Lawmakers Begin Investigation of Alleged $2.4bn Illegal Sale of 48m Barrels of Crude Oil

Udora Orizu in Abuja

The House of Representatives has commenced investigation into alleged illegal sale of 48 million barrels of crude oil which led to the loss of $2.4 billion to the country, vowing to unearth the facts behind the allegations.

The Chairman of the Ad-hoc Committee, Hon. Mark Gbillah who stated this during the inaugural meeting of the Committee, said it will engage local and foreign stakeholders to unravel the facts behind the alleged loss from 2014 till date.

The lawmaker, who assured all the whistleblowers of utmost confidentiality about their identities, said the investigation was in line with President Muhammadu Buhari’s anti-corruption drive.

He said progress is being made in the investigations as the committee had obtained recordings and photographs of the meetings, documentation to show email trail and discussions and even bank account statements of very highly placed people where the transactions took place. 

Gbillah also said some of the committee’s informants pertaining to the case were alleging threats to their lives.

He pleaded with Nigerians and the media to be objective on the issue and provide the committee with the support that was required to carry out the onerous assignment.

He disclosed that an American citizen who was also allegedly knowledgeable about these issues was currently in the Ikoyi prison over other infractions he allegedly committed in Nigeria, adding that there are insinuations that it is not outside this particular matter that informed those issues being brought against him. 

He said, “Now the Committee takes very seriously issues that have to do with allegations. We owe Nigerians the benefit of doubt in line with our Constitution. We owe them a duty of care to ensure that we unravel the facts of the matter before we start to make any assertions. It is obviously going to be important for us to arrive at the conclusion and provide a substantive report that would obviously be in the records and would determine whether or not these issues transpired and in carrying out our functions, one of the things we are going to need to do would be to interview those made those allegations. 

“Some of them have reached out to the committee alleging threat to their lives. they were intimidated at gun point allegedly. So we will have to travel out of the country. to the United States, to Mexico, to China. I believe considering the amount of borrowing our country is subjected to now 2.4 billion dollars is money this country very seriously needs. So it is not something that this house is taking lightly. The leadership of the house is in support of this committee arriving at the truth and the facts this matter. And it shows the seriousness of this house in addressing issues that have to do with the commonwealth of Nigerians. Even though these allegations were made about two years ago you can see that this responsible House of the Nigerian people has still deemed it necessary to look into this matter even as we go about our electioneering campaigns. So I mentioned the fact that we would have to because of the fears expressed by these individuals, 

“It is important to also point out that an American citizen who was also allegedly knowledgeable about these issues is currently in the Ikoyi prison over other infractions he allegedly committed in Nigeria. but there are insinuations that it is not outside this particular matter that informed those issues being brought against him. 

“Of course nobody and no country would condone illegality from any national within their shores so there must have been reasons for his incarceration at the moment but I am only conveying to Nigerians the allegations that it was not also unconnected with the revelations that he had to provide with regards to this matter. There are other individuals who are in hiding but are reaching out to the committee. We want to assure all the whistleblowers who have revelations to provide to this honourable committee that their information would be treated in the strictest level of confidence as it is done all over the world in other climes.”