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28
Thu, Mar

FG Scraps DPR, PPPRA, PEF, Fires CEOs

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The Federal Government says it has officially scrapped the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR), Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA), and the Petroleum Equalization Fund (PEF) as required under the new petroleum law. Following the passage and implementation of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), the Upstream Regulatory Commission (NURC) and Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NPRA) are to perform the duties of the three defunct agencies. The FG also said while workers of the three agencies would be protected, their chief executives had been relieved of their various appointments. The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Chief Timipre Silva, made these known on Monday while speaking on the side-lines of the inauguration of the boards of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority and the Nigerian Upstream Regulatory Commission in Abuja. Responding to a question on what would happen to DPR following the inauguration of the board of NURC, Sylva said, “It is now a matter of law. “The law states that all the assets and even the staff of the DPR are to be invested on the commission and also in the authority. So that means the DPR doesn’t exist anymore.

“And, of course, the law specifically repeals the DPR Act, the Petroleum Inspectorate Act, the Petroleum Equalisation Fund Act, and the PPPRA Act. The law specifically repeals them. It is very clear that those agencies do not exist anymore.”

“The law also provides for the staff and the jobs in those agencies to be protected. But I’m sure that that doesn’t cover, unfortunately, the chief executives, who were on political appointments.”

Mr. Sylva said, “The authority has its staff coming from the defunct PEF, PPPRA, and DPR. The commission has staff coming over from DPR and the process is going on for the next few weeks.”

Mr. Sylva said the inauguration of the boards on Monday marked the beginning of the successor agencies.

“So far, the chief executives of these agencies have not been in place, but of course, Mr. President in his wisdom made the appointment a few weeks ago and they went through a rigorous process of confirmation at the National Assembly.

“The agencies have now taken off because they now have clear leadership and today’s event marks the beginning for the new agencies,” he said.

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