Nathaniel Zaccheaus
The Senate Committee on Finance on Thursday commenced an investigative hearing into an alleged sale of 1.7 million barrels of crude oil.
The product was seized by the Nigerian Navy between 2021 and the first quarter of 2022 and handed over to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC)
The anti-graft agency was expected to prosecute the oil thieves.
There was however an allegation that the EFCC allegedly sold the product.
The transaction was, however, said to be without the awareness of the Minister of Finance, Budget, and National Planning, Ahmed Zainab.
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The Nigerian Navy represented by Real Admiral, Sola Oluwagbire who is the Director of Operations appeared before the panel on Thursday to clear the air on the development.
He told the Senate Committee that 44 vessels loaded with crude oil were arrested in 2021 with 1.6 million crudes and 4.6 million PMS.
He said 13 vessels were arrested within the first quarter of 2022 with 154,000 of crude oil.
He put the total crude oil seized by the Nigerian Navy between 2021 and the first quarter of 2022 at 1.754 million crude oil.
He told the Committee that the seized vessels were handed over to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) because the Nigerian Navy was not the prosecuting agency.
He said there was information that the anti-graft agency had allegedly disposed of the seized crude oil.
However, when the Chairman of the Committee, asked the Finance Minister whether she was aware of the disposal of crude oil handed over to EFCC by the Nigerian Navy, Zainab responded that she was not aware of how the seized products were handled.
She said, ” I am not aware of how the seized products were handled.”
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The Chairman of the Committee, while speaking on the development after the session said his panel had asked the Navy to supply more information.
He also said the Committee would want to know the current situation of the seized products.
Adeola said, ” What I can is that it is another piece of information, we have asked the Navy to supply us with information, we want to know the current state of the seized products.
“The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation is going to appear before us on Monday and we will also invite EFCC,” he added.
