NRS Chairman Adedeji dismisses Frontier Exploration Fund report as sponsored fake news

The Executive Chairman of the Nigeria Revenue Service, NRS, Zacch Adedeji, has dismissed online reports linking the agency to alleged fraud involving the Frontier Exploration Fund, describing the reports as “sponsored fake news.”

The reports had alleged that $279 million was transferred from the Fund’s account to some unnamed accounts, claiming that Adedeji and the NRS were aware of the purported “illegal” movement of the funds.

The reports further alleged that the development had put Mr Adedeji under pressure, with some stakeholders calling for a forensic audit of the Fund’s accounts.

However, reacting to the reports in a telephone interview, Mr Adedeji dismissed the allegations as false, saying they were part of an attempt by some individuals to tarnish his reputation and that of the NRS.

“That report is not true in any way. It is pure fake news sponsored by some jobless persons whose pastime is to throw mud at high performers in the President Tinubu government.

“I consider it to be a brand of cheap journalism lacking in ethics and professionalism but heavy with malicious intentions,” he said.

Mr Adedeji also alleged that the reports were sponsored, citing similarities in their language and narrative.

“To prove to you that it was sponsored, take a critical look at the storyline and language. They are the same language and style in all the reports, meaning that one person wrote it and distributed across gullible online platforms,” he said.

The NRS chairman said the authors and sponsors of the reports demonstrated a lack of understanding of the nature of the Frontier Exploration Fund and the process governing its disbursement.

He explained that the Frontier Exploration Fund was established under Section 9 of the Petroleum Industry Act, 2021, to finance petroleum exploration activities in frontier basins where commercially viable hydrocarbon reserves have yet to be fully established.

According to him, the frontier basins covered by the Fund include the Bida, Benue Trough, Anambra, Chad, Sokoto and Dahomey basins.

He said the Fund was designed to finance activities including geological mapping, seismic surveys, exploratory drilling, appraisal wells, basin studies and other petroleum exploration activities.