Buhari succumbs to pressure, seeks PIA amendment

President Muhammadu Buhari has written to both the Senate and the House of Reps seeking an amendment to the recently enacted Petroleum Industry Act (PIA).

In letters read on the floor of both houses by principal officers, President Buhari seeks to remove the Ministers of Petroleum Resources and Finance from the board of the newly created Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, (NNPC) Limited.

The President insisted that the affected Ministers can continue to perform their functions without necessarily being members of the board of NNPC Limited.

Part of the amendment being sought by Buhari on PIA is to increase the number of Non-Executive members of the NNPC Limited Board from two to six to reflect Federal Character.

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Buhari, in another letter, transmitted the names of nominees for screening and subsequent confirmation as board members of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the NNPCL.

The bill was passed after the lawmakers considered the report of the Joint Committees on Petroleum (Upstream and Downstream) and Gas Resources on Thursday, July 1, 2021.

In the approved bill, the Senate approved a funding mechanism of 30 percent of NNPC’s profit from oil and gas for frontier basins. This fund is for oil exploration in frontier states.

The bill had proposed 2.5 per cent Equity Share Holding for Host Communities while the committee recommended five per cent.

The Equity Share Holding for Host Communities was top among the demands of individuals and groups at the public hearing of the bill which was held over five months ago.

The passage of the bill was preceded by disagreement and division among the lawmakers.