The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Monday challenged President Muhammadu Buhari and the All Progressives Congress (APC) to speak out on revelations of how N378 billion proceed from the Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) dividends was allegedly siphoned by the Presidenc, under sleazy oil subsidy deals.
This was contained in statement made available to news men in Abuja on Monday, by its National Publicity Secretary, Mr Kola Ologbondiyan.
It declared that Nigerians were startled by revelations of how the funds from the NLNG, an agency under President Buhariâ€
s direct supervision as Minister of Petroleum, was secretly lifted and spent without the appropriation of the National Assembly as required by law.
This came as the Party urged the National Assembly to immediately open an inquest into the N378 billion NLNG scandal and unravel who actually authorized the withdrawal, the beneficiaries, as well as what each APC leader got from the huge scam, with a view to exposing them and recovering the fund in the national interest.
According to the Party, “available intelligence shows that the Presidency cabal cornered the money under the guise of subsidy payments but allegedly diverted a huge part of it to members of the cabal and some key APC leaders, which they used to finance their wasteful lifestyle, including acquiring posh property within and outside the country
“If there was no ulterior agenda; if the money was actually meant for payment of subsidy, why was it drawn and purportedly spent without recourse to the constitutionally required approval of the National Assembly and other due process procedures under our laws
“The PDP notes that such humongous corruption and stealing of trillions of naira in the oil and gas sector, which is under President Buhariâ€s purview, as Minister of Petroleum, is directly responsible for the biting economic recession and its attendant high cost of living, acute hunger and starvation, poor living standard, dilapidated infrastructure, escalated violence and high mortality rate in the country in the last three and half years.
“If the Buhari-led APC administration had curtailed its greed and allowed for a little transparency in governance, our nation would not be in the dire strait in which we have found ourselves today. In any case, what else does one expect from a government replete with avaricious individuals, certificate forgers and liars
“The PDP challenges President Buhari, as Mr. Integrity, to speak out on the monstrous corruption in his Presidency, which has also failed to offer explanations for the alleged siphoning of over N10 trillion from various sleazes, particularly in the oil and gas sector.”
Meanwhile, the Buhari Campaign Organisation has rubbishes the promise by the presidential aspirant of the PDP, Atiku Abubakar to crash the pump price of petrol to N97 if elected.
Spokesman of the organization, Festus Keyamo, in a statement issued in Abuja on Monday said the promise cannot be fulfilled because of the price of the product in the international market.
The statement explained: “At todayâ€s international price of gasoline, no supplier will ever contemplate any scheme that will deliver products at such ridiculous price.
“Those in the sector reading this must be having a good laugh at the opposition.
“A simple check at the international prices will show that even at the world market where gasoline is procured, it will cost not less than N158 to procure a litre of crude oil.
“When you add the cost of refining, plus freight, finance and port charges (premium), there is no magic that one would employ to supply the finished product at N145 a litre.
“Presently, the landing cost of the product in Nigeria hovers around N205 per litre.
“The claim by Alhaji Atiku Abubakar is opportunism of the highest order.
“Nigerians are aware that higher crude oil prices will translate to higher government revenues and a prudent administration will convert the resources to the benefit of the common man.
“This is exactly what President Muhammadu Buhari has done since he mounted the saddle in 2015.�
The statement affirmed that Buhari has worked out a transparent system whereby the whole subsidy regime and scam has been totally eliminated.
“There is no cash incentive or payment again to middlemen,� it said, adding that the underhand business in the sector witnessed in the previous administrations had been eliminated.
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Alleged N378bn NLNG scandal: PDP challenges Buhari, APC to speak out
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