By Adedapo Adesanya
The House of Representatives has kickstarted investigative into $179 million premium allegedly paid by Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and Joint Ventures (JVs) for non-existing assets overseas as well as the implementation of insurance policies of other Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs).
The Chairman, House Committee on Insurance & Actuarial Matters, Mr Darlington Nwokocha (Isiala Ngwa North/South Federal Constituency – PDP), on Monday explained that the exercise was necessitated by “alleged breaches on insurance business by industry practitioners; low retention capacity of dollar-denominated insurance business and the effect on Nigerian economy; and under-utilization of the capacity of Nigeria insurance policy.”
“The practice and effects of domiciling insurance ventures abroad, issues and prospects of ineffective regulation of foreign placements of insurances; alleged loss of billions of naira by the nation through insurances of moribund assets, non-existent assets and high premium rates; alleged huge unsettled life insurance claims, poor handling of Group Life insurance schemes, its effects on the motivation and productivity of working-class citizens and non-payment/un-allowed deductions on entitlements of the surviving families,” he continued.
According to the lawmaker, after the pre-forensic meeting, the committee will deploy forensic auditors to all NNPC and all the MDAs as well as insurance companies and brokers handling the portfolios.
The Chairman, who underscored the importance and contribution of the insurance industry to an economy, however, observed that the story is different in Nigeria.
The committee chairman explained that the investigation was as a result of petitions it received which revolve around more than $100 million across board within the NNPC and its subsidiaries, on insurance-related matters.
Speaking, Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of NNPC, Mr Umar Ajia, explained that the NNPC Group Managing Director, Mr Mele Kyari, could not attend the investigative hearing because he needed to hold meetings with associations of oil workers, namely Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSN) and Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG).
As a result, Mr Nwokocha issued a 10-day ultimatum to the NNPC Group Managing Director to appear with relevant documents and take into cognizance all the inadequacies in the previous documents submitted to the committee, adding that all the stakeholders are to re-appear before the panel on August 31, 2020, by 11 am.
