Ribadu Committee Report Says Government Officials Colluded With Oil Companies To Cheat Nigeria Of Tens of Billions Of Dollars

A confidential report issued by the Petroleum Revenue Special Task Force set up last February by Dieziani Alison-Madueke, the Minister of Petroleum Resources, has found that Nigeria lost $29 billion dollars in the last decade to deals struck between corrupt government officials and the oil companies.
Chaired by Nuhu Ribadu, the pioneer chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, the 17-person committee produced the 146-page confidential report, which was seen by Reuters.
Some of the highlights of the report, according to Reuters, include:
•    Nigeria loses out on $29 bln on cut-price gas deals
•    State-oil company sells itself cheap oil and gas
•    Oil ministers hand out discretionary oil licences
•    Hundreds of millions in missing bonuses, royalties
•    Traders buy crude oil "without formal contracts"
Although Mrs. Alison-Madueke admitted receiving the report last month, she told Reuters yesterday it was only a draft.  Reuters said the one it saw was marked “Final Report.”
The Reuters story, as reported by Reuters Joe Brock:
ABUJA, Oct 24 (Reuters) - Nigeria lost out on tens of billions of dollars in oil and gas revenues over the last decade from cut price deals struck between multinational oil companies and government officials, a confidential report seen by Reuters says.
A team headed by the former head of the anti-corruption agency Nuhu Ribadu produced the 146-page study on an oil ministry request. It covers the year 2002 to the present.
 Saharareporters