Baru dissociates Buhari’s Chief of Staff Kyari from N50bn NNPC kept away from TSA

The Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has described as a misrepresentation of the truth, a report claiming that its Group Managing Director, Mr. Maikanti Baru, said that Abba Kyari directed the corporation to keep N50 billion away from the Treasury Single Account (TSA).

An online media report was said have reported that Baru claimed that Kyari, who is President Muhammadu Buhari’s Chief of Staff, directed NNPC to keep the N50 billion away from the TSA.

But responding on Friday, the NNPC denied the report arguing that it is “a clear misrepresentation of the truth”, as Baru never made such statement.

NNPC response was contained in a statement Mr. Ndu Ughamadu, Group General Manager Group Public Affairs Division, NNPC, Abuja, released on Friday, which described the allegation as baseless.

He said, “By virtue of the operations of the NNPC, the Corporation had made series of compelling cases to the Presidency and the Central Bank of Nigeria to allow certain categories of accounts operate outside the TSA, as they contain co-mingled funds governed by detailed agreements with local and international implications.

“NNPC equally wishes to state that while these necessary approvals sought by the NNPC were graciously given by the Presidency, the Chief of Staff merely conveyed the notice of these approvals to the Corporation.

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“In the same vein, members of the relevant committee of the National Assembly have requested for copies of such approvals, which were duly provided by the Corporation.

“To claim that the Chief of Staff single-handedly approved these exemptions was not only unfair, but is a complete misrepresentation of facts to mislead the general public.”

This is coming as the House of Representatives had on Tuesday raised queries over the alleged claim that the presidency approved exempting some special NNPC accounts from the TSA.

 

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