Reps grills NNPC over abandoned properties, others

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    The House of Representatives Ad-hoc Committee on Abandoned Properties has begun investigations into the vexatious issue of abandonment of properties by the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation NNPC and other federal government owned agencies.

     

    The House Committee also has summoned the Group General Manager National Petroleum Investment Management Services NAPIMS to appear before it unfailingly on Thursday November 11, 2021.

     

    The Committee Chairman, Ademorin Kuye and members began a rescheduled investigative hearing into the sale of properties belonging to the NNPC and other government agencies at the National Assembly.

     

    The House Committee was constituted pursuant to a resolution of the National Assembly to investigate all assets in the custody of MDAs; assets that are being trespassed and encroached; assets that are just wasting away that could be converted to revenue for the Federal Government for the development of our country.

     

    At the last sitting, Committee resolved that NAPIMS should furnish it with records of supposed abandoned assets of the federal government in their care.

     

    However, it received in response to that letter, a letter dated 20th of September, 2021, acknowledging a letter and expressing the regret of the inability of the GGM NAPIMS, Bala Wunti, to attend the meeting, he asked for another date in two weeks’ time.

     

    Due to the absence of the NAPIMS boss the Committee helmsman in a remark said: “We conceded to their request. We postponed the meeting to this date. Yet, the GGM is not here; maybe his representative would want to explain why he has not come”.

     

     

    The Committee however grilled the Managing Director MD, NNPC Properties Limited Arc Musa Yahaya who represented the GMD of NNPC Mele Kyari.

     

     

    At the hearing, he said: “We are sorry and apologize on behalf of the GGM NAPIMS but the issue is that they are away with the GMD, NNPC, on a trip that has taken them, together with the President, and they have not returned.

     

    “They are coming back this weekend. In terms of assets, we don’t know which assets really but we are here as custodians of all the NNPC assets, because the entire thing that we have is in the basket of either the Pension Funds Limited or NNPC Properties Limited.

     

    “Yes, they have other assets which are in their (joint) ventures activities. So, we are here to represent the entire corporation. We have all the necessary data that may be required in terms of assets – buildings, land and other things”.

     

    While fielding questions from the lawmakers on the assets in the joint venture businesses that NNPC has with other companies, he said: “I think NAPIMS is the right person to get to give you those verifications. We are here controlling only the landed assets; that is, the buildings and land. So, I am not going to do justice in terms of telling you anything about these things. But I know a little bit, a snippet that NAPIMS is trying to take stock of all those assets but I cannot do justice really answering any question on their behalf now”.

     

    “On your question on abandoned assets nationwide, NNPC he has really seen that as a problem and have started trying to take stock of all the assets that exist.

     

    “And on their behalf, we have taken an inventory of all of them. We have documented them. On some we are having issues because the titles of those assets, we have not laid our hands on them so that we can really authenticate if they are really NNPC-owned.

     

    “Some of those that have been left for the operations, like the refineries and the depots; all those assets, we are trying to take a proper stock of them and see how we can really own them” he said.

     

    Kuye and  some other lawmakers in the panel said that the explanation is taken and accepted.

     

    He said that as parliamentary committee they understand this season of the year and it is always very busy for everybody.

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