NNPC Spends ₦393.45m on Three-Years Office Rent for NNPC Board Accommodation Under the Leadership of Bala Wunti in NAPIMS

Secrets Reporters

The National Petroleum Investment Management Services (NAPIMS), under the leadership of Bala Wunti, paid ₦393.45 million for the three-year lease of two properties in Abuja for office and meeting accommodation for NNPC Board members, according to a document reviewed by SecretsReporters.

The properties, located at No. 48 Suleiman Barau Street and No. 2 Yakubu Gowon Street, Aso Villa, Abuja, were leased at a total cost of ₦393,450,000.

The Salaries, Income and Wages Commission circular with reference SWC/S/04/S.310/105 dated 10 June 2010, sets out the entitlements of board members of federal agencies, statutory corporations and government-owned companies.

The circular provides for sitting allowances based on the category of the organisation and specifies the minimum and maximum number of meetings permitted, with a maximum of four sittings within a calendar year. It is worthy of note that the circular does not provide for accommodation for board members.

Thereby making the payment of ₦393.45 million for a three-year lease to provide accommodation for board meetings that could not exceed four sittings in a calendar year under the applicable circular questionable.

More unanswered questions also arise from Financial Regulation 3106, which provides that a public officer who makes an irregular payment from public funds shall be given 21 days to provide an explanation. Where the explanation is unsatisfactory, the amount involved is to be recovered from the officer and the officer removed from the schedule.

The audit finding also cited Financial Regulation 415, which requires officers responsible for expenditure to exercise due economy and provides that public funds must not be spent merely because they have been appropriated.

National Petroleum Investment Management Services (NAPIMS) is a corporate services unit of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) responsible for managing the Federal Government’s interests in upstream oil and gas investments. It oversees the government’s participating interests in joint ventures production-sharing contracts and other upstream arrangements, while monitoring investments, costs, revenues and performance on behalf of the state.