No fewer than 50 members of the House of Representatives under the aegis of ‘Concerned Members of the 10th Assembly’ on Thursday expressed opposition against recent calls for the removal of the Group Chief Executive Officers of Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Mele Kyari, and Chief Executive Officer of Nigeria Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Farouk Ahmed.
The Group led by Hon. Billy Osawaru who spoke during a press briefing held at the National Assembly complex, Abuja observed that the calls for the resignation of the duo were unnecessary, while forensic investigative hearing was initiated via House resolution which mandated the Joint Committees on Petroleum Midstream and Downstream to investigate the pertinent issues in the oil and gas sector and a final resolution is yet to be reached.
It would be recalled that the Deputy Spokesperson of the House of Representatives, Hon. Philip Agbese had asked President Bola Tinubu to immediately dismiss Kyari for allegedly stifling the economy’s growth due to the oil sector crisis.
In the same vein, Hon. Agbese had also called on the President to sack the NMDPRA Chief Executive Officer, Farouk Ahmed, and other inherited appointees.
Also, a group of members of the 10th Assembly under the aegis of United lawmakers for Energy Reform and Economic Prosperity demanded the sack of the duo, to pave way for unbias investigation into the operations of both entities.
Recall that the Special Joint Committee set up by the House les by Hon. Ikenga Ugochinyere had on Wednesday directed NNPCL to halt the mortgage of future crude oil for loan from foreign creditors pending the outcome of the ongoing forensic audit of various transactions carried out so far.
Speaking during the press briefing, Hon.
Osawaru argued that it is in the parliamentary culture to afford all the parties involved in the investigation the right to a fair hearing.
He said: “Today, the 1st of August, 2024, no less than 50 members of the House of Representatives who are deeply concerned about the ongoing protests have converged to further appraise the situation as it affects the well-being of Nigerians.
“First, we wish to commend the efforts of the National Assembly, particularly the House of Representatives, under the leadership of Right Honorable Tajudeen Abbas, PhD, for convening the youth dialogue to douse the tensions surrounding the scheduled protests.
“Having observed the nationwide protests, we commend the youths and Nigerians in general for the manner they have conducted themselves.
“We appeal for calm while imploring all Nigerians to bring the protests to an end.
“Nigerians will recall that the hike in fuel prices and associated challenges are fundamental concerns.
“The House of Representatives, via its resolution, mandated the Joint Committee of the House on Midstream and Downstream Petroleum to investigate the issues in the oil and gas sector.
“We are aware that the investigation is ongoing and a final decision has not been reached.
“However, our attention has been drawn to some media reports calling for the removal of the group chief executive officer of the NNPCL and the Chief Executive Officer of NMDPRA while the above investigation is still subsisting.
“We wish to state that it is in the parliamentary culture to afford parties in investigation the right for fair hearing. Therefore, the call for removal of anyone while investigation is pending is premature.
“We therefore call on all Nigerians to be patient and law-abiding in the expectation of a better Nigeria. All we have to do is still appeal to our people to be patient, and to give a little bit of time.
“We know with the renewed hope agenda of Mr. President, everything will be alright. So the least we can do here is come out and appeal to Nigerian people to bring this protest to a halt.”
