Senate Accuses PPPRA of Robbing FERMA N634 bn, Orders Payment
Senate Accuses PPPRA of Robbing FERMA N634 bn, Orders Payment
The Senate Committee on Works has accused Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA) of failing to remit NN634 billion revenue belonging to the Federal Road Maintenance Agency (FERMA) since 2007. Consequently, it ordered the agency to immediately pay the agency the money.
This revelation was made during a meeting of the committee with PPPRA and FERMA at the National Assembly in Abuja.
The Act establishing FERMA empowers the agency to receive from PPPRA 5 percent of users' pump price. However, PPPRA has since 2007 operated in violation of the provision.
But acting Managing Director of FERMA, Mr. Peter Odey, and the Company Secretary/Legal Adviser, Richard Clark, drew the attention of the committee to the provision, pointing out that PPPRA has since 2007 failed to remit any amount to the agency. He said the trend had hampered the smooth operation of the agency.
In his reaction, Chairman of the Committee, Senator Kabiru Gaya, said PPPRA was owing FERMA twice the budget of the Ministry of Works this year.
"From the rough calculation, FERMA is requesting PPPRA to refund N634.8billion. This amount is twice Ministry of Works budget for this year. So, it should be mandatory for PPPRA to refund the money or we will get a consultant to give us the exact figure because I know the figure will be more than this," he said.
Queried on why the agency had been violating the Act, PPPRA's Director of Operations, Mr. Victor Shidoh, said the provision was not implementable. According to him, implementing the provision in FERMA Act would automatically lead to a hike in pump price of fuel.
He said initial moves to implement the 5 percent charge by the agency was eventually aborted following the public protests which accompanied it in 2007.
"The implementation of this 5percent will lead to increase in pump price. Because the pump price is not a revenue. It is a cost element meant for specific activities in a template. We are looking at the pump price as if it is a revenue; it's not a revenue.
"The template is a proposal of PPPRA. The implication of implementing all those elements listed is that there will be more financial exposure to government as long as we are under regulation. Because any element that you add a value to, it will automatically increase the pump price which Nigerians must pay.
The Senate Committee on Works has accused Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA) of failing to remit NN634 billion revenue belonging to the Federal Road Maintenance Agency (FERMA) since 2007. Consequently, it ordered the agency to immediately pay the agency the money.
This revelation was made during a meeting of the committee with PPPRA and FERMA at the National Assembly in Abuja.
The Act establishing FERMA empowers the agency to receive from PPPRA 5 percent of users' pump price. However, PPPRA has since 2007 operated in violation of the provision.
But acting Managing Director of FERMA, Mr. Peter Odey, and the Company Secretary/Legal Adviser, Richard Clark, drew the attention of the committee to the provision, pointing out that PPPRA has since 2007 failed to remit any amount to the agency. He said the trend had hampered the smooth operation of the agency.
In his reaction, Chairman of the Committee, Senator Kabiru Gaya, said PPPRA was owing FERMA twice the budget of the Ministry of Works this year.
"From the rough calculation, FERMA is requesting PPPRA to refund N634.8billion. This amount is twice Ministry of Works budget for this year. So, it should be mandatory for PPPRA to refund the money or we will get a consultant to give us the exact figure because I know the figure will be more than this," he said.
Queried on why the agency had been violating the Act, PPPRA's Director of Operations, Mr. Victor Shidoh, said the provision was not implementable. According to him, implementing the provision in FERMA Act would automatically lead to a hike in pump price of fuel.
He said initial moves to implement the 5 percent charge by the agency was eventually aborted following the public protests which accompanied it in 2007.
"The implementation of this 5percent will lead to increase in pump price. Because the pump price is not a revenue. It is a cost element meant for specific activities in a template. We are looking at the pump price as if it is a revenue; it's not a revenue.
"The template is a proposal of PPPRA. The implication of implementing all those elements listed is that there will be more financial exposure to government as long as we are under regulation. Because any element that you add a value to, it will automatically increase the pump price which Nigerians must pay.
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