Bernard Amuor Makeny, Managing Director of NilePet pictured during a visit to Eye Radio for Sundown talkshow, on October 27, 2023. (Photo: Lou Nelson).

The Managing Director of state-owned Nile Petroleum Corporation is calling on the parliament to empower the institution to ensure its transparency and independence.

Engineer. Bernard Amuor said a legislative support to the national oil firm will reduce interference on the institution and encourages transparency and good governance in it.

Amuor said the entity is working towards enhancing transparency in order to ensure the fulfillment of its commercial roles.

“Any NOC (No Overall Control) is always facing a lot of commercial or economic challenges, and it is the same house that should actually empower NilePet to ensure that it works and operates independently without interferences or with transparency and proper governance,” Amuor said while speaking on Eye Radio’s Sundown Program on Friday.

“What we are doing right now is to put that into order, to make sure that we are transparent, to make sure that we are putting the right government procedures in place, to ensure that NilePet fulfils the role of commercial entity.”

When asked why oil revenue is not being used to cater for certain government activities, MD Amuor says the oil money is not sufficient to meet the many government’s responsibilities.

He further said the drop in global oil prices and market constraints have further frustrated the country’s most lucrative export.

“So, if our economy is entirely 98% dependent on oil revenues, the revenue that comes from oil is not sufficient to cover all the government programs,” he said.

“What NilePet can answer from the operation business aspect of it as the principal economic player is that, the oil pricing has not been in our favor over a period of 12 to 13 years.”

“Yes, there is revenue coming in, but of course, you know the government has a lot of responsibilities which in this case probably is not sufficient enough to cover much for the economy.”

The management of NilePet has come under scrutiny from the national legislature and the Petroleum Ministry, in the last few years.

The Parliamentary Committee on Finance, in July this year, reiterated its push for the return of the management of the NilePet from the Presidency to the Petroleum Ministry to enhance technical capacity of the state-owned oil firm.

It was the second time the committee has recommended the transfer of management and responsibility for the oil corporation, from the Office of the President.

According to some legislators, the responsibility for Nilepet should be transferred for proper policy coordination and execution.

Last year, a similar recommendation was also made by the parliament.

This was after the Minister of Petroleum said he was being sidelined in the management of the state-owned oil firm which allegedly reports directly to the Office of the President.

The second recommendation was made during the second reading of the 2023/2024 fiscal year budget in Juba on July 26.