Mele Kyari Promises More Transparency At NNPC

The head of the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation promised “a new season of transparency and accountability”, pushing back against critics calling for the break-up of the state oil company as the country struggles to manage the fallout from battered oil prices.

Mele Kyari, group managing director at NNPC, oversaw the public release this month of audited accounts for 20 of the company’s subsidiaries for the first time in the firm’s 43-year history.

The publication, while incomplete, provided a window into a notoriously opaque organisation. It revealed how NNPC’s profitmaking investment, exploration and retail arms are propping up lossmaking subsidiaries, particularly the country’s four refineries, which logged hundreds of millions of dollars in losses in 2018.

“We have done the right thing . . . we have followed the law,” Mr Kyari said in an interview, noting that a requirement to publish accounts was written into the legislation that established NNPC. “This is a new season of transparency and accountability for the company of our country.”

Critics conceded that the release was a good first step, but said it had not gone far enough. The lack of a consolidated audited account statement for the entire business meant the disclosure had provided an incomplete overview, said Oluseun Onigbinde, from budgIT, a Nigerian transparency organisation. The details that were published painted a worrying, albeit unsurprising, picture of a giant, dysfunctional company that must be broken up, he added.

It’s something that civil society and transparency organisations like us have been clamouring for some time - Waziri Adio, head of the Nigerian Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative

“We need to dismantle the whole monolith and allow the subsidiaries to try singly — that’s the only thing that will make NNPC more efficient,” Mr Onigbinde said. “You have oil prices bleeding, state financials are not solid enough, the federal government has to step up and say it’s time to rebuild this.”

Founded in 1977, NNPC dominates the oil industry in Africa’s biggest crude producer. It produces, buys, sells and trades crude, mostly through joint ventures operated by oil majors including Shell and Total, and regulates itself.

For decades the company has been viewed as a cash machine for politicians and is currently the subject of several multibillion-dollar, international lawsuits related to alleged corruption. Former vice-president Atiku Abubakar called NNPC a “mafia organisation” during his presidential campaign last year, in which he vowed to break it up and sell off the refineries.

Mr Kyari acknowledged that NNPC had failed to run its refineries profitably and said it was in the process of rehabilitating the facilities to be run by private companies in partnership with the government.

The four refineries generated a N162bn ($450m) loss in 2018 on just N3.44bn in revenues, the accounts showed. The facility in Kaduna, in the centre of the country, generated no revenue in 2018 at all but incurred a N64bn loss.

The NNPC boss said the company planned to complete the refurbishment work on all four facilities by 2023 but admitted that only the Port Harcourt refinery, in the oil producing south, had a “clear line of sight on financing” needed to complete the work.

Culled from Financial Times

Embattled Marilyn Amobi Of NBET In Fresh Financial Scandal

In less than four weeks, the inglorious tenure of Dr. Marilyn Amobi as MD/CEO of Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading (NBET) Plc will come to an end. Her tenure has been marred with allegations, counter-allegations, and indictments on corruption, executive high-handedness and insubordination by EFCC, ICPC, BPP and the Auditor General of the Federation. 

Our sources have revealed an attempt by the ousted MD/CEO to pay over half a billion naira as terminal benefit and welfare packages from taxpayers’ money.  It was gathered that last week Dr. Amobi approved for herself the sum of N15 million as flight ticket to USA and per-diem ahead of the end of her tenure.  Amobi has been called out for kleptocracy and mismanagement of public funds in several publications and litigations as she currently has five staff and ten media houses' cases being funded from taxpayers’ money.

In addition to a vacation allowance, it is alleged that Amobi is in the process of paying herself terminal benefits in violation of Public Service Rules and Financial Standards. How is it possible that a sitting public official can unilaterally determine her compensation and terminal benefits without recourse to the National Salaries Incomes and Wages Commission (NSIWC)? Recall, that in 2018 the controversial MD/CEO approved the sum of N77 million naira upfront as six years furniture and rent grants when she actually had two years and seven months remaining of her tenure; she is yet to return the balance to the NBET coffers.  Amobi is known to have a penchant for controversy and misuse of taxpayers’ funds, however she may be going too far this time as the severance package shall be borne by electricity consumers without equivalent service. Her actions clearly demonstrates the level of impunity in which she has steered the affairs of the government agency (NBET), thus leaving it in ruins and tatters for the incoming MD/CEO to salvage. Knowing full well that she is on a downward spiral, Amobi has sought almost fruitlessly to manipulate the recently inaugurated NBET Board of Directors to further endorse her lawlessness and abuse of office. She is on a mission to drag anyone and everyone down the abyss with her.

