Reps dissolve oil, gas probe panel

The House of Representatives has dissolved the ad-hoc Joint Committee on Downstream and Midstream Committee probing activities of the Nigeria National Petroleum Company Ltd.(NNPCL), and the Nigeria Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority(NMDPRA).

Rep. Akin Rotimi, spokesperson of the House of Representatives, stated this in a statement on Monday in Abuja.

He said that the committee would be succeeded by a newly constituted ad-hoc committee with the same mandate.

The committee was tasked with the job of investigating the importation of adulterated petroleum products, non-availability of crude oil for domestic refineries and other critical energy security issues.

He said that the dissolution was to ensure the efficacy and independence of the investigation.

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The spokesperson said that the new committee would consist of members selected for their expertise, competence and integrity.

Rotimi said that the House remained committed to addressing the vital issues and ensuring a thorough oversight.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports on July 3, 118 members under the banner of “1 AGENDA” placed an advertorial in three national dailies allegedly aimed at protecting NNPCL in the aborted probe panel.

NAN reports that some lawmakers whose names appeared in the advertorial distanced themselves from the advertorial.