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Governors’ forum accuses NNPC of not remitting Joint Venture Cash Call

By Terhemba Daka, Abuja 
26 January 2018   |   3:29 am
The Nigeria Governors’ Forum yesterday accused the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) of failing to remit Joint Venture Cash Call. The Chairman of the forum, Abdulaziz Yari, explained that the corporation shortchanged the country for five years when the oil price was high. Yari, who is the Governor of Zamfara State, said the untoward development…

The Minister of State for Pretroleum Resources Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu PHOTO: TWITTER/NNPC

The Nigeria Governors’ Forum yesterday accused the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) of failing to remit Joint Venture Cash Call.

The Chairman of the forum, Abdulaziz Yari, explained that the corporation shortchanged the country for five years when the oil price was high.

Yari, who is the Governor of Zamfara State, said the untoward development took place when oil price was about $110 per barrel.

He said the forum decided to report the issue to the president, after the National Economic Council took a decision to raise a 7-member committee on the issue.

The governors said the council felt concerned “to engage the NNPC and discuss a way forward to resolve the outstanding issues, especially as it concerns the remittances to the federation account.

“After a meeting with the NNPC group, one of the things that arose was how the joint venture batch four would be paid.

“We have seen that what is being remitted to the federation account is lower than what was paid to joint venture cash call.” He said the NEC of the forum was worried by the development; hence he headed the committee to engage the corporation.

Yari said: “The entire federation is being shortchanged by those activities, adding that the NNPC made no payments since 2010, up to when the Buhari took over in 2015.

He stressed that payments into the federation account has always been very low, because it is a dual payment that involves the existing payments and arrears.

The governors’ chairman said there was the need to fine-tune how best the country could convince its partners on, especially now that oil prices have started to pick up.

Governors Aminu Bello Masari of Katsina State and his counterpart in Plateau State, Simeon Lalong joined Yari in the briefing.

Other governors who accompanied them were Udom Emmanuel of Akwa Ibom State (PDP), Dave Umahi of Ebonyi State (PDP), Atiku Bagudu of Kebbi State (APC) and Nasir Ahmed El-Rufai of Kaduna State (APC).

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