25 May 2015, Lagos – The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, PENGASSAN, has said the incoming administration of President-elect, Muhammadu Buhari, must ensure that technocrats, not politicians, head the board of Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC.
The union said it was the only way government can move towards “achieving effectiveness and curbing wastages of our resources and potentials to improve accountability and optimisation across the polity and economy.”
PENGASSAN’s President, Mr. Francis Johnson, told newsmen in Lagos that the holding company and its 10 subsidiaries can only be effective and adhere to global best practices if not subjected to undue political interference.
Speaking on PENGASSAN’s View on the Road Map to Revamp the Oil and Gas Industry, Mr. Johnson said: “There is need to instil in NNPC the culture of corporate governance and career management, which requires a legislative review to ensure that the board of NNPC is headed by technocrats and not politicians.
“The position of Group Managing Director and Managing Directors of the subsidiaries must be tenure based to check frequent termination of employment by the President that leads to policy somersault and unstable system, which breeds compromise of corporate values and principles.”
He also said Buhari’s government should establish a Petroleum Inspectorate for effective regulation of the sector, and that the Subsidy Reinvestment Programme, SURE-P, for which N21 billion is provided for in the N2015 budget, be scrapped.
On the Petroleum Industry Bill, PENGASSAN said: “There is need for an all-inclusive stakeholders’ summit to harmonise the grey areas and ensure speedy passage of the bill in a fair and equitable manner.”
– Vanguard
