Senate Backs Restructuring of NNPC

Posted by African Examiner Featured, Latest Headlines, News Friday, March 11th, 2016

Ayo Afolabi, Abuja

ABUJA, NIGERIA, (AFRICAN EXAMINER) – The Senate has thrown its weight behind the ongoing restructuring of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).

This followed the outcomes of an interactive session the Senate’s Joint committees on Petroleum (Upstream and Downstream) and Gas had with the Minister of State for Petroleum and Group Managing Director, NNPC, Ibe Kachikwu over the reported unbundling of the Corporation.

Briefing newsmen after an executive session with the minister, Chairman, Petroleum Upstream, Senator Tayo Alaosaodura (APC Ondo Central), maintained that staff of the Corporation will not be short-changed.

Alasoadura said the Minister has not contravened the Act establishing the Corporation, pointing out that the restructuring was a right step in the right direction.

His words: “We had a very useful interactive session with him (Kachikwu). We wanted to know how he arrived at what he did but he clarified the issue that he was not unbundling NNPC because NNPC is an entity that was created by an Act of the National Assembly. And nobody can touch it unless it comes back to the National Assembly for amendment.

“But having looked at what he did and the presentation he made to us and having considered the welfare of the staff of NNPC and those working in the subsidiaries that were affected by the reorganisation that he has done in this sector, we found out that the staff will not be short-changed.

“We also found out that he had not contravened the law because we were worried that he might be acting against the law. But having looked at the law with him, we found out that he did not contravene the law.”

While saying that the NNPC GMD is working in the best interest of Nigeria, he however, pointed out that the minister ought to have carried out more consultation with the National Assembly.

Also speaking, the Acting Chairman, Petroleum Downstream, Senator Jibrin Barau, stressed that the restructuring will turn the entities from “making losses to an era of profitability”.

Recall that, Oil workers under the aegis of the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas workers and their counterparts from the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria had declared an indefinite strike, which commenced a t12 midnight on Tuesday over issues pertaining the restructuring of the NNPC by the Federal Government.

The industrial action, was however, suspended Thursday morning after emergency meetings with officials of the Federal Government.