The House of Representatives has launched an investigation into the alleged non-repatriation of Nigeria’s crude oil export proceeds estimated at over $850 billion between 1996 and 2014.
Chairman of the House Ad-hoc Committee on Pre-Shipment Inspection of Exports and Non-Repatriation of Crude Oil Proceeds, Hon. Seyi Sowunmi, announced this during the committee’s inaugural meeting at the National Assembly, Abuja, on Wednesday.
Sowunmi said reports indicated a major breach of the Pre-Shipment Inspection of Exports Act, with some operators in the oil and gas sector failing to repatriate between 40 and 45 per cent of Nigeria’s crude oil export earnings. He reminded stakeholders that the law requires full repatriation of export earnings within 90 days for oil exports and 180 days for non-oil exports.
The lawmaker expressed concern over discrepancies in export-earning data reported by key government agencies including the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC), and the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) as well as inconsistencies between Nigerian figures and those of international bodies like OPEC.
He said the committee’s investigation would extend to non-oil exports, particularly in the solid minerals sector, which has also been plagued by poor compliance in export earnings.
Sowunmi assured that the House, under Speaker Tajudeen Abbas, was determined to recover lost revenues and plug leakages in line with President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.
He added that the committee would leverage whistleblowing mechanisms to encourage transparency and expose corruption, promising confidentiality and potential financial rewards for credible informants.
“All operators must provide shipment-to-receipt documentation, while regulators and financial institutions are to furnish evidence of repatriation within the required timeframe. Where violations are found, appropriate civil and criminal sanctions will follow,” he warned.
