The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has denied claims that it is holding on to subsidy fund totaling 3.5 billion dollars Subsidy fund.
The NNPC Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division, Mr. Ndu Ughamadu, dispelled the rumour in a statement in Abuja, on Tuesday.
The NNPC executive explained that at the National Assembly had directed the corporation to do everything in its power to stem the shortage of petroleum supply which hit the country towards the end of 2017.
Ughamadu said further that the corporation initiated the move to raise a revolving fund of 1.05 billion dollars, since the corporation was, and still is the sole importer and supplier of petroleum products in the country.
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He made note of the fact that since the revolving fund was raised, it had been domiciled with the Central Bank of Nigeria, and at no time was the money ever in the custody of the NNPC.
Ughamadu also said the fund, called the ‘National Fuel Support Fund’, had been jointly managed by the trio of the NNPC, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Federal Ministry of Finance.
Other managers include the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA), Office of the Accountant General of the Federation (OGF), the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) and the Petroleum Equalization Fund (PEF).
He further clarified that NNPC did not independently spend a dime of the fund which was to ensure stability in the petroleum products supply in the country while adding that the petroleum corporation was fully aware that it was only the National Assembly that had the statutory powers to appropriate funds on petroleum subsidy matters.
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