Lokpobiri to Wabote : explain the Atlantic and Brass refineries?

The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, has challenged the immediate past Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), Executive Secretary, Engr. Simbi Wabote to account for the whereabout of Atlantic Refinery and Brass Refinery.
Lokpobiri also called on the former Executive Secretary to prove corruption allegations against him.

This was contained in a rejoinder through his Special Adviser, Media and Communication, Nneamaka Okafor.

Lokpobiri insisted: “Our position is that he who alleges must prove same. So if Mr Wabote has proof of such conversation he is challenged to provide same.

“Secondly the Minister has no aide called Blackson. All his aides were duly selected in line with extant laws and have documents to that effect.”

The Minister was responding to the former Executive Secretary statement which alleged that he requested him to increase the budget for the office of the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil) by N30 billion.

According to Wabote: “My problem as ES [Executive Secretary] started with Lokpobiri in December 2023 when he sent one of his undocumented aides within his Ministry to my office in Yenagoa (Blackson) requesting me to increase the NCDMB budget by N30 billion for the office of the Minister and I said it had never been done before. I served two Ministers and none of them have ever made such a request to NCDMB; that we only make provision for the office of the chairman of the council, which covers his travel expenses.

“I said to him that the maximum NCDMB budget has ever gotten to in the past is circa N80 billion for all our activities, adding N30 billion will be too much for his office and I was not going to do it. I ask stakeholders to review the NCDMB budget from 2016 to 2023 and also look at what got approved in 2024.”

On the issue of the refineries, the Minister urged Wabote to identify them to Nigerians.

He said: “Thirdly, the said Atlantic Refinery was supposed to be built in Mr Wabote’s home town, he should show Nigerians where that refinery is.

“Fourthly, the Brass refinery was also paid for, you are welcomed to also visit the site to verify the facts for yourself.

Advertisement
“Investigations are ongoing and the truth will surely come to light and monies belonging to the generality of Nigerians will be recovered for Nigerians.”

Lokpobiri, according to the statement, had made his disclosures in his capacity as chairman of the Governing Council and stands by his statement at the Petroleum Club’s quarterly event in Lagos.

He urged reporters to visit the places mentioned to verify the allegations for themselves.

According to him, these revelations are not new, they were first made during an investigative hearing of the House of representative committee on local content.

The statement added: “The Minister has never been part of any budgeting process of any parastatal under the Ministry, you are welcomed to visit these agencies to verify for yourself.
“Finally, the Minister’s office is run with a budget superintended by the permanent secretary and so one will wonder, how the Minister will ask another entity to make provisions for the budget of his Office.
“The Minister has an impeccable record from his time as Minister of Agric and will continue to stand for the truth.
“The Minister and Indeed the Chairman of the Governing Council of the NCDMB will not abdicate his responsibility to please anyone.
“He has a responsibility to ensure that, that which belongs to Nigerians is judiciously used for Nigerians
“I have had course to read Mr Wabote’s release and every one can see that he is still nursing the wounds of being replaced even after spending seven years at the Board.
“At best, this is a clear case of when you fight corruption, corruption will fight back.”

Wabote in a statement that was in an online newspaper yesterday described Lokpobiri’s utterances as reckless and bundle of lies.

The publication noted: “SIMBI Wabote, former executive secretary to the Nigerian Content Monitoring and Development Board, NCDMB has dismissed as “reckless and bundles of lies” the allegations Heineken Lokpobiri, minister of petroleum, made recently at the Petroleum Club that the investments the board made during his seven-year tenure were wasteful.

Read Also: Lokpobiri, CDS in fresh move against crude oil theft
“Wabote stated this in a statement on Tuesday, April 23, following an earlier interview he granted to a newspaper in reaction to the snippets of the remarks made by the Minister of State for Petroleum – Oil, adding that “it has become pertinent to issue a press statement having gotten full details of the reckless and bundles of lies which is unbecoming of a minister of the Federal Republic.

“Among other things, Lokpobiri said that NCDMB wasted over $500 million of the industry’s fund in equity investments in private establishments and in loans that are now non-performing.

“I wish to state that his reckless statements in the past months are not new to me. Only recently he tried to throw NNPCL under the bus as he stated that Nigeria is losing 400kb of oil because of not signing the Seplat deal thus trying to indict NNPLC, a parastatal under his supervision.

“As a Minister and a presentative of the substantive minister, are you not supposed to canvass government positions or represent your principal correctly? Rather he chooses to act like a militant activist.”