The House of Representatives on Thursday rejected the recent call by one of their own, Rep. Philip Agbese, for the removal of the Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd), Mallam Mele Kyari, and the CEO of the Nigerian Midstream Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA).
The lawmakers described the call as not only premature, but also parliamentary culture.
Leading a 50-member strong House of Representatives group, Rep. Billy Famous Osaware (Edo State) told journalists in Abuja that it is against the rules of the House to jump to conclusions in a matter that is still under investigation by the designated House Committee.
Persecondnews recalls that Deputy Spokesman for the House of Representatives, Hon. Philip Agbese, had asked President Bola Tinubu to immediately dismiss Kyari for allegedly stifling the growth due to oil sector issues.
But reacting to the call, Osawaru said it is in the parliamentary culture to afford parties in an investigation the right to a fair hearing and called on the committee handling the probe to be impartial.
He said: “Nigerians will recall hikes in fuel prices, and associated challenges are fundamental concerns. The House of Representatives, vide its resolutions, mandated the joint committee of the House on Midstream and Downstream Petroleum to investigate issues in the oil and gas sector.
“We are aware that the investigation is ongoing and a final decision has not been reached. However, our attention has been drawn to some media reports calling for the removal of the Group Chief Executive Officer of the NNPCL and the Chief Executive Officer of NMDPRA while the above investigation is subsisting.
“We wish to state that it is in parliamentary culture to afford parties in an investigation the right to a fair hearing. Therefore, the call for the removal of anyone while an investigation is pending is premature.
“We, therefore, call on all Nigerians to be patient and law-abiding in expectation of a better Nigeria.”
The lawmakers also expressed concern about the ongoing protests in the country, saying they converged to further assess the situation as it affects Nigerians’ well-being.
They appealed for calm and begged all Nigerians to bring the protests to an end.
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