By Henry Umoru & Joseph Erunke

ABUJA— FOR not appearing in person to address the Senate Committee, yesterday, the Senate Committee on Finance turned back the representative of Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Mr. Ibe Kachikwu.

SENATE CHAMBER

Kachikwu’s representative, Mrs. Folashade Odunuga, was asked to go out of the meeting as she could not stand in for the minister.

The minister, who failed to honour the invitation, was said to have directed a director in the Department of Petroleum Resources to represent him at the meeting, just as Kachikwu was invited to throw light on gas flaring penalty in 2017 revenue profile.

When the Chairman of the Committee, Senator John  Owan Enoh, asked Odunuga to introduce herself, she told the committee that she was the head of planning in DPR.

Odunuga further told the committee that she was asked by her director to represent him.

Senator Enoh in his reply, said:  “You mean we invited the Minister of State to come here and the Minister of State asked a director to represent him and the director in his wisdom, asked you to represent him.

“This is unacceptable and we will not have you to represent anybody.”