Amidst public outrage over the recent increase in petrol prices and its scarcity at retail outlets, the Senate has suspended its scheduled investigative hearing set for Tuesday. The announcement was made by Senator Opeyemi Bamidele, Senate Leader and Chairman of the Adhoc Committee to Investigate Alleged Economic Sabotage in the Nigerian Petroleum Industry, in a statement released on Sunday.
Senator Bamidele did not provide specific reasons for the abrupt postponement but stated that “the decision for the postponement was taken in the best interest of the federation and its teeming population.” He further explained that the postponement became necessary to allow for more extensive consultations with a broader range of stakeholders within and outside the petroleum industry and to address legislative requirements to ensure due diligence in conducting the investigative hearing.
He added, “The prevailing realities in the country that demanded urgent interventions from nearly all stakeholders in the public and private sectors across the 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory informed the resolve for the postponement. While we deeply regret all inconveniences it may have caused all stakeholders collectively or individually, this decision was taken purely and solely in the national interest.”
Senator Bamidele emphasized that the decision was aimed at enabling the ad-hoc committee to take a comprehensive approach to the public hearing and develop lasting solutions to the challenges facing the petroleum sector.
The Senate assured all stakeholders that a new date for the public hearing would be communicated in due course.
Investigations revealed that Senate President Godswill Akpabio had established the ad-hoc committee to probe the billions spent on maintaining the nation’s refineries, scrutinize the regulatory agencies’ payments to transporters, and investigate the alleged importation of hazardous petroleum products and the dumping of substandard diesel into the country. Further checks also revealed that the committee had already completed its pre-investigation activities and held an interactive session with heads of ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs) as well as some private sector representatives in the downstream and midstream petroleum sector.
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