The Nigerian Senate has announced its intention to summon several key players in the country’s petroleum industry for questioning over alleged economic sabotage. Those to be summoned include the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Nigeria Port Authority (NPA), Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Dangote Group, and the Minister of State for Petroleum, Heineken Lokpobiri, among others.
This announcement came from the Senate Leader and Chairman of the Senate ad-hoc committee on “Alleged Economic Sabotage in the Nigerian Petroleum Industry” during a media briefing held on Thursday.
The chairman revealed that the 14-member committee, established on July 23, will scrutinize the billions of dollars spent on the turnaround maintenance of state-owned refineries over the past decade. This investigation aims to address the significant challenges facing the industry.
A public hearing is scheduled for September 10, where the contractors responsible for the turnaround maintenance of the refineries are expected to attend. The ad-hoc committee plans to visit Lagos, Port Harcourt, and Warri to meet with key industry players.
Committee members, in their individual statements, pledged to uncover the corruption within the sector, stating that the era of business as usual is over. They emphasized that no one would be exempt from accountability, and they are prepared to issue arrest warrants to any agency heads who fail to comply with their summons.
This action follows a recent conflict between the Dangote refinery and Nigerian regulatory authorities. The company has been accused of producing substandard products, a claim that the NNPCL has denied. The House of Representatives leadership also visited the refinery in Lagos during an inspection tour and is now investigating the claims of inferior products.
In response to the clash, the House of Representatives called for the suspension of Farouk Ahmed, the Chief Executive of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), due to his “unguarded comments” about the quality of products from the Dangote Refinery.
Since this controversy, numerous Nigerian businessmen and politicians have expressed their support for the Dangote Group, advocating for greater support for entrepreneurs in the country.
