The Socioeconomic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) is calling on President Bola Tinubu to establish a panel of inquiry to investigate allegations of missing oil revenue and unaccounted funds meant for refinery repairs. The Nigerian Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) has documented that over $15 billion and N200 billion budgeted for refinery repairs are missing between 2020 and 2021.
SERAP is urging the President to name and shame anyone responsible for missing public funds and ensure they face prosecution, while also ensuring the full recovery of any proceeds of crime. SERAP is also calling for the implementation of all NEITI recommendations in the 2021 report and any recovered crime proceeds should be utilized.
The letter to the President, dated September 23 and signed by SERAP Deputy Director Kolawole Oluwadare, highlights the public’s legitimate interest in ensuring justice and accountability for these serious allegations. As both President and Minister of Petroleum Resources, the organization believes that the President’s office should be concerned about these revelations and ensure swift justice for the alleged perpetrators, as well as the full recovery of missing public funds.
The letter read in part: “Any failure to investigate these serious allegations, bring the alleged perpetrators to justice and recover missing public funds would involve a significant allocation of resources and exacerbate the country’s debt burden.”
“It would also create cynicism, suspicion and, eventually, distrust among citizens about their government’s ability to combat high-level official corruption, as well as deterring foreign investment and limiting growth and development.”
“Therefore, we would appreciate if the recommended actions are taken within seven days of receipt and/or publication of this letter. If we have not heard from you by then, SERAP will consider appropriate legal action to compel your government to comply with our request in the public interest.”
“NEITI’s findings suggest a serious breach of public trust and the provisions of the 1999 Nigerian Constitution. [as amended]national anti-corruption laws and the country’s obligations under the United Nations Convention against Corruption.
“The corruption allegations documented by NEITI undermine the country’s economic development, trapping the majority of Nigerians in poverty and depriving them of opportunities.”
“Your government has a constitutional duty to ensure transparency and accountability in the spending of the country’s wealth and resources.”
“According to the 2021 report of the Nigerian Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI), government agencies, including the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company (NNPC) and the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NPDC), They did not remit 13,591 million dollars and 8,251 million dollars to the public treasury. .”
“The NNPC and NPDC did not remit more than 70% of these public funds. NEITI wants both the NNPC and NPDC to be investigated and the missing public funds to be fully recovered.”
“The report also shows that in 2021, state-owned enterprises (SOEs) and their subsidiaries (the NNPC Group) allegedly spent $6.931 million on behalf of the Federal Government, but without an allocation from the National Assembly. “The money may be missing.”
“The NNPC also reportedly took out a $3 billion loan in 2012 purportedly to clear subsidy payments owed to petroleum products marketers, but details of the loan, subsidy and beneficiaries of the subsidies are not disclosed. Payments”.
“The report also shows that N9.73 billion was paid to the NNPC as pipeline transportation revenue earned from the operations of the joint venture but the money was not remitted to the Federation or properly accounted for. In 2021, the NPDC also failed to remit $7.61 million obtained from the sale of crude oil.”
“The report documents that about N200 billion was spent on ‘refinery rehabilitation’ between 2020 and 2021, but “none of the refineries were operational in 2021 despite the expenditure.” NEITI wants the expenditure investigated as money may be missing.”
“Section 13 of the Nigerian Constitution of 1999 [as amended] imposes a clear responsibility on its government to comply with, observe and apply the provisions of Chapter 2 of the Constitution. Section 15(5) places the responsibility on your government to ‘abolish all corrupt practices and abuse of power’ in the country.”
“Under Section 16(1) of the Constitution, your government has the responsibility to ‘ensure the maximum well-being, liberty and happiness of every citizen on the basis of social justice and equality of status and opportunity.’”
“Section 16(2) further states that ‘the material resources of the nation are utilized and distributed to the best advantage to serve the common good.’”
“Likewise, Articles 5 and 9 of the United Nations Convention against Corruption also impose legal obligations on its government to ensure proper management of public affairs and public funds, and to promote sound and transparent administration of public affairs”.
“The United Nations Convention against Corruption and the African Union Convention on Preventing and Combating Corruption, to which Nigeria is a State party, obligate its government to effectively prevent and investigate the looting of wealth and natural resources. of the country and force public officials and non-state actors to account for any violations.”
“Specifically, Article 26 of the UN Convention requires your government to ensure ‘effective, proportionate and dissuasive sanctions’, including criminal and non-criminal sanctions, in cases of grand corruption.”
“Article 26 complements the more general requirement of Article 30, paragraph 1, that sanctions must take into account the seriousness of corruption allegations.”
“Nigeria is also a participating state of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI), which aims to encourage greater government accountability for the use of natural resource wealth by creating a set of international standards on transparency of income”.
“The NEITI also aims to address corruption, poverty and conflicts associated with natural resource wealth. Nigeria has an obligation to implement the NEITI Standard, which sets out the transparency standards that participating States, including Nigeria, must comply with.”