Senate Committee Asks IG To Arrest Yar’adua, NNPC Boss

Taiwo Adisa, Abuja - 09.02.2008

The Senate Committee on Petroleum (Upstream Sector) has asked the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Mike Okiro, to arrest the Group Managing Director (GMD) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Engineer Abubakar Yar’Adua for allegedly disregarding the Committee during an oversight function in Abuja.

The Committee headed by Senator Lee Maeba also ordered the IG to produce the GMD on before the Committee on Tuesday.

Committee Chairman, Senator Lee Maeba, who addressed newsmen in the Senate on Friday said that the order had become necessary due to the failure of the GMD and NNPC management to receive the Senate Committee during an oversight function to the headquarters of the Corporation.

He said: “By this, we are already sending an official letter to the Inspector-General of Police that he should produce the GMD and the entire group executive directors and every head of department of the NNPC to appear before this Committee by 12 noon in hearing room one, on Tuesday unfailingly.”

In the letter dated February 8, Maeba told the IGP to produce the GMD unfailingly on Tuesday. In the letter titled: “Request to compel the Group Managing Director of NNPC to appear before the Committee,” Maeba stated that there were overt attempts by the Corporation to frustrate efforts by the committee to carry out oversight functions.

“Due to the difficulty to have audience with the Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and the overt attempt by the Corporation to frustrate efforts by the committee to carry out oversight function after a scheduled visit, the committee at an emergency meeting on Friday 8th of February, 2008 resolved to request you to compel the Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) before the committee at 12 noon on Tuesday 12th February, 2008.