The Chief of Staff, Mr Prosper Bani, has directed the Ministry of Energy and Petroleum to dissolve the committee that has been set up to investigate the National Petroleum Authority’s (NPA) $63,000 per monthly office rent.
The five-member committee, according to the Ministry, was tasked to investigate, among other issues, the circumstances that led to the renting of the new offices and whether the cost per month was appropriate.
But a statement issued from the Presidency yesterday said with reference to the ministry’s earlier statement on the NPA decision, Mr Bani had asked the ministry to direct the NPA not to renew its rent agreement at the end of the current tenure, adding that “the Presidency is reviewing the approval processes that went into the decision to commit state funds to rent an office when the upfront payment involved could have completed a permanent office building for the NPA.”
It said the Chief of Staff had also cautioned other state-owned entities and their boards against decisions and actions that were not in the national interest and at variance with the principles and vision of the President.
