The Joint Committee of the House of Representatives in Nigeria has initiated a forensic investigation into allegations of contaminated Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) imported into Nigeria and other challenges plaguing the downstream and midstream petroleum sectors.
The committee’s Chairman, Ikenga Ugochinyere, announced the commencement of the probe during the panel’s formal inauguration in Abuja on Monday, July 22, 2024.
The investigation will address several key issues, including the non-availability of crude oil to domestic refineries, distribution disruptions, and alleged favoritism in the pro forma invoice regime. Ugochinyere outlined the committee’s mandate, emphasizing a thorough legislative forensic investigation into the presence of middlemen in crude trading, indiscriminate issuance of licenses, and the purported lack of international standard laboratories to detect adulterated products.
“The committee will also examine the potential influx of contaminated products and the non-domestication of profits from crude marketing sales in local banks,” Ugochinyere added. Furthermore, the panel plans to investigate the abuse of the pro forma invoice regime and the importation of products that are already being produced within Nigeria.
In a bid to ensure the quality of petrol sold nationwide, the committee is set to visit petrol stations across the country to collect product samples for laboratory testing.
This comprehensive investigation follows a motion adopted on July 9, 2024, which called for a legislative forensic investigation into the myriad challenges affecting Nigeria’s petroleum industry and sought lasting solutions.
