The Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) has attributed the non-remittance of $852 million and N1.8 billion to faulty concession agreements signed with the private operators by the Federal Government in 2006.
This was made known by the Managing Director of NPA, Mohammed Bello-Koko, on Thursday, while responding to the enquires by the Senate Committee on Public Accounts based on the audit queries raised against the authority by the Office of the Auditor General of the Federation.
Bello-Koko, who was directed to appear before the senate committee alongside other management staff, absolved the authority over these unremitted funds from private operators.
He explained to the committee that the lump sums of $852 million and N1.8 billion, raised in the queries, were an accumulation of unremitted funds from private port operators who came on board through 2006 concession agreement.
He told the committee members that the Federal Government that signed the concession agreement with the private operators even contributed to encumbrances faced by the concessionaires at the beginning by not removing structures that belonged to it from the right of way of the affected concessionaires.
Going further, the NPA boss said,
On the second query of outstanding debts of $ 67.45 million and N32.266bn, the NPA boss told the committee members that the debts were not incurred by the NPA but by the defunct Nigerian Shippers Councils whose debtors are no longer traceable.
