Mr. Ikeagwuonu Ugochinyere, the Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Petroleum Resources Downstream, has given assurance that he will take steps to recover the alleged missing $100 billion in oil revenue earnings. He made this pledge during the committee’s inauguration at the National Assembly complex in Abuja.
Ugochinyere also revealed that his committee will investigate the purported failure to remit approximately $20 billion in royalties to the Federation Account by the relevant entities operating in the oil and gas sector.
This Imo-born politician guaranteed that the committee would fulfill its legislative responsibilities related to energy security, enhancing professionalism in the petroleum sector, driving economic transformation, ensuring accountability, and implementing institutional reforms in the oil and gas sector of the economy.
He further expressed the committee’s readiness to scrutinize the abuse of the petroleum subsidy program, originally intended to alleviate the suffering of Nigerians but failed to achieve its intended purpose.
Ugochinyere emphasized that the various stakeholders in the petroleum sector should cooperate with the committee in carrying out its duties and be receptive to positive changes when necessary. He made it clear that the committee’s work is not about victimization or witch-hunting but is driven by a profound commitment to serving the nation.
He highlighted the House’s commitment to receiving the 2021 report of the Nigerian Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) Oil and Gas Sector Report, in line with Section 4(3) of the NEITI Act, 2007, as evidence of the committee’s determination to address the challenges afflicting the sector.
The committee’s scope of responsibility encompasses overseeing various aspects of the petroleum industry, including refineries, petroleum products marketing, petrochemicals, the Pipelines and Products Marketing Company (PPMC), the downstream petroleum sector, and the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (now known as Nigerian National Petroleum Company Ltd.) downstream activities. This includes oversight of the Petroleum Equalization Fund and the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA). The committee is also tasked with examining and scrutinizing the annual budget estimates of the NNPC, its subsidiaries, and all oil-related companies, and presenting these for consideration and approval by the House.