Before the discovery of crude oil at Oloibiri, in 1956 in the present day, Bayelsa State, Nigeria’s economic main stay and foreign exchange earner was mainly from the Agricultural sector.
It would be recalled that on 1st April 1977, NNPC was established by the Federal Government of Nigeria, under decree 23, to manage all Federal Government interest and concerns, including upstream, joint account venture, as well as the day-to-day running and management of the Corporation.
Unfortunately, NNPC has not lived up to its billings but has drowned itself, in mind burgling fraud, corruption and sharp practices. In fact the catalogue of negative attributes that has trailed NNPC’s operations, since its inception in 1977, has to a large extent smeared its image beyond redemption. So, the need to clean the Augean Stable becomes more imperative.
Suffice it to mention just a few cases, to buttress the ineptitude of NNPC. The erstwhile, Farouk Lawan adhoc committee on oil subsidy discovered that the oil subsidy thieves had stolen N1.7trn from Government coffers, as a direct consequence of malpractices in the oil sector. The recent investigation into the 6.5million barrels crude oil theft, in which two top officials of NNPC and two oil marketers where allegedly entangled over a thieving ring, was not helping matters.
Failures to remit crude oil earning regularly to Federal Government coffers were also regarded as a set back as well as lack of transparency and accountability in its activities. The near comatose of the petroleum industry bill under the watchful eyes of Mr. Austen Oniwon was of great concern to top watchers of the oil industry.
Again the CBN/NNPC war of words over the two crude Oil and Gas accounts allegedly domiciled at JP Morgan chase, a USA based bank, opened on May 16, 2002 on the express permission of “OAGF” is still ragging, with the parties involved in a game of buck passing and trading brickbats.
The Group Executive Director of Finance and Account in NNPC. Dr. Bernard Oti said recently that NNPC does not operate J. Morgan accounts but operates a domiciliary account with CBN and that CBN was the only signatory to the J. Morgan account.
On the other hand the CBN spokesman, Mr. Ugo Okoroafor, countered, by stating that NNPC issues monthly mandate to the CBN. The $620,000 bribery probe, instituted by the House of Representatives headed by Mr. Gambo Musa, the Ethics and Privileges Committee Chairman over the Otedola and Farouk Lawan Saga, on the allegation that Farouk Lawan collected $600,000 from Otedola of Zenon Oil and Gas, to influence the report of House of Representative panel probe, could be traced, partly to the lack of transparency in the activities of the Oil sector.
In the face of all these happenings, the Austen Oniwon led NNPC Executive management team, could not offer any convincing and satisfactory explanation to the part played by NNPC and the alleged thieving plague that had characterised the activities of NNPC under his watchful eyes.
The high point of all of these anomaly at NNPC was the sacking of Austen Oniwon and his three Group Executive Directors especially over the Oil subsidy probe, by Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan.
The President replaced them with a new GMD Mr. Andy Yakubu as well as other top executive team, such as, Anthony Ogbuigwe, Attahir B. Yusuf, Abiye Membere and Bernard O. Oti.
There is no doubt that the desire of the President, Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, in inaugurating a new management team for NNPC led by Mr. Andy Yakubu, was to ensure greater transparency and accountability in the activities of NNPC, and to position NNPC as the bulwark of Nigeria’s new Oil industry of the 21st Century.
Be that as it may, it is hoped that the new management Executive team of NNPC, would put its acts right and avoid stepping on the proverbial “banana peel” that had in the past, characterized the slip of its predecessors. ###
By Azuka Dibie
