Revealed! How PPPRA paid N131m legal fee to external solicitors without documentation

Petroleum Product Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA) now known as the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) made a payment of N131 million as Legal Fees to External Solicitors without documentation. Members of Senator Matthew Urhoghide-led Senate Committee on Public Accounts were stunned and disappointed as the agency of government could not present documents to buttress the transaction.

The Senate Committee is relying on the Auditor General of the Federation report of 2018 Audit that had queried the agency for payment of N131 million as legal consultancy fees. Trouble started when the Chairman of the Senate Public Accounts Committee, Senator Matthew Urhoghide asked the officials of PPPRA to present the evidence for the payment of N131 million as legal consultancy fees to external solicitors.

The Senators wondered how PPPRA could pay that sum of money to external solicitors when there is an in-house legal department that is competent to handle such cases. The Committee members also observed that the consent of the Attorney General of the Federation was not obtained before engagement and before legal fees were agreed upon in accordance with extant circular and there is no evidence of any deliverables in the contract agreement before payment was made However, Officials of the PPPRA were unable to present document to justify payment of the N131 million as legal consultancy fees to external solicitors. Instead , the representative of the agency, General Manager Account, Dele Adewumi told the Senators that the agency was in urgent need for continuous legal representation in various cases initiated against the Federal government by Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC).

The PPPRA official added the agency considered it more efficient and financial prudent to engage the external solicitors. The query read, ” N131 million was paid to staff of Messes Ahmed Uwais and co legal practitioner for retainership and consultancy service from 1st January- December 2017.

“To ensure probity and accountability in management of public’s funds and to ensure prudence and control of legal services provided by private legal practitioners for government matters, the office of the Solicitors General of the Federation issued a circular Ref No SGF/PS/CIR/624/1 if 1st July 2003 seeking the consent of the Honourable Attorney General of the Federation prior to engagement and payment external solicitors.”