Nigeria LTD 15 per cent and ENI international 10.4 per cent….the dividends from the NLNG are supposed to be paid into the consolidated revenue funds account of the federal government  and to be shared amongst the three tiers of government.

The NNPC who represents the government of Nigeria on the board of the NLNG had unilaterally without the required consultations with states and the mandatory appropriation from the national assembly illegally tampered with the funds at the NLNG dividends account to the tune of $1.05 billion thereby violating the nation’s appropriation law.”