The House of Representatives Committee on Petroleum Resources (Downstream) has launched a fresh investigation into the shut down of Nigeria’s refineries, despite the billions of naira reportedly spent on rehabilitation.
The committee, led by Hon. Ikenga Ugochinyere, said it was acting on numerous public complaints and petitions alleging fraud, mismanagement, and misuse of funds meant to revive the nation’s ailing refineries.
“You can’t hide a dead refinery,” Ugochinyere said in a statement on Tuesday, stressing that despite years of updates and site visits, the facilities remain idle, raising major questions about what actually went wrong.
The committee is asking: If huge funds were released and contracts signed, why are the refineries still not working? Was the money diverted? Were Nigerians misled?
“The refineries are national assets owned by both the federal and state governments. We owe it to the Nigerian people to find out the truth,” the statement said.
Lawmakers are also questioning the roles of NNPCL officials, contractors, and refinery managers, accusing them of failing to properly account for progress or warn the nation early enough about challenges.
Even more troubling are fresh allegations that some by-products from the refinery were not only mismanaged but also used for media showmanship rather than real development.
The committee says it will conduct a full probe to identify those responsible, determine whether contracts were followed, and advise Parliament on what next steps to take.
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