JOE EFFIONG, UYO
The federal government and relevant agencies have been urged to work on some sections of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), 2021 considered inconsistent with the provisions of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
This was one of the recommendations contained in a communique issued at the end of A 4-day Retreat on Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), 2021 and Its Impact on Revenues, organised by the Crude Oil Monitoring Committee of the Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFM) at the weekend In Uyo, Akwa Ibom State.
In the communique signed by the acting chairman of RMAFC, Umaru Faruk Abdullahi, the retreat observed that; ” There are some sections of the PIA, 2021 that are inconsistent with the provisions of relevant sections of the 1999 constitution (as amended).”
“There is inconsistency in the provision of section 24(4)-(5) of the PIA, 2021 which stipulates the remittance of operating surplus of NUPRC into the Consolidated Revenue Fund while the Commission itself is being funded from the Federation Account.
“The new structure created by section 53 (1) the PIA, 2021, i,e. Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited which vested ownership of all shares in government to be held by the Ministry of Finance Incorporated and Ministry of Petroleum Incorporated on behalf of the Federation is vague.
“Following the establishment of the NUPRC under PIA, 2021, the revenue accruable to the federation account is expected to increase as a result of the new fiscal regime embedded in the Act through the introduction of changes in the tax regime, non-allowance deductions, change in penalty regime, and reduction and volatility of government revenue.”
After highlighting the above and many other inconsistencies, the Retreat recommended that efforts, such as judicial actions to interpret those aspects of the PIA inconsistent with the 1999 constitution, or legislative actions to amend the inconsistencies should be taken.
“The operating surpluses accruing from the actions of the NUPRC and NMDPRA as provided in the PIA, 2021 should be remitted into the Federation Account and not the Consolidated Revenue Fund.
“The shareholding of the NNPC Ltd should be clearly defined to reflect the 3-tiers of government, namely, federal, state and local governments.”
The Retreat asked the government to as a matter of urgency find lasting solutions to the issue of insecurity in order to attract investors to the petroleum industry.
In spite of the shortcoming observed in the PIA, 2021, the Retreat commended President Muhammadu Buhari and the 9th National Assembly for the enactment of the Act after over two decades, and expressed the belief that the Act would revolutionize the oil and gas industry.