The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, NNPCL, has debunked the claim alleging that it paid N20 billion to ghost consultants and was involved in the theft of N18 billion liability tax due to the Ogun state government.
A statement by Mr. Garba Deen Muhammad, Chief Corporate Communications Officer, NNPC Ltd explained that as a responsible corporate organization, NNPCL does not have or deal with ghost consultants.
According to him, “At NNPC Ltd, the process of engaging consultants whenever the need arises is clear and verifiable and follows global best practices.
“It is therefore unfortunate that for whatever reason, the said online platform would make such a grievous allegation, mindless of the consequences of such actions. The claim of a missing N20bn is absolutely false and baseless.
“The NNPC Ltd therefore demands that Sahara Reporters retract the said publication immediately; and going forward, the platform should verify its facts before going to press”.
Explaining the tax issue with the Ogun State Government, he stated: “The second component of the said unfortunate report is related to the Ogun State Government claiming a back duty tax liability of about N18bn, against an NNPC subsidiary, the Petroleum Products Marketing Company (PPMC) Ltd.
“For clarity, PPMC had objected and challenged the claim through its Tax Consultant. Consequently, the Ogun State Government took the matter to court which is not unusual in business circles.
“The matter is currently before the court and NNPC Ltd will prove its case accordingly”.