By Ayomide Joseph
Atiku Abubakar, the former Vice President and the 2023 presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has raised objections to the decision of the President Bola Tinubu-led government, which mandates the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) to submit receipts of oil sales to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
The New Diplomat recalls that President Tinubu issued the directive as part of efforts to monitor revenue accruing to the Federal Government.
Traditionally, the NNPC has been solely responsible for maintaining and controlling crude oil sales, reporting its accounts directly to the Federal Government.
However, in response to this new arrangement, Atiku, in a statement released on his official X account on Thursday, argued that the directive lacks legal validity. He contended that the decision violates the legal status of the NNPCL, pointing out that the Central Bank Act of 2007 does not empower the CBN to vet transactions or formulate internal controls and audits for state-owned enterprises.
The statement by Atiku read, “without prejudice to any potential merits of the Federal Government’s decision to transfer responsibility for crude oil sales proceeds from NNPCL to CBN, it must be emphasized that the action lacks legal validity.”
“The President’s directive, as publicly disclosed, compels the NNPCL to submit crude oil sales receipts to the CBN for vetting and documentation. Regardless of the potential merits of this new arrangement, it constitutes a violation of the legal status of the NNPCL.”
Atiku asserted that “this arbitrary order risks undermining the operational independence of the NNPCL, effectively transferring control of its finances to the Federal Ministry of Finance and the CBN.”
In the statement, Atiku argued that state-owned enterprises should operate within the confines of their establishment laws, and the NNPCL, being a creation of the Petroleum Industry Act 2021, should be allowed to function as an independent company, guided by international best practices and corporate governance principles.
Atiku further warned that any attempt to compromise the operational independence of the NNPCL would impede its chances of attracting investments and achieving global relevance in the petroleum industry.
To enhance transparency, the former vice president suggested the involvement of NEITI and CBN in tracing the NNPCL’s bank accounts for crude sales proceeds.
He recommended that the NNPCL board be carefully reconstituted to include representatives from CBN and NEITI.
