Coalition Backs Falana, Demands Explanation Over $2.9bn Approved For Local Refineries

A Coalition of Civil Society Groups has amplified the question raised by the foremost Human Rights Lawyer, Chief Femi Falana (SAN), over the $2.9 billion released for rehabilitating the 3 local refineries in Nigeria.

The Coalition, made up of about 145 groups, is calling on the Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL), Mallam Mele Kyari, to come out as requested by Falana, explain to Nigerians how the funds were expended, and explain further if there was diversion of funds as alleged by the legal icon.

It has been widely reported that the cumulative sum of $2.9 billion was at different times released to the NNPCL to rehabilitate the ailing Port Harcourt, Warri and Kaduna refineries and put them to the production of crude oil in their original capacities or, at best, increase the original standards.

Despite receiving the funds, which translate to trillions in naira, the Warri and Kaduna refineries remain comatose. Meanwhile, the NNPCL opens the primary section of the Port Harcourt refinery for two weeks for blending, leaving the more significant section with large capacity nonfunctioning.

The fiery Human Rights activist Falana, irked by many conflicting reports from the Port Harcourt refinery and NNPCL’s inability to address Nigerians on the genuine state of things, confronted the management last week in Lagos during the commissioning of the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) Tower.

“I challenge NUPENG and PENGASSAN to tell Nigerians the actual state of the refineries. Only 60,000 barrels per day are blended, while NNPCL is silent on the remaining 150,000 bpd and the Warri and Kaduna refineries.

“NNPCL has not explained to Nigerians why the $2.9billion earmarked for the refineries has been diverted,” Falana had said in his remarks.

In a statement on Wednesday by the Coalition’s spokesperson, Otunba Olaosebikan Aremu, the CSOs wondered why Kyari or any of his delegated officials had not come out to answer Falana’s questions in Lagos state one week later.

“We have been waiting, with great expectations, that the Group Chief Executive Officer of the NNPCL, Mr Mele Kyari or any of his agents would come out to reply to the erudite Lawyer and Human Rights Activist, Chief Femi Falana, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, but to our greatest chagrin, no comment has gone out on this account.

“The NNPCL, as usual, has kept us in the dark. Nigerians demand answers to the questions raised by their lawyers. We want to know if the amount received by the NNPCL is $2.9 billion or if it is more or less than that; we want to know what has happened to the funds, tell us if it was diverted as poised by Falana; if the money was utilised correctly, come out and give Nigerians account of how it was expended.

“Come out and explain to us why the Warri and Kaduna refineries are still not working; tell us the dates we should expect their opening; tell us why the Port Harcourt refinery, claimed to be in operation, is still being regarded by stakeholders and host community as a “blending plant”; tell Nigerians why Port-Harcourt refinery was only blending 60,000 barrels of crude oil per day, while the 150,000bpd capacity is abandoned; tell us when to expect the secondary segment which has the larger capacity will be put to operations.

“Let Kyari also tell Nigerians why the Port-Harcourt refinery was said to have shut down operation shortly after it was open, leaving only its non-petroleum unit running which is the Crude Distillation Unit (CDU); why did stakeholders and host community exclaimed that the CDU could only produce naphtha, kerosene and diesel but cannot produce the component which is needed for the Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) otherwise known as petrol?

“All these questions and many more are begging for answers from Kyari and his team. They should not play the usual dumb game by keeping quiet; we’ll forget it in days. They’re public officers and owe us accountability. They should also respect our President, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, and do what is needed because the complaints from the masses are massive. We don’t want anything that will discredit the good intentions of Mr President”, the statement read.

The Coalition added that members of the Civil Society Organisations should not hesitate to occupy the streets of Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt, Warri and Kaduna “if these questions are not attended to, and to the satisfaction of Nigerians, too”.