Federal Republic of Nigeria Minister of State for Power, Hajiya Zainab Ibrahim Kuchi, has addressed an article written in the Guardian newspaper. She has only been in the post for two months., a photo by Pan-African News Wire File Photos on Flickr.
KPMG report not in our records, says Power Ministry
Thursday, 03 January 2013 00:00 From Emeka Anuforo, Abuja News
Nigerian Guardian
THE Federal Ministry of Power said Thursday that the KMPG audit report in the possession of The Guardian newspaper, from which it quoted copiously in a last week cover story, was not in its records.
The ministry also stressed that the report was not in the handover note to the current minister, neither was any reference made to it. In a response to The Guardian story, the ministry said the only report in its possession was a 2008 preliminary audit.
In a statement, its Assistant Director (Press), Ibrahim Haruna, said: “The attention of the Federal Ministry of Power has been drawn to The Guardian Newspaper front page publication of Friday, December 28, 2012.
“The publication alleged that the Federal Ministry of Power (FMP) has received an audit report by KPMG and has not responded to the said report. The ministry is dismayed that the newspaper should publish such a sensitive report without making any effort to verify the authenticity or otherwise of this allegation.
“For the record, the FMP is not in receipt of an audit report that it has not responded to. If The Guardian had cared to check its information with the ministry, it would have discovered that the only audit report that had ever come to the ministry was a preliminary audit report, which was received in 2008, which was acted on then, as it were.”
Haruna went on: “The general public, and The Guardian in particular, should therefore note that a pending preliminary audit report was not part of the handing over notes received by the Minister of State for Power, Hajiya Zainab Ibrahim Kuchi, at the time she assumed office barely two months ago.
“Given the forgoing, therefore, it is curious that The Guardian should contrive to rush into publishing a story that can only mislead its readers. The ministry has moved on since 2008 and has recorded several achievements; there is absolutely no truth to the allegation contained in The Guardian report that there is an audit report that poses “fresh crisis” in the power sector.
“But if the newspaper does have such report, it would be in the interest of the public and good governance to reveal its source and make it public.”
The audit report was commissioned by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) to determine the efficiency of the subsidy disbursement processes and the general efficiency of the market settlement process between 2008 and 2010.
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