Mohammed Shosanya
The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) has deplored the allegations of fraud leveled against its boss, Engr. Gbenga Komolafe by union executives in the commission.
The commission in a statement,described the allegations as baseless and frivolous designed only to seek cheap attention and disparage the integrity of the Commission Chief Executive for purely sinister motives.
It absolved Engr. Komolafe of any wrong doing declaring that the commission’s boss is not a sole administrator, but operates under the guidance of supervisory structures emplaced by the PIA 2021 and the Federal Government
The commission also picked holes in the allegations of recruitment of over 140 individuals without proper procedure and in violation of the Federal public service rules and the federal character commission’s policies on equal opportunities.
It maintained that the recruitment was done in compliance with all procedures and compliance certificate issued by the relevant organ.
The statement emphasized that by law (the Petroleum Industry Act 2021), the powers of appointment, promotion and remuneration are vested in the Board of the Commission, while statutorily the Federal Character Commission regulates compliance with statutory procedure with regards to recruitment into public establishments.
It further described as malicious and completely false the allegation of misappropriating N10 billion virement, donating N4 billion to political parties in the run-up to elections, challenging the purveyors to provide proof.
“This allegation is malicious, completely false, libellous and entirely unsubstantiated. The purveyors of the falsehood are challenged to publish details of the account of the commission from where the donations originated and the accounts of the political parties involved where the four billion naira and ten billion naira were deposited. Equally, the financial source documents (invoices) utilized to make the donations ought to be published.
“There is no way N14 billion can leave the coffers of the Commission without trace, especially given how funds are allocated to the commission.
“Considering the fact that the nature of legal disputes against the Commission are mostly connected with strategic national assets/interests in the upstream oil and gas industry involving very high stakes and potential impact on Federation revenue, the Governing Board of the Commission approved a sustainable template for the engagement and payment of external solicitors engaged by the Commission. Besides, the legal fees paid by the commission comply with the limit set by the Attorney General of the Federation who has the constitutional powers to issue such fiat.
“The framework has ensured that the very best lawyers are engaged by the Commission and the legal fees expended are a reflection of the complexity and high financial exposure of the cases involved” reads the statement in parts”
End.
NUPRC Boss, Engr. Gbenga Komolafe
