Jenny Asemota
Despite the claims by the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) that the defunct Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) did not remit $1.9bn to the Federation Account in 2021 before transitioning to a commercial venture, the federal government has the biggest indebtedness to the national oil company with about N4.1trn ($9.74bn) for outstanding subsidy payment.
“The federation owes NNPC almost 4.1trn and NNPC owes about N2.8trn to the federal government, so they should actually give it cheque for the debt of N1.3trn they owe NNPC Limited,” one of the sources said.
President Bola Tinubu had on May 29 removed the subsidy on petrol following the inability of the federal government to carry the huge payment burden.
Sources close to the Presidency said that although NNPC Limited received several letters from FAAC requesting payment of the about N2.8trn that the former NNPC was allegedly owing the federation account, the Company said it could not pay any money to FAAC pending the reconciliation of the N4.1trn debt the Federal Government was owing it.
The committee, which began sitting in June at the Ministry of Finance, has been mandated to reconcile the controversies surrounding the N4.1trn debt the Federal Government is owing NNPC Limited and the N2.8trn that the NNPC Limited is said to have failed to remit to the federation account.
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