President Goodluck Jonathan has directed the Nuhu Ribadu Committee on Petroleum Revenue to submit its report on Friday.
A statement by the presidential media aide, Dr. Reuben Abati, said the directive is to show the administration’s commitment to transparency, probity, and accountability in the petroleum sector.
The Committee, set up in February, is required to, among others, determine and verify all petroleum upstream and downstream revenues (taxes and royalties, etc,) due and payable to the Federal Government and to take necessary steps to collect debts due and owed.
The committee is also to obtain agreements and enforce payment terms for oil industry operators.
The presentation of the Committee’s report will take place on Friday at the State House, Abuja.
Also, President Jonathan is expected to receive two other reports on the petroleum industry.
They are the committee established to design a new corporate governance code for ensuring full transparency, good governance and global best practices in the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and other oil industry corporations with Dotun Sulaiman as Chairman.
The other committee, headed by Dr. Kalu Idika Kalu, is to conduct a high-level assessment of the nation’s refineries and recommend ways of improving their efficiency and commercial viability.
The Presidency said it would prosecute those indicted in the report.
It warned that the Federal Government is determined to fight corruption at all levels.
A statement by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Public Affairs, Dr. Doyin Okupe, said the Presidency has assured that there would be no cover up in the findings of the Ribadu Report.
He said: “For the avoidance of doubt, the President has neither seen nor received any copy of the Ribadu Committee Report.
“Essentially, what appears to have been irregularly released prematurely to the media is a draft copy, which still requires full accent of all members of the committee and clarifications and due process from the originating ministry before the official handing over to the Presidency.
“President Jonathan should be hailed for his personal resolve to fight institutionalised corruption in Nigeria.
“He ordered the probe of the oil industry from 2002 – 2011, which also covers the tenure of his administration.
“No President in our history has gone this far and this explains why the rot in our system has persisted.
“The President approved the appointment of a well–known anti-corruption crusader, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu,who contested against him at the presidential poll on the platform of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN).
“It is also noteworthy that the Secretary of the Committee, Supo Sasore, was a former Attorney General of Lagos State in an ACN government.”
Okupe said the President’s unwavering and commendable determination to fight corruption is demonstrated by his appointment of credible Nigerians, anti-corruption crusaders and members of the opposition in the committee.
He also said his efforts has helped in exposing the fraud in the petroleum subsidy regime dug up by the Aig Imokhuede Committee and that the indicted persons are being tried in the courts.
“For the purpose of clarity, President Jonathan’s resolve to fight corruption and dig out all the rot in the system should not be misconstrued or politicised by the opposition as if it is his administration that is guilty of corruption.
“Rather, he should be commended for taking the step that will ultimately sanitise the policy and the system,” he said.
SOURCE: 30 October 2012.
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