$20bn oil money: Senate clears Diezani, NNPC •Asks FG to scrap fuel subsidy

THE Senate Committed on Finance, which probed the allegation of missing $20 billion oil money made by the suspended Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Lamido Sanusi, on Wednesday, said no such money was missing. The committee, headed by Senator Ahmed Makarfi, said the suspended CBN govermor lied in making the allegation, adding that forensic audit of the accounts of the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) did not reveal any such amount. In a report submitted to the Senate on Wednesday, the committee held that its investigations did not confirm that the said sum was missing, adding that “the committee could not see how the figure of $49.8 billion was arrived at by the ex-CBN governor in the first instance. It recommended that the Federal Government should take steps to scrap the oil subsidy regime, but added that stakeholders have to be fully carried along in the process that would lead to the termination of the subsidy programme. But the report asked the NNPC to remit the sum of $927,887,238 about (N148,461,958,141.20), being the amount yet to be reconciled. “NNPC is to refund and remit to the Federation Account, the sum of $262 million, being expenses it could not satisfactorily defend of the Holding Strategic Stock Reserve; Pipeline Maintenance and Management Cost and Capital Expenditure. “Royalties and taxes amounting to $447,817,884 being outstanding Federation Account share from the US $6.815 billion listings by NNPC on behalf of NPDC remains unremitted.” The report also stated that the Senate should take further action when it received the report of the forensic audit being carried out on the accounts of the NNPC by the Auditor General of the Federation. Besides, it also asked President Goodluck Jonathan to prepare a supplementary budget to the tune of the cost of subsidy on petrol for 2012 and kerosene subsidy for between 2012 and 2013. The costs, it said, included the N90 billion for petrol and N685.910 billion for kerosene subsidy. The committee also urged the National Assembly to expedite action on the passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB)