The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), the Ministry of Finance and other agencies have appeared before the Senate Ad-hoc committee investigating a $3.5bn subsidy fund.

The account is said to be managed by the NNPC without appropriation.

But the NNPC has denied the claims saying it is illegalto operate such an account.

The Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division, of the NNPC, Ndu Ughamadu, in a statement on Thursday explained that at the hit of the shortage of products supply at the close of last year, the National Assembly asked the NNPC to do everything possible to stem the hiccups.

He said the corporation initiated the move to raise a revolving fund of 1.05 billion dollars, since the corporation was, and still the sole importer and supplier of white products in the country.

He noted ever since, the fund had been domiciled in the Central Bank of Nigeria, adding that at no time was it in the custody of the NNPC.

Ughamadu also said the fund, called the National Fuel Support Fund, had been jointly managed by the NNPC, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Federal Ministry of Finance

•Sourced from Channels TV report