Members of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASAN), during a protest over crude oil theft,(Photo by Olukayode Jaiyeola/NurPhoto) (Photo by Olukayode Jaiyeola / NurPhoto / NurPhoto via AFP)
The George Uboh Whistleblowers Network has taken a protest to the National Assembly against the Mark Gbillah-led ad hoc committee on the sale of 48 million barrels of stolen crude oil in China.
Led by Ambassador Joseph Peter Umoh, carrying banners and placards with inscriptions denouncing the setting up of the Ad-Hoc Committee by the House of Representatives when the crime was already being litigated against in the court of law.
The Hon. Mark Gbillah- led House of Representatives Ad–Hoc Committee is probing the alleged 48 million barrels of stolen crude oil which was later sold in China.
According to The Guardian, the protesters, who blocked the entrance gate to the National Assembly, were wielding placards with inscriptions such as ‘NASS is not bigger than the courts’, ‘The whistle-blowers who gave the information on the illegal sale were neither asked to write petition nor allowed to appear as a witness at the committee’, ‘Niger Deltans are tired of thieves stealing their oil’ and ‘Justice is what we need’.
They described the ad hoc committee as a busybody panel, adding that there must be a petition on a controversial matter before a committee is set up to investigate it.
Also, the group said there was never a petition to formally legitimise a committee hearing on the matter, despite that Gbillah was verbally briefed by Dr. Uboh’s whistleblower network.
Uboh said: “The scheduled Gbillah-led ad hoc committee hearing on the illegal sale of stolen 48 million barrels of Nigeria’s crude oil in China is in violation of two principles.
“The whistleblowers, who furnished Gbillah with the information germane to the 48 million barrels of stolen crude oil, did not file any petition to the National Assembly giving rise to the hearing, and neither were they called as witnesses during the hearing.”
He said the whistleblowers’ network is a civil society organisation with the mandate to fight corruption; hence, he expressed surprise that neither their attention was drawn nor were they called as witnesses during the hearing.
“I, Dr. George Uboh, a known whistleblower, whose petition to the National Assembly led to the sack of former chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ibrahim Lamorde, can authoritatively state that the National Assembly does not delve into any matter unless a petition is filed and laid on the floor,” he asserted, while accusing the committee chairman of greed for ignoring process leading to a public hearing on issues he knows too well.
They further stated that there were two court matters initiated in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court and Federal High Court against the Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) of Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Mele Kyari, to account for the proceeds of the sale and the National Assembly respectively.
New Telegraph further reports that while addressing journalists via a written statement, Ambassador Umoh said that the Hon. Mark Gbillah-led Ad-Hoc Committee on the illegal sale of 48 million barrels of stolen crude oil, later sold in China at $2.4 billion, was unnecessary since the crime was already subjected to litigation.
According to the Spokesperson of the protesters, as Whistleblowers, they blew open the stolen crude oil and illegal sales in China to Hon. Mark Gbillah and Nigerians generally.
He also pointed out that, rather than carry them along in the planned investigation, Mark Gbillah and his Ad-Hoc Committee decided to do it alone, raising suspicion on vested interests.
Part of the statement reads: “The Whistleblowers who furnished Hon Mark Gbillah the information germane to the 48million barrels of crude oil stolen did not file any petition to the National Assembly for any investigation or hearing, neither were they called as witnesses to testify during the hearing.
“Because Gbillah did not follow this sacrosanct due process, the purported public hearing by the Ad – hoc committee is a sham predicated on unilateral action driven by greed.
“Therefore we the whistleblowers at this protest, authoritatively assert that the National Assembly does not hear or deliberate on any matter in court.
“Two different competent courts of jurisdictions, are already handling the case filed against the Chief Executive Officer ( CEO) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Mele Kyari to account for proceeds from the stolen crude oil which are roughly estimated to be $2.4billion at $50 per barrel and $4.8billion at $100per barrel.
“Hon Gbillah led Ad – Hoc Committee of the House of Representatives, should therefore hand off the matter by not sitting or carrying out any public hearing on it “, he said.
When told that the Ad-Hoc Committee was not set up by Hon Gbillah himself but by the leadership of the House of Representatives, he explained that the protest was staged for the leadership of the House to know the futility of its action on the Committee.”
