Fuel subsidy: Senate summons ministers

Fuel subsidy: Senate summons ministers

Nigeria’s Minister of Finance, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala; her Petroleum Resources counterpart, Diezani Alison-Madueke; Managing Director, Nigerian National Petroleum  Corporation (NNPC), Mr Austen Oniwon and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)  Governor, Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi are to appear on Thursday before the Joint Senate Committees on Finance, Petroleum Resources (Downstream), and Appropriation, investigating the operation of the fuel subsidy scheme.

 They are to appear before the lawmakers in response to summons issued on Monday.

Others to appear are the Executive Secretary of Petroleum Products Pricing and Regulatory Agency (PPPRA); Comptroller General of the Nigeria Customs Service; General Manager, Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) and Chief of Naval Staff, Marshal Sahad Ola Ibrahim.

Investigation

The Senate, at a sitting on September 12, had mandated the joint Senate Committees on Petroleum Resources (Downstream), Appropriation and Finance to investigate the operation of the fuel subsidy scheme.

 The investigation was with a view to determining whether it was still being run within the parameters of the law and if not to find ways and means to make it much more transparent, accountable, efficient and sustainable within the Appropriation Act.

 Senator Magnus Abe, chairman of the committee said: “the assignment was for us to conduct a full investigation into the issue of fuel subsidy in the Federal Republic of Nigeria, following a motion that was brought by Bukola Saraki and an amendment to the prayer as proposed by the Senate Leader, Senator Ndoma-Egba; after the meeting of the joint committee, it agreed on operational modus of conducting fair and transparent investigation on the issue of fuel subsidy as it affects this country. To that effect, joint committee resolved that this will be our modus.”

He added: “First, we would meet with the government agencies involved in the oil subsidy in order to get a clear brief from them as to the origin, nature, history and everything official about the operation of the oil subsidy in this country.”

The meeting with these institutions and government agencies, he said, would be open to Nigerians.

Non-appearance

Meanwhile, Dr Okonjo-Iweala, on Monday, failed again to appear before the House of Representatives Committee on Appropriation to defend the Federal Government’s Mid Term Fiscal Framework (MTFF), which led to the committee threatening to boycott the presentation of the 2012 Appropriation bill by President Goodluck Jonathan.

 This came as the Minister of State for Finance, Dr Yerima Ngama, who represented Dr Okonjo-Iweala before the appropriation committee, said over N200 billion unspent funds in the current fiscal year would be returned into the Federal Government coffers.

NP/Ehimen/Ekata

Speaker tasks Nigerian Lawyers in UK on democracy, rule of law

The Speaker of the Kwara State House of Assembly in Northern Nigeria, Hon. Razak Atunwa, has called on Nigerian Lawyers in the UK to be ‘change agents’ in the consolidation of democracy and rule of law in the Nigeria.

Atunwa made the call on the occasion of an annual dinner organised by the British-Nigeria Law Forum (BNLF) in London on Sunday.

He was quoted as saying ‘‘it is right to say that democracy cannot be nurtured if the rule of law is not accorded all seriousness as being central to the consolidation of democracy.

It is, therefore, incumbent on members of BNLF, as change agents, to participate in activities that will transform the society.’’

Atunwa, who was the guest speaker at the event, noted that in other parts of the world, lawyers were in the forefront of various activities.

He said, “Nigeria should, therefore, not be an exception.’’ 
The Speaker commended the body for offering valuable opportunities for the professional and personal development of lawyers from Nigeria and Britain.

He said: “BNLF serves as a bridge for the cross fertilisation of ideas and networking for lawyers in Britain and Nigeria….….Many Nigerian lawyers have left the shores of Nigeria for the English and Scottish bar and many have also returned to Nigeria to make a success of their profession.’’

He noted that much of Nigeria’s civil, political, and legal institutions were predicated on the British system.
Atunwa, who was called to the British bar in 1995, observed that there were areas in the legal profession in Nigeria where expertise was in high demand, but currently in short supply.

“This is a lacuna, which can be readily plucked by any member of the BNLF,'' he said, and noted that the Nigerian Bar was not traditionally tended towards specialisation.

Consequently, Atunwa said it was not uncommon to find a lawyer dealing with the mundane landlord and tenant matters in one day, and being instructed on a complex jurisdiction law the next day.

He, however, said that the situation was gradually changing as the need for expertise and specialisation had arisen, particularly in the areas of banking, revenue, oil and gas as well as maritime law.

Caution

Atunwa cautioned the lawyers saying: “If you must venture into politics, you must have to do it for the right reasons and in good faith.''

Collaboration
Earlier, the Chairman of BNLF, Mr Babatunde Akinyanju, had said that the forum was fully committed to strengthening legal business and cultural links between Nigeria and the UK.

He was quoted as saying “BNLF encourages mutual collaboration between lawyers in the UK and Nigeria.”

It encourages and supports legal or social initiatives aimed at strengthening the democratic process and the rule of law, in addition to providing free legal services to the Nigerian community in the UK, on human rights and immigration matters.

The BNF
 BNLF, a professional organisation, was established in 2001 following the British Council's first African Law week held in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital.

NAN/ Adekusibe/Ekata