The House of Representatives says it is investigating twenty five Insurance companies for financial Infractions.
The Chairman of the House Sub-Committee on Capital Market and Institutions, Mr. Kwamoh Laori, made the disclosure at a meeting with the management of the Insurance companies, in Abuja.
He said that the committee scheduled the meeting based on petition based on infractions by the insurance companies which has led to the Nigerian government losing hundreds of billions of revenue from the companies.
He said that the companies were invited to agree or debunk those liabilities.
” This committee is saddle with the responsibility of a petition based on infractions from these insurance companies in respect of the operations and non compliance with certain statutory provisions. And of course, those infractions has resulted into federal government losing hundreds of billions of revenue from these insurance companies.
“That is why they are being invited and each of them have been served and given the extent of their liability and for them to come in and agree or debunk those liabilities. That is the essence of all these things we are doing here to ensure that what is due to the federal government comes to it through the operations of these private entities,” Mr. Laori said.
He said that it is the duty of the National Assembly to track revenue that should acrude to the federal government.
He said that the House is expected to investigate and put a stop to revenue leakages.
He noted that the the companies were expected to appear before the Committees to explain their financial standings, whether they have paid or not.
He however lamented that some of the companies ran to court prevent the siting of the committee.
“Some of the companies ran to court and have served the House with court process. It’s for us and the House to sit down and look at the process. If it in no way goes to the basis of what we are doing here, we would definitely proceed but if it does, then we have to await for the decision of the court in respect of that,” he said.
He pointed out that running to the court is the companies trying to” throw in the spanner into the world of the National Assembly”.
He also pointed out that the committee would continue to insist on the Chief Operating Officers of the companies to appear before the Committees rather than sending unqualified representatives.
” We have insisted that the Chief Operating Officers appear in persons so that they can answer some of the questions. Like you can see, one of the COOs sent somebody that could not answer any of those allegations that are before the committee, that is not good. That is why the committee still makes the order that only the COO that will appear in person, so, that they can come and answer for these allegations that are against them,” he noted.
He stated that it was the same people that would say that the Nation Assembly is not doing it’s job.
Mr. Laori indicted the National Insurance Commission for not doing their job.
” NICON, of course has a supervisory role in respect of that and I’m not holding brief for them. But, I think if they are doing their job, we will not be here talking about this. So, I expect them to sit up. It’s because there are certain lapses somewhere, that is why today we are doing what we are doing here in terms of investigation,” he added.
Seventeen of the companies who went to court, sent their attorney, Mr. Abimbola Kayode to represent them at the hearing.
Confidence Okwuchi