The Joint Committee of the House of Representatives, on Wednesday, summoned 35 oil companies, as well as the Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, Mele Kyari, for questioning over environmental degradation caused by the activities of oil companies across oil-producing communities in Nigeria.
The oil firms and the NNPCL boss are to appear before the committee on Wednesday, May 8, 2024.
The summons was handed down by the Chairman of the House Committee on Environment, Pondi Gbabojor, at an investigative hearing in Abuja on the activities of oil companies.
The committee also summoned relevant government agencies and heads of oil companies.
The Committees on Environment, Petroleum Resources (Upstream), Petroleum Resources (Downstream) and Climate Change make up the joint committee.
The committee chairman threatened sanctions should invited persons fail to appear before the committee.
Gbabojor said, “We will write another letter to everybody. They should turn up to answer questions on issues pertaining to the degradation of the environment due to the activities of oil companies.
They have to be here on May 8. If anybody fails to show up, then, we would decide as a committee on what to do. I want to believe that there was enough time – two letters were sent. There was ample time for them to see the letters and duly honour them. But to put on a human face, we would still give another time to do so.”