On 15th June 2020, the Minister of Power, Mr. Saleh Mamman, had instructed Amobi to proceed on terminal/outstanding leave with immediate effect, and ordered the assumption of Dr. Nnaemeka Ewelukwa as the substantive MD/CEO of NBET.  This instruction was however twisted in the most shocking and embarrassing way to allow Dr. Amobi sit tight as MD/CEO till 24th July 2020 by the Ministry of Finance.  This latter instruction by the Ministry of Finance has created a leverage for Amobi to empty the treasury before her exist.  Amobi who had unilaterally withheld the salaries of two whistleblowers (Messrs. Waziri Bintube and Sambo Abdullahi) that uncovered and blew open her corrupt practices for the past three years, is now jittery over the prospect of facing prosecution by the anti-graft agencies. Amobi also declined the approval by the former Minister of Power, Works, & Housing, Mr. Babatunde  Raji Fashola SAN, to process the terminal benefits of Mr. Rumundaka Wonodi, the pioneer MD/CEO of NBET. In a move to enrich herself, Madam Amobi has now resurrected the erstwhile declined memo for Mr. Wonodi which was approved by Fashola in 2018 as justification to pay herself about five hundred million naira as her severance package. 

It was alleged that Amobi continues to boast that she controls the affairs of the current NBET Board of Directors, and can approve any sums of money for herself and cronies who have been hired and placed to do her bidding. In fact, we learnt that the sum of N7.9 million each has been allocated for three staff as gratis for assisting her fraudulent activities, in violation of every known policy, procedure and financial standards known to NBET.  She was heard to be justifying her actions that the staff carried out functions in acting capacity thus deserves to receive gratis from her.  Amobi continues to insist that her actions are not bound by Public Service Rules and she has the right to approve any monies within NBET coffers.  

Amobi had changed the organogram of NBET more than five times without recourse to the Board of Directors nor supervising ministry, to create fictitious roles that are irrelevant to NBET mandate and give her lee way for misappropriating public funds. It will be recalled that the House Committee on Power has declared the NBET organogram illegal and grossly deficient, serving only the personal agenda of Amobi to siphon public funds. She boasted she would expend N2billion within four weeks when the House Committee on Power visited the agency sometime in February 2020, and the N2billion has indeed  vanished without commensurate improvement in electricity generation. 

Others penciled to benefit from the last minute gratis of the outgoing MD/CEO are non-NBET staff on secondment to the organization from the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation. 

Not only is Amobi on a mission to empty the treasury of the organization just mid-way into the 2020 financial year, it was also gathered that she had sought to use the recently inaugurated NBET Board of Directors as a rubber stamp for her atrocities ahead of her exit.  You may recall that since the Buhari Administration, and within the four year tenure of Amobi, there was never a Board meeting until the announcement of her sack and the appointment of a substantive MD/CEO for NBET in the person of Dr. Nnaemeka Ewelukwa.  Interestingly, a seemingly non-existent Board that had continued to enable her atrocities in office, suddenly woke up to its responsibilities to hold two sessions on the 20th and 22nd June 2020 respectively, where Amobi failed to show any known achievement or growth for NBET. Our sources disclosed that there is an ongoing move by the Board to effect recruitments and secondments into the NBET Management team before 24th July 2020 on the order of Amobi. A member of the civil society group at the forefront of monitoring developments at NBET disclosed that the actions and decisions of the NBET Board is being watched keenly to identify and escalate any hoax that may come out from these last minutes meetings.

The onus is on the NBET Board of Directors and its appointed MD/CEO, Dr. Ewelukwa, to stay action on any request put forward by Amobi from now till her exit on 24th July 2020.  Her last minute abracadabra to loot the treasury and create administrative confusion such as restricting staff entry into the office for the past one week must be met with tough resistance and diffused completely. 

It is important to note that Amobi is at the centre of a National Assembly Investigation that may lead to her eventual incarceration if found guilty of charges brought before the House Committee on Power as such payment of any terminal or welfare package should be placed on hold pending the determination of petitions by the House Committee on Power. Amobi has become an albatross to the once revered Electricity Bulk Trader and a colossal liability to the Buhari Administration. It is no wonder that the Minister of Finance, Dr. Zainab Ahmed, has been advised to withdraw her support and distance herself from the parasitic MD/CEO and avoid being tainted or seen as pro-corruption.  Now is the time for Dr. Amobi to hands-off all financial and operational matters at NBET, and proceed on terminal/outstanding leave immediately. 

