FAAC institutes panel over company’s unremitted $1.48bn

monjola sotubo

April 21, 2015 1:01 PM

NNPC was expected to remit the funds after an audit report prepared by PriceWaterHouse Coopers recommended that the amount be refunded to the Federation Account.

NNPC Group General Manager, Public Affairs Division, Ohi Alegbe

The Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) has instituted a committee to investigate the failure of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) to remit $1.48bn to the three tiers of government.

The FAAC panel was instituted on Monday, April 20, due to the failure of the NNPC to return the money.

“We are making a clarion call that the $1.48bn coming from the audit of the NNPC should be made available so that we can clear what we owe with that,” Chairman, Forum of Finance Commissioners of FAAC, Timothy Odaah said while speaking to journalists.

“The coming (April) FAAC meeting is the last (for this administration) and we believe the money should come during that period because if it doesn’t come by then, it is belated and we don’t want it to escape that period,” he added.

“Today, there was a committee constituted for the purpose of ensuring a that we meet with the NNPC so that everything would be ironed out because we know that Mr. President has already given a directive and we also know that the minister (of Petroleum Resources) has directed that it should be paid but we don’t know exactly what is happening. We need that money; the Federal Government needs it, the states and local governments also need it, and if it is not released with this type of abysmal funding we have seen, it will be very terrible,” Odaah said.

The audit into the NNPC’s finances was ordered after former Central Bank Governor, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi alleged that the company had failed to remit $47 billion in oil funds. The amount was later changed to $20 billion.

The audit reports however found that the NNPC was only due to refund $1.48 billion.

monjola sotubo