Hot Source
The National Petroleum Authority (NPA) has stepped up its nationwide campaign against illicit fuel trade, as part of Chief Executive Godwin Kudzo Tameklo’s drive to sanitise the downstream petroleum sector.
The renewed campaign follows the Authority’s readiness to directly prosecute offenders using its own prosecutors, following the granting of prosecutorial powers by the Attorney General under Article 88(4) of the 1992 Constitution.
The authorisation, contained in the Appointment of Public Prosecutors Instrument (E.I. 378), empowers NPA officers to prosecute individuals involved in illegal fuel trade, from the District Courts to the Supreme Court, in line with the Authority’s regulatory mandate.
As part of the campaign, senior officials of the NPA, including the Head of Corporate Communications, Naa Atswei Nee-Okpey; the Head of Prosecution, Dr Farida Ali-Musah; the Head of Security and Intelligence, Isaac Djagbletey; and the Head of Premix Sites and Retail Outlets, David Kangah Jnr, have toured parts of the country.
So far, the campaign has reached the Ashanti, Eastern, Central and Western Regions, where the team has engaged stakeholders and the media to educate the public on the dangers of illegal fuel trading. They also highlighted the NPA’s regulatory role and the penalties awaiting offenders.
According to the Authority, activities considered illicit fuel trade include smuggling, unlicensed oil transfers at sea, illegal importation, adulteration and contamination of fuel, unlicensed bulk storage, the sale of petroleum products to unlicensed third-party retailers, and the diversion of subsidised products such as premix fuel.
The NPA has warned that these activities are prohibited by law and could result in heavy fines, suspension, or revocation of licences, or prosecution by the Authority.
The post NPA steps up crackdown on illicit fuel trade appeared first on The Herald ghana.