Pa Clark Endorses Ex Gov Dickson For Bayelsa West Senatorial District Election

...Says Ijaw Nation needs tested men of character, courage, capacity in the National Assembly

Ijaw National Leader, Chief Edwin Clark, has endorsed the immediate past Governor of Bayelsa State, His Excellency, Chief Henry Seriake Dickson, for the vacant Bayelsa West Senatorial District election.

The Media Advisor to the former Governor, Mr Fidelis Soriwei, also quoted the foremost Ijaw National Leader as having called on Ijaw leaders across the country to support the ex-Governor for the vacant Senatorial slot in the collective interest of the Ijaw nation and the Niger Delta.

Pa Clark said that Bayelsa and indeed the Ijaw nation was seriously in need of men of demonstrable character, courage, capacity and knowledge like Dickson to run for Senate.

He said that the former Governor possesses vast experience in leadership, the political network, and the requisite knowledge to effectively tackle the critical issues of interest to the Ijaw nation such as Resource Control, True Federalism, Restructuring, Power Devolution among others.

The Elder Statesman said that Dickson should be backed for the Senatorial slot as his antecedents have rightly portrayed him as a man of immense courage, integrity and honour who has never for once succumbed to intimidation of whatever form.

Pa Clark stressed that Dickson was well equipped and prepared to defend the interest of the Ijaw nation, the Niger Delta, the South South and to collaborate with his counterparts in other parts of the country to make Nigeria a better nation.

He said that the ex-Governor left behind a record of sterling performance as a member of the House of the House of Representatives and as Governor of Bayelsa State for eight years.

Pa Clark recalled that the former Governor declared emergency in the education sector, established two universities, a polytechnic, several free boarding secondary schools, the Bayelsa International Airport, Roads and bridges, and several facilities in the health, agriculture, and other sectors.

“The Ijaw nation today, more than ever before, needs people with strong character, to run for the Senate, to tackle the lingering issues, and the interest of the Ijaw nation, the Niger Delta; such as Restructuring, True Federalism, Resource Control, and other pertinent matters in the defense of the Ijaw interest, the South-South and indeed the country.

“I make bold to declare that His Excellency, Hon. Henry Seriake Dickson, the immediate past Governor of Bayelsa State, has displayed the quintessential Ijaw virtues of honour, courage and integrity, and has never succumbed to intimidation. I believe that he would advance our cause and join other compatriots to work for a better and greater Nigeria.

“He is well versed on issues of Restructuring, True Federalism, Devolution of Power and Resource Control. He has the right language to deploy, the charisma, the right commitment and determination to achieving these objective.

“As a former member of the House of Representatives, he has a hands-on experience on legislative procedures and workings, the leadership acumen to weather through murky waters of parliamentary democracy and gymnastics. Governor Dickson has been a leading voice in the call for restructuring of this country. He makes no pretention about it.

“As the fourth largest ethnic nationality in Nigeria, we stand to gain more by working together than by singing discordant tunes. We must, therefore, settle for the best to represent our interest at the national level.” He said

Pa Clark’s comment follows endorsements by various groups including leaders of the Ijaw Yourhs Council, other youth and women groups, across the Senatorial District.

Chairman South-South APC: Amb Godknows Igali Congratulates David Lyon

 

……Appreciate President Muhammed Buhari and the National Executive Committee of the APC

Ambassador Godknows Boladei Igali has congratulated the former Bayelsa State APC Governorship candidate, Hon David Lyon on his appointment as acting Chairman South-South APC.

In a press release signed by Amb Igali, he said that the appointment has placed Lyon at the vortex of governance, peace and security and development in the Niger Delta Region indeed, it makes him the most politically exposed person from the region.

Excerpt is the full text of the press release:

WHEN THE LION IS CALLED UPON TO ROAR AGAIN: A WORD OF CONGRATULATIONS TO HE DAVID LYON ON HIS APPOINTMENT AS  ACTING CHAIRMAN SOUTH-SOUTH APC - AMB IGALI

The recent appointment of HE Hon David Lyon, the popular winner of the recent Bayelsa State Governorship election, which was reversed in favour of the incumbent,  HE Sen. Douye Diri by the Nigerian Supreme Court, by the All Progressives Congress Party (APC ) to head its affairs in the South South zone of the country has come with resounding celebrations.  We appreciate President Muhammed Buhari and the National Executive Committee of the APC for this elevation of our brother, kinsman and great national patriot. By this appointment, HE Lyon has been elevated to steer the affairs of the party in the six states of Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Cross River, Delta, Edo and Rivers.

