The House of Representatives on Tuesday resolved to investigate alleged abuse in contract awards at National Petroleum Investment Management Services (NAPIMS), a Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, (NNPC) subsidiary.
This resolution was sequel to a motion by Rep. Gaza Gbefwi (Nasarawa-PDP) at the plenary.
NAPIMS is saddled with the responsibility of managing Nigeria’s asset in the oil and gas sector. It is expected to project NNPC’s interest and provide oversight in funding of operations.
It is also responsible in ensuring that contracts, financial and operational control, project monitoring and audit, and to ensure compliance with statutory provisions.
Gbefwi said that allegations and petitions over the past eight years suggested that NAPIMS had awarded jobs to contractors, who were not part of initial bidding processes.
According to him, some of such contracts are not completed and are continuously renewed in the name of the same contractor at exorbitant rates.
He alleged that the subsidiary awarded contracts in favour of foreign contractors at exorbitant rates against market realities, to the detriment of local contractors.
The legislator said that the infractions were major contributory factors to the increasing cost of oil production by companies and lack of optimal performance.
He said that if the allegations were not investigated, it could lead to loss of confidence in the operations of the oil and gas industry and could jeopardise the anti-corruption drive of the Federal Government.
The motion was unanimously adopted by members present at plenary.
In his ruling, the Speaker of the house, Mr Yakubu Dogara, mandated the Committee on Petroleum Resources to investigate the matter and report back within six weeks. (NAN)