FG scraps DPR, PPPRA, PEF, sacks CEOs

The federal government has scrapped the Department of Petroleum Resources, the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency and the Petroleum Equalisation Fund and do not exist anymore, the Federal Government said on Monday.

The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Chief Timipre Sylva, stated this on Monday at the  inauguration of the boards of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority and the Nigerian Upstream Regulatory Commission in Abuja.

Chief Timipre Sylva also said while workers of the three agencies would be protected, their chief executives had been relieved of their various appointments.

The minister said that with the passage of the Petroleum Industry Act, the NPRA and NURC had taken over the functions of the DPR, PPPRA and PEF.

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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.”

On what would happen to the chief executives and employees of DPR, PEF and PPPRA, the minister replied, “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.”

He stated that the process for aligning the workers of the defunct agencies with the new regulatory bodies had already commenced, as the staff had to be rationalised.

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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.”

Sylva stated that the inauguration of the boards on Monday marked the beginning of the successor agencies.

He said, “The PIA provides for the upstream regulatory commission and the establishment of the midstream and downstream authority.

“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 that beginning for the new agencies.”