Diezani Alison-Madueke has said ex-President Goodluck Jonathan ordered her to direct the NNPC to release $1.3billion to the Office of the National Security Adviser.
The former Minister of Patrolmen Resources explained on Thursday that no minister had the power to question or disregard a written directive of a president.
Alison-Madueke was clarifying issues surrounding the withdrawal of $1.3billion from the accounts of NNPC to fight kidnapping and other security threats in the Niger Delta.
“The attention of Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke, the former Minister of Petroleum, has been drawn to a story in The Nation Newspaper of Monday 22nd January, 2018 as well as other print and online media titled “Diezani in trouble again over withdrawal of $1.3b from NNPC accounts,” she said in a statement by her Media Adviser, Clem Aguiyi.
“Under Section 5 of the Constitution, all executive powers are vested in the President who may exercise it directly or through the Vice President or Ministers of the Federation. As Minister for Petroleum Resources Mrs. Alison-Madueke was an appointee and delegate of the President.
“Consequently, the Minister of Petroleum Resources acted on the basis of the written approvals and directives given by the President, which approvals were given after written requests from the relevant security agencies were made to the President.
“At such instances, as in fact the article clearly shows, a Service Chief or Intelligence Chief makes a written request/appeal to Mr. President, outlining whatever urgent and critical security needs of the nation they consider imminently paramount, at any given point in time.
“If such a request received the approval of the President, the President may direct that the requested funds be drawn from a Security Budget maintained by NNPC, or that the funds be sourced from elsewhere.
“Where the President directs the Minister of Petroleum Resources, in writing, to make the payment from the NNPC, the Minister, in turn, directs the GMD NNPC in writing to execute the directive of the President. NNPC then wires the funds from one of its major foreign bank accounts, or from the CBN, directly to the stipulated account of the particular branch of the armed services, or intelligence unit, or department, that initiated the request.
“It is not within the power or discretion of any serving minister to question or disregard the written directive of a president including that of the incumbent President.”