As the mandate is to ensure that the APC which is the ruling party in the country repositions itself, this high honour on HE Lyon places him at the vortex of governance, peace and security and development in the Niger Delta Region  Indeed, it makes him the most politically  exposed person from  the region. Expectedly, he will put the plough to working immediately in ensuring internal peace and democracy within the APC in the areas under his purview and resolve all petty and troubling internecine disputes. 

However, more than sleeping and waking up with APC, he will also have the onerous task  of ensuring inter-party harmony with other political parties, especially the People Democratic Party (PDP) which controls some of the states in the region. He will also be expected to work to ensure  that peace and security thrives in the area. Furthermore, the people of the area look unto him to work hard to ensure that party faithfuls are carried  along in all affairs at the national level and that the region will be well favoured at the national  level in terms of allocation of federal projects .

Fortunately, HE Lyon is loved with unimaginable respect and admiration  not only in Bayelsa but in the entire region. His humility and the charitable character are magnetic attributes which pull crowds to him. Since the announcement of this appointment, jubilation  and celebrations have erupted effusively around the major cities  of the region; indeed across  party line. 

A man of few words,  but deeply endowed with natural intelligence and tact, he will be able to ensure the successful accomplishment of his mandate. For a political leader better known for his team work ideals, he is expected to attract  the best of hands, even outside party lines to get the job done. The lion will  certainly roar again and will bring peace once again to the troubled party.

On behalf of my family and our PROJECT BAYELSA NGO team, we congratulate you and look forward to lending our support when necessary. May God in heaven continue to imbue you with wisdom and give you the strength and presence of mind to bring His Sovereign will to pass.

Ambassador Godknows Boladei Igali, Phd, OON, 

Ibetariowei of Izon

"We Will Salvage the APC", Being Text of a Statement issued by Ogbonna Nwuke, the State Publicity Secretary of the Rivers State Caretaker Committee

Hon. Sokonte Davis

Our attention has been drawn to moves by the Igo Aguma led faction to overturn the popular decision taken on behalf of well meaning party members to restore decorum, orderliness, unity and peace by a vast majority of statutory members who include two former Governors of Rivers State. 

Recall that 28 out of 38 statutory members recognized by the APC Party Constitution had on Monday, 22nd June, 2020, resolved to replace Hon Igo Aguma who has been acting as a sole administrator instead of a Chairman of the Caretaker Committee with Hon. Sekonte Davies, an experienced party administrator and former Executive Director of NPA. 

We have learnt that Igo Aguma and his acolytes are currently shopping along the corridors of the Judiciary for judges that they need to scuttle the will of an overwhelming majority of party members in Rivers State in their bid to stagnate ongoing efforts to rebuild the party. 

We are constrained as major stakeholders to bring this development to the attention of the National Secretariat of our great Party and members of the public. 

We reaffirm that we are determined to uphold the decision of the a Port Harcourt High Court which was presided over by Justice Omereji, to wit, to ensure that sanity, justice, discipline, order, peace and progress are restored. 

Let it be known that we are aware of the subterranean moves that are being made by Igo Aguma and his co-travellers who have volunteered to constitute themselves into cogs in the wheel of progress. 

We shall remain resolute in our resolve to defend the integrity and stability of our great Party. Accordingly, we urge Igo Aguma and his followers who are presently running around the Judiciary, as sheep without a shepherd, to sheath their swords, and join hands with their fellow compatriots in the ongoing effort to rebuild our great party. 

Politics is a game of the majority in which reason, interests and companionship prevails, and we extend our hand of fellowship to Igo Aguma and his friends to join other statutory members in laying a solid foundation for the progress and unity of our party. 

We urge them to return home and assure them that the leadership of Hon. Sekonte Davies would be focused but accommodating in the daily conduct of party affairs. 

Finally, the decision painstakingly taken in the overall interest of our great Party to replace Igo Aguma with Hon. Sekonte Davies is irrevocable. No amount of blackmail will change the position of the silent majority of our great party members who are determined to reclaim complete ownership of their own party. 

Hon. Ogbonna Nwuke 

APC State Publicity Secretary