Reps flay CBN, summon Emefiele over N6.7tr subsidy payments
By Johnmark Ukoko
The National Assembly Committee investigating subsidy payments approved by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on behalf of the Federal Government has said its members are not convinced with the apex bank’s explanation.
This is as the Apex bank refuted claims that it received N6.7 trillion in fuel subsidies not supported by any documents.
Governor of the CBN, Godwin Emefiele, disclosed this at a meeting of the House of Representatives Special Ad-hoc Committee set up to review Nigeria’s petroleum products subsidy regime between 2017 and 2021.
He told the legislators at the beginning of the hearing of the inquiry that he could only respond to inquiries about the technical aspects of subsidy payments, adding: “I will be able to provide answers here, but if they are outside the technical aspects of the subject’s transactions, then I will not be able to respond.”
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Emefiele, who was represented by CBN Deputy Director of Banking Services, Hussein Kagara, informed the legislators that the regulator was unable to print out the subsidy payment paperwork due to their size.
The CBN’s claim was not well received by members of the committee, who felt disappointed.
A member of the committee, Mark Gbilah, New Nigeria People Party (NNPP) Benue State, disclosed that N6.7 trillion had been spent on subsidies in less than a year, adding that Emefiele should personally appear before the committee to address the matter with the Executive Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS).
The committee, therefore, subpoenaed Emefiele to personally appear before the committee on its next sitting date.
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