•Gives one-week ultimatum to Nami, oil companies’ CEOs to appear
Juliet Akoje in Abuja
The House of Representatives yesterday demanded for all tax records and other relevant documents on all joint venture (JV) businesses and production sharing contracts of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) from 1990 to date, from the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS).
The House Ad-hoc Committee probing the JV businesses during the period, gave the directive when the FIRS represented by Ogunyemilusi Gabriel and Bello Rasheed appeared before it during an investigative hearing yesterday.
This was as various oil companies invited by the Committee failed to show up for the hearing.
The FIRS’ representatives said the relevant tax documents demanded by the committee had been submitted, but only for the 2015 to 2021.
The documents demanded included the summary of petroleum profit tax, copies of tax returns filed by all JV ventures from 1990 to 2022, summary of all remittances to federation account of all tax revenues between 1990 to 2022, copies of correspondences between NNPC and FIRS tax remittances, summary of all remittances to federation account of all tax revenues between 1990 to 2022 and certified true copies of the various tax revenues accounts maintained or supervised by FIRS on behalf of the federation.
The FIRS representatives, Gabriel explained that the remaining records would be supplied eventually as they usually archive them.
He said the agency has a policy of archiving every six years, which was why the records from 2015 to 2021 were readily accessible when the committee demanded for them.
The spokesman of the House, Hon. Ben Kalu, expressed worry that the archiving policy of the agency placed a restriction on the mandate of the committee.
“It is restricting. I say so because if you look at the request from the letter which is from 1990 and you are starting at 2015 based on the policy, we are losing about 25 years of enquiry.
“They must present these number of years wherever the documents are. We need those documents for us to conduct a through investigation. Let no excuse be given”
Chairman of the committee, Abubakar Fulata demanded that the records be made available by Friday this week.
The Committee directed that the Executive Chairman of the revenue generating agency, Mohammed Nami, appear before the committee next Tuesday to speak to the documents so submitted.
He also directed that the chief executives of various oil companies invited appear in person of face sanctions.
The sitting was adjourned to next week Tuesday.
