Falana Asks Court To Compel FG To Recover $40bn, N481bn From NEITI

Human rights activist, Femi Falana (SAN), has filed a suit at
the Federal High Court in Abuja in which he is seeking to compel
the Muhammadu Buhari administration to recover the sum of $40
billion and N481 billion based on the audit of the extractive
industry carried out by the Nigeria Extractive Industry
Transparency Initiative (NEITI), an agency of the Federal
Government.

This was disclosed in a statement issued by Tayo Soyemi for
Falana and Falana Chambers.

According to the statement, in the originating summons, Mr
Falana is asking the Federal High Court to grant the following
reliefs:

1. A DECLARATION that by the express provisions of Sections 2
(a), (b) and 3 (f) of the Nigeria Extractive Industry Transparency
Initiative Act, the 1st defendant is under a legal obligation to
recover the unremitted sums of $22.06Billion and N481.75 Billion
Naira owed the Federal Government of Nigeria by the Nigerian
National Petroleum Corporation (‘NNPC”); the Nigeria Petroleum
Development Company (“NPDC”) and other oil and gas companies
operating in Nigeria.

2. A DECLARATION that by the express provisions of Sections 2
(a), (b) and 3 (f) of the Nigeria Extractive Industry Transparency
Initiative Act, the 1st defendant is under a legal obligation to
recover the sum of $28Billion lost in revenues that are due to the
Federal Government of Nigeria due to failure to review the terms of
the 1993 Production Sharing Contracts “PSCs”with International Oil
Companies, in line with Section 16 (2) of the Deep Offshore and
Inland Basin Production Sharing Contract Act, Cap D3, Laws of the
Federation, 2004.”

3. A MANDATORY ORDER of the court directing the 1st defendant to
recover the unremitted sums of $22.06Billion and N481.75 Billion
Naira owed the Federal Government of Nigeria by the Nigerian
National Petroleum Corporation (“NNPC”); the Nigeria Petroleum
Development Company (“NPDC”) and other oil and gas companies
operating in Nigeria.

4. A MANDATORY ORDER of the Court directing the 1st defendant to
recover the sum of $28Billion lost in revenues that are due to the
Federal Government of Nigeria due to failure to review the terms of
the 1993 Production Sharing Contracts “PSCs” with International Oil
Companies, in line with Section 16 (2) of the Deep Offshore and
Inland Basin Production Sharing Contract Act, Cap D3, Laws of the
Federation, 2004.

In the affidavit in support of the originating summons, Mr
Falana stated that he had confirmed from NEITI that the Federal
Government had failed to recover the outstanding sums of $22.06
Billion and N481.75 Billion owed by the Nigerian National Petroleum
Corporation (‘NNPC”) and the Nigeria Petroleum Development Company
(“NPDC”) and other unremitted payments by some International Oil
Companies.

In addition to the unremitted fund, the senior advocate wants
the government to recover the sum of $28 Billion oil revenues which
according to him, were lost due to the failure to review the terms
of the 1993 Production Sharing Contracts “PSCs” in line with
Section 16 (2) of the Deep Offshore and Inland Basin Production
Sharing Contract Act, Cap D3, Laws of the Federation, 2004.

Mr. Falana who attached the audited reports of the NEITI to the
supporting affidavit further stated that “Nigeria is presently
losing much needed revenue due to the failure of the Federal
Government to ensure that all payments due to the Federal
Government of Nigeria from all extractive industry companies
involved in the Production Sharing Contracts, including taxes,
royalties, dividends, bonuses, penalties, levies and such like are
duly paid to the Federal Government of Nigeria.”

The suit is based on the provisions of the Nigeria Extractive
Industry Transparency Initiative Act which have imposed a duty on
the Federal Government to implement the audit reports of NEITI.

The Attorney-General of the Federation and NEITI are the
defendants in the suit. Although the Federal High Court has not
fixed a date for the hearing of the suit, the defendants have not
filed their defence.

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