The House of Representatives yesterday commenced investigations into allegations of sabotage and an estimated N500 billion owed the Petroleum Products Marketing Company (PPMC) by major and independent oil marketers.
Speaker Yakubu Dogara, who inaugurated the ad-hoc committee to investigate the huge debt, said the intervention from the House had become necessary with the economic recession and need to stop economic sabotage in the oil sector.
The investigation followed the adoption of motion sponsored by Jarigbe Jarigbe on the urgent need to investigate the huge debts owed PPMC by major and independent marketers/sabotage by some oil marketers.
While inaugurating the ad-hoc committee, Dogara said, “this committee is basically a fact-finding one. It is expected to make findings that will lead to plugging the loopholes in existing laws and practices in the downstream sector of the Nigerian economy.
“We expect that in no distant future, the committee will be inviting some companies and individuals to provide answers to questions as to what happened to the downstream sector. We hope that this committee will conduct its affairs in a serious and corrupt-free manner as the house will not tolerate any evidence of undue influence or improper conduct.”
Jarigbe in the motion alleged connivance and compromise by staff of PPMC to leave government funds in the hands of these marketers, thereby putting the country in dire financial straits.
According to him, PPMC went into Through-Put Agreements with some of the marketers, which do not empower the marketers to sell out products stored in their respective tank farms, but the marketers surreptitiously and criminally sold out the products and have since not remitted the funds to PPMC.
Jarigbe listed the marketers allegedly indebted to PPMC to include Oando, Forte Oil, Total, Conoil, Mobil, Masters Energy Oil and Gas Ltd.
Others were MRS Oil and Gas, Heyden Petroleum, Rahamaniyya Petroleum, Amicable Petroleum, Aiteo Petroleum, Honeywell Oil, Capital Oil, Felande Petroleum, Sharon Oil and Zamson Petroleum.
In his welcome address, Chairman of the Ad-hoc Committee, Abdullahi Gaya, said “the Nigerian economy is the challenge we face as a legislature and representatives of our people. You will agree with me that this challenge is our challenge and we are the leaders Nigerians look upon to make our economy prosperous again.
“The Nigerian economy in the present time calls for our concerted efforts to move it forward in the right direction. In numerous ways, members of the present National Assembly have carefully thought out solutions to this challenge and have risen to the occasion.”
