PRESIDENT Bola Tinubu has set up an inter-agency committee to resolve the lingering row between the Nigeria National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited and the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC), TheCable understands.
According to sources, the committee was set up to resolve NNPC’s failure to remit funds into the FAAC account.
“I can comfortably tell you that Mr. President has approved the memo from NNPC Limited to set up a committee to reconcile the crisis between NNPC Limited and FAAC over the failure to remit money into the federation account,” a source said.
“So many things have been told to Mr. President since assuming office by some vested interests that NNPC Limited has refused to pay into the federation accounts.
“And because we want the general public to know the truth, NNPC Limited management wrote the President to investigate the matter and Mr. President has graciously approved that an inter-agency committee be set up to investigate and reconcile the matter.”
FAAC had accused the NNPC Limited of an inability to pay over N2.1 trillion to the federation account from crude sales, royalties, and taxes.
On the other hand, the NNPC Limited had said the federal government owes it over N4.2 trillion in subsidy payment, power, debt as well as other sundry charges.
The committee, set to begin sitting on Friday at the ministry of finance, is tasked with resolving the concerns surrounding the debt owed by the federal government to NNPC.
The committee is also expected to deliberate on the debt the NNPC is said to have failed to remit to the federation account.
Members of the debt reconciliation committee include the ministry of finance, the Nigerian Upstream Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), the office of the accountant-general of the federation (OAGF), and FAAC post-mortem sub-committee.
This newspaper also understands that the establishment of the committee by the president followed a memo dated June 13, 2023, said to be sent by Mele Kyari, group chief executive officer (GECO), NNPC Limited, appealing to him to intervene in the matter.
The letter stated that the request was made with a view to settling all allegations and counter-allegations by both FAAC and NNPC on the status of the debts and remittances.
THE CABLE