CSOs Urge DSS To Release Security Report On Ararume

 A Coalition of Civil Society Organisations has asked the Department of State Securities (DSS) to release its report on Senator Ifeanyi Ararume. 

The group made the demand on Saturday followed a Federal High Court judgement in Abuja reinstating Ararume as non-executive chairman of the Nigeria National Petroleum Limited.(NNPCL).

According to Daily Post, the Coalition is made up of  25 civil society groups.

The group also said that they would protest against the judgement in Abuja next week.

In a statement on Saturday, the group operating under the aegis of Coalition of Civil Society Groups for Good Governance, (CCSGGG) said the security report by the secret police would give a clear indication of why Ararume was dropped from the board of the NNPCL. 

The group also faulted the judgement by Justice Ikwo Inyang, describing it as a usurpation of the powers of the president.

The Convener of the coalition, Comrade Dominic Ogakwu, said, “We find it curious that the constitutional prerogative of the president to hire and fire, especially in a sensitive entity like the NNPC Limited, can brazenly be usurped by the courts.

“We have undertaken to express our dismay by protesting in Abuja next week as the judiciary cannot be seen to overreach itself, which, unfortunately, has become the common denominator over the past few weeks.

“The political implication of what has happened in this matter is not lost on those of us that are watching events in the oil and gas sector keenly. 

"After a hitch-free transition from the wholly owned government entity to a public liability company and focused administration since the unbundling, this judgment seeks to muddy the waters and allow elements with less than noble intentions to undermine the operations of NNPC Limited.

“We had imagined that the courts will take into account not just the national interest but the international dimension and not project Nigeria as an unstable oil and gas investment destination.”

Ogakwu commended President Muhammadu Buhari for giving the indication that the federal government was appealing the judgement.