The absence of the Minister of Justice and the inability of officials from other ministries to submit their presentations has stalled the House of Representatives investigation on the sale of an oil bloc, OPL 245.
The House of Representatives had convened a public hearing to investigate the sale after receiving several petitions alleging fraud in the sale of the oil bloc.
The Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice Mohammed Adoke (SAN) wrote to the committee asking that the event be postponed. Other Ministers who were also invited, sought more time to submit their presentations on the matter.
The lawmakers lamented the way the legislative arm are treated by Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs).
The hearing was postponed till a later date to allow for the necessary documents to be submitted.
An online news platform had recently alleged that Royal Dutch oil company, Shell, had secretly paid $1.1 billion into a Federal Government account for the OPL 245 oil block. It was alleged that the money was subsequently transferred into accounts of government cronies.
But the AGF in a reaction, debunked the allegation, claiming that the federal government only played the role of a facilitator to settle the imbroglio between the oil companies involved in the tussle.
It is expected that the findings of this investigation may translate into legislation that will enrich the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB), which is presently before the National Assembly.
