Power probe: HoR demands TCN’s 20 years budget, IGR

By Tom Okpe

The House of Representatives investigation by its Committee on Finance into the proposed sale of the National Integrated Power Plant (NIPP) by the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP), has demanded for the Transmission Company of Nigeria, (TCN)’s 20 years budget and Internally Generated Revenue, (IGR).

This is with the aim to address alleged breaches of agreement and perennial power failure in the country which has dragged for long.

The committee at its sitting in Abuja on Tuesday, directed the TCN to present its budgetary allocations from 2002 to date, the contracts it awarded and certificates on power transmission lines.

The committee also asked TCN to provide it with the company’s Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) from 2010 to date, its audit report, while faulting its spending of the revenue outside budgetary provision.

The panel had on Monday, summoned Sule Abdulaziz, TCN Managing Director to explain why poor supply persists despite a $33 million monthly payment to Azura power plant for power generation.

The Federal Government had in 2013 signed an agreement with Azura power plant located in Edo State, to generate 450 mega-watts of electricity at the cost of $33 million monthly.

The committee chairman, James Faleke, visibly angry about the epileptic power supply in the country expressed his displeasure with the TCN chief executive’s position, said other Ministries Departments and Agencies, (MDAs) involved in the agreement with Azura be invited over the issue.

Those summoned include the Ministers of Power and Finance; Heads of Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP), Niger Delta Power Holding Company (NDPHC), Nigeria Bulk Electricity Transmission (NBET) and Nigeria Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC).

Faleke said: “We have adjourned this sitting. We will invite NBET, TCN, NERC, Niger Delta Power Commission, Ministry of Power, Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) and Ministry of Finance.

“So, we will invite all these agencies and their principals and heads of bureau to appear. We will communicate to them in an appropriate time that is convenient for all of us at a later date.”

In another development, the House Committee on Unclaimed Government Fund, National House of Representatives has asked the Nigerian Export Processing Zones Authority (NEPZA) to refund to the Federal Government coffers, the sum of N13.3 billion unremitted revenue funds.

READ ALSO: Group urges Buhari to halt plan sales of Polaris Bank

The committee made this disclosure on Tuesday at the resumption of the House’ Ad-Hoc committee on unclaimed government funds in Abuja, requesting NEPZA to provide copies of validated receipts of financial transactions including its remittances to government.

But the Director, Finance and Administration, NEPZA, Oyesola Oyekunle who appeared for the organisation insisted that the agency was not in any way indebted to the Federal Government as all revenues generated over time have been paid to government up to date.

Oyekunle, however contradicted himself when he told the lawmakers that since NEPZA is not fully funded, it remits only 25 percent generated revenue to government and has paid N3.93 billion, last year to government, making it to be up to date in payment between the period under review, year 2000 to date.

According to the director, the agency operates under a circular issued by the Ministry of Finance and not stipulated extant financial laws as expected by the committee hence, the remittance percentage to government.

The lawmakers however, insisted that the N13.3 billion arrived at, was calculated based on the 80 percent revenue remittance provisions to government as contained in the financial act, not based on the circular.

Consequently, the committee chairman, Udem Uyime, (PDP Akwa-Ibom) adjourned for a later date to enable NEPZA reconcile their audited documents with that of the committee’s consultants to come up with a common position, to enable the agency clear off its outstanding debt.