‘NEITI Not Revenue Generating, Collection Agency’

The Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) has clarified that it is neither a revenue generating nor collecting agency, as wrongly implied in a recent publication.

The agency, in a statement, yesterday, said its core responsibility is to release information and data of revenues generated from extractive industry to the public and it is the mandates of the legislator, the civil society and the citizens to use the disclosed information for advocacy and civic engagements.

NEITI said it b is fully aware that the relevant Committees of the National Assembly are currently working closely with NEITI to address the findings and recommendations thrown up by the report.

The agency said the clarification became necessary following a report from a lawmaker calling for the probe of NEITI for unremitted government revenues.

NEITI noted that the said publication titled “Lawmaker demands NEITI’s probe over missing $15bn, N200bn” was misleading, a mix-up of issues and misrepresentation of facts contained in its latest oil and gas industry report released  in Abuja on the 18th September, 2021.

“The sum of $8.26 billion (and not $15 billion as attributed to the lawmaker by the newspaper report) was the public disclosure by NEITI as potential collectible revenues due to NUPRC and the FIRS as outstanding liabilities.”

“In the same direction the sum of N200 billion Naira was another revelation by NEITI in the same report as funds expended on the repair of the nation’s refineries between 2020 and 2021 which we queried in the same report since the refineries are not working.

The funds in questions and other crucial facts, information and data are contained in the recently released NEITI Report.”

“For the avoidance of doubt, NEITI is not a revenue generating agency, has no powers under the law to either collect, keep custody or manage government revenues. Rather we support the government to mobilise revenue for its development activities by beaming the searchlight on leakages, wastages and other areas through which the government can optimise its revenue taken from the country’s natural resources.

“It is therefore a misconception and misrepresentation of the position of the lawmaker calling for the investigation of NEITI over a missing $15 billion revenue. This clarification has become necessary in other to refocus attention on the basis for the conduct of the reports released by NEITI which is to highlight findings in the reports, ensure better implementation of NEITI’s report recommendations, address the lingering issues in the extractive sector, and improve optimisation of Nigeria’s extractive endowments for the benefit of all Nigerians,” the agency said.