President Goodluck Jonathan on Wednesday (yesterday) ordered a forensic audit of the accounts of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation over the alleged missing funds.
This was contained in a statement issued by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati.
The statement also reacted to claims by suspended CBN Governor, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, who said he was suspended because he decided to
expose the high level of corruption in the management of oil revenue. The Presidency urged Mr. Sanusi to stop misinforming the public and respond to allegations of financial recklessness leveled against him by the FRCN.
The statement reads: “We have noted with disappointment the unrelenting attempt by the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, to falsely portray his recent suspension from office as an attempt by the Presidency to bury his allegation that huge sums of money due to the Federation Account are unaccounted for by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation.
“The Presidency wishes to reaffirm that Sanusi’s suspension has absolutely nothing to do with his unproven and inconsistent claim that $49.8bn, $12bn or $20bn is missing from the national treasury.
“As was clearly stated in the letter suspending him from office and confirmed by President Goodluck Jonathan in his last Presidential Media Chat, Mallam Sanusi’s suspension was wholly based on the need for him to step aside, while the weighty charges of financial recklessness, gross misconduct and persistent disregard for laid down rules and regulations in the management of the central bank made against him by the Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria and others are properly investigated.
“It is most unfortunate that instead of trying to provide some reasonable response to the clear and unambiguous query of his official conduct as governor of the central bank, Mallam Sanusi has cynically chosen to whip up public sympathy for himself and anger against the Federal Government by deliberately misleading unwary Nigerians and the international community into believing the falsehood that he is being punished for exposing corruption.
“In recent days, the suspended CBN governor has, following in the footsteps of others who have an axe to grind with the government, taken to spreading his false claims and allegations through gullible foreign media correspondents, telling them, among other things, that his threat to force commercial banks to open up their books to unravel the whereabouts of the ‘missing’ funds, whether $49.8bn, $12bn, or $20bn, ultimately led to his suspension.
“He also continues to make the mischievous claim that the government is somehow involved in a scam to divert huge sums of money from the Federation Account through the misappropriation of kerosene subsidy funds.
“Mallam Sanusi’s allegations are patently untrue. But government is making no effort to bury them as he falsely claims. Relevant committees of the National Assembly are still investigating the claims and the suspended CBN governor remains free to give evidence before them in support of his allegations.
“Furthermore, in keeping with its avowed commitment to full transparency, openness and accountability in governmental affairs, the Federal Government has authorised the engagement of reputable international firms for the recommended forensic audit of the NNPC accounts.”