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NPA’s lacklustre reaction to BOST scandal is very troubling
The National Petroleum Authority, the industry regulator, appears very relaxed and not as incensed as the public has been about the brewing scandal.
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The scandal revolves around the sale of contaminated fuel to a company that has later been emerged to have been unlicensed.
What happened?
BOST sold contaminated fuel to a private trading company Movenpiina which supposedly ended up at filling stations and in car engines. This transaction has led to the loss of around Gh¢14 million by the State.
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Chamber of Petroleum Consumers (COPEC) and the African Centre for Energy Policy (ACEP) have called for an investigation into the matter. Samples from eight tankers on the premises of Zup Oil-the depot where the oil is to be discharged have also been extracted for testing to confirm whether the contaminated product is intact.
According to the NPA the two companies, Zup Oil and Movenpinaa Energy, were unlicensed. This means they did not have the right to undertake any commercial activity in the downstream petroleum industry, per section 11 of the National Petroleum Authority Act, ACT 691, 2005.
Any implications?
In the light of this grievous revelations, one would have thought that there would be a very strong and emphatic stance on this potentially corruption riddled transaction. That is especially so because the new government came into power on the back of a message of anti-corruption.
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Unfortunately, if one was looking for such a situation, a needle in a haystack would be easier to find. It is literally absent.
That is National Petroleum Authority, the industry regulator, has been extremely feeble in its response to the scandal.
In an interview with Accra based Citi FM, Alhassan Tampuli, the acting chief executive officer of the National Petroleum Authority, appeared very relaxed and not as incensed as the public has been about the scandal when asked about the punishment that would be meted out.
He said, “that is why we have asked them to come and regularise their activities with us because they are not known to us and if they are not known to us, they are not bound by our regulations.”
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When quizzed about that response being too lenient he said, the authority was going to enforce its standard fine of 10,500 cedis, an amount even he admitted was not enough deterrent to stop others from flouting the laws.
Unfortunately, this is not the only time or situation in which a state regulator with all its powers refuse to utilise the powers it has been granted.
If the current administration is really serious about fighting corruption and mismanagement, it is important that they ensure that first off, the people in authority are competent people of integrity and when such cases come up, it is critical to have a strong clampdown on such incidents.
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