NNPC: $21b NLNG funds withdrawn with Fed Govt approval

From Tony Akowe, Abuja

The Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has dismissed allegations of illegally withdrawing about $21 billion from the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) dividend account.

Its Group Managing Director, Mele Kyari, told the House of Representatives Committee on Public Accounts yesterday that the money was withdrawn from the account with the approval of the Federal Government through the Minister of Finance.

Represented by the Chief Finance Officer of the corporation, Umar Ajiya, the NNPC boss also said investment in the corporation belongs to the Federal Government alone and not to the three tiers of government.

He said the NNPC pulled out the sum from the account, following the authoridation of the Federal Government, with representations from the Ministry of Finance, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the NNPC.

Kyari said proceeds from the account were the Federal Government’s shares of revenues from oil shared among the Federal and state governments of the federation.

He said: “All withdrawals (from NLNG dividends fund) were based on approved mandates of the relevant authorities. As far as NNPC is concerned, investments in NLNG were done on behalf of the Federal Government. I was the Treasurer of NLNG. So, I was aware of the Federal Government’s investment in the project.

“The same matter came at the FEC (Federal Executive Council) and was referred to a committee headed by the Governor of Kaduna State. But the fact is that the Federal Government, through the NNPC, is the true owner of the investment (the sum withdrawn). It is accrued to the Federal Government, not the Federation Account.

“There is no question of illegal withdrawal. Nobody can withdraw from the account illegally. The CBN governor can be invited to attest to that.

“Though the NNPC sits on the board (of NLNG) on behalf of the Federal Government, proceeds from the investment are managed and disbursed or dispensed or utilised, based on the instruction of the Federal Government.

“When I say the Federal Government, I do not mean the NNPC. Ordinarily, it’s the Federal Ministry of Finance that directs the utilisation. We (NNPC) are merely the agent of the Federal Government.”

Responding to queries from the Office of the Auditor General of the Federation on alleged unauthorised deduction of over N1.2 trillion in 2014 from proceeds from oil, the NNPC CFO explained that “the NNPC could not have remitted all its earnings” at the time to the Federation Account.

The House Committee on Public Account resolved to summon the Minister of Finance, Mrs. Zainab Ahmad; CBN Governor Godwin Emefiele and the Accountant General of the Federation, Ahmed Idris, to clarify Ajiya’s claims on the utilisation of the NLNG fund.