House invites Emefiele over N32.5 bn payment without records

The House of Representatives has invited Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Godwin Emefiele to explain how about N32.5 billion was paid to two companies, Messrs GSCL Consulting and Biz Plus without any formal record. 

The House also summoned the Auditor General for the Federation, the Accountant General of the Federation, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Managing Directors of Exxon Mobil, Nigeria Agip Oil Company among others to appear before the ad hoc committee investigating the missing 48 million barrel of crude oil. 

Announcing the summon at the resumed investigative hearing on Monday, the Chairman of the Committee, Hon. Mark Gbillah expressed displeasure over the failure of Shell Petroleum Development Company to provide answers to the list of questions sent to them, claiming the questions were unclear to them. 

The Director General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Bashir Yusuf Jamoh informed the Committee that about $1.7 billion judgement sum was still outstanding for the Federal Government to claim from a company found guilty of making a false declaration about the crude oil it took from the country. 

Gbillah said available records revealed that the Central Bank paid N16.5 billion each to the two companies on the same day, adding that the said amount was withdrawn by the companies within a period of two months. 

He said it was important for Nigerians to hear from the apex Bank why the said amount was paid to the two companies, especially when the immediate past Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami denied knowledge of the payment. 

He said all companies and agencies summoned by the Committee have a duty to respond to the summon, adding that even though the 9th House is winding down, it can still issue a bench warrant for their arrest.