Governors have picked holes in the Petroleum Industry Act signed by President Muhammad Buhari on Monday.
They described the law as a recipe for disaster.
The governors identified six unfavourable areas in an August 10 letter to the President. They pleaded with him to withhold his assent to enable the National Assembly take another look at the Bill along the lines of their observations.
The letter was signed on their behalf by Chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF), EKiti State Governor Kayode Fayemi The Nation learnt.
The identified pitfalls, according to the governors are in Sections 9(4) and (5); 33; 53(2), (3); (4); 54 (1) and (2); 55 (1); and 64(c).
Despite the request for a stay of action, President Buhari got the advice to sign the Bill on his return from the United Kingdom at the weekend.
He signed the Bill while observing self-isolation on Monday.
The issues the governors raised include:
The law will deny states their fair share from the Federation Account because it favours the Federal Government and the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), which will transform to a limited liability company.
The governors, who nevertheless hailed the law as good for the oil and gas sector, are unhappy about the provisions for the incorporation of NNPC Limited under the Companies and Allied Matters Act.
