Revenue Agency Demands Probe of NNPC Diversion of $21b |The Source

By Fola James

The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC has been accused of diverting over $21 billion which the government oil corporation failed to remit into the federation account, according to the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission, RMAFC.

According to law, all revenue accruing to the federal government are to be paid into the federation account and shared by the federal and state governments.

This, RMAFC said, has not been done by NNPC, in a report the revenue sharing agency presented to the House of Representatives Committee on Public Accounts, noting that the funds was paid as dividend into the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas company and spent without recourse to due process and law.

It has, therefore, urged the National Assembly to investigate the issue with a view to finding the truth.

RMAFC said “It may be important to state that the Commission in the discharge of its monitoring mandate visited the NLNG in August, 2008, March 2013 and has consistently requested NNPC to remit all dividends received from NLNG to the Federation Account.

“Information available to the Commission indicates that a sum of $21,685,647,923.39 accrued into the NLNG Dividend Account from inception to 30th June, 2020.”

The document presented to the committee read in part “from the $21.686 billion revenue that accrued into the NLNG dividend account from 1999 to 2020, the NNPC expended $20,300,772,850 from the account leaving a credit balance of $1,384,875,073.39 as at June 30, 2020.

“$100 billion was generated by NLNG in sales revenue since inception. The company also paid over $18 billion as dividends through NNPC and $6.1 billion as Company Income Tax (CIT) through the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS).

“In addition, the company also said that over $15 billion has been expended by NLNG for the purchase of feedstock gas for its operations.

“Furthermore, between April, 2002 and March 2007, the company paid a sum of $450,000 as Licence Fees and as sum of N28,696,259.30 as NLNG Licence Renewal between the period 1999 and 2017 to the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR).

“With respect to the payment of dividend, the NLNG reported that it has fully paid all dividends due to the Federation Account to NNPC”.

It said all efforts to make the NNPC account for the funds has proved abortive.

According to RMAFC “It may be important to state that the Commission in the discharge of its monitoring mandate visited the NLNG in August, 2008, March 2013 and has consistently requested NNPC to remit all dividends received from NLNG to the Federation Account.”

The RMFAC said it was wrong for the NNPC to spend government funds as it pleases and that the agency “does not support any diversion of revenue that should accrue to the Federation Account for whatever reason, as the practice is illegal and conflict with section 162(1) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).

“That the NNPC or any other agency does not have the powers under the law to withdraw money from the NLNG Dividend Account for any other purpose outside remitting it into the Federation Account”

The RMAFC has asked the House to investigate the withdrawals.

The Wole Oke-led House Committee on Public Accounts has now invited the Group Managing Director of the NNPC Mele Kyari to appear before it to clear the allegation.

Meanwhile, this is not the first time the NNPC has been accused of diverting public funds.

Recall that in 2014, the former Central Bank Governor and now deposed Emir of Kano, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi accused the oil corporation of non-remittance of over $20 billion.