Nigeria’s Senate has summoned former top executives of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), including its immediate past Group Chief Executive Officer, Mele Kyari, to explain issues surrounding an alleged ₦210 trillion financial discrepancy flagged in the company’s audited accounts.
The summons was issued by the Senate Committee on Public Accounts after lawmakers reviewed audit queries covering several financial years of the national oil company. The committee is chaired by Aliyu Wadada, who said the panel requires detailed explanations from former officials involved in the company’s financial management during the period under review.
Also invited to appear before the committee is former Chief Financial Officer of NNPCL, Umar Ajiya Isa, along with other senior officials who served in key financial and operational roles while the transactions in question were recorded.
The committee’s action followed concerns raised in audit reports indicating that a combined sum of about ₦210 trillion in financial entries requires proper clarification. According to lawmakers, the figures were highlighted during a review of financial statements and audit observations relating to the company’s operations.
Part of the queried amount, estimated at around ₦103 trillion, was reportedly described by the company as cumulative funding relating to joint venture operations with oil partners. However, members of the Senate panel said the explanation provided in earlier correspondences did not sufficiently address the concerns raised by auditors.
Another ₦107 trillion reportedly appeared in the company’s financial statements as “sundry receivables,” which NNPCL explained as funds owed to the company by various entities, including financial institutions and business partners. The Senate committee, however, insisted that the entries require clearer documentation and verification.
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Lawmakers also raised questions regarding the cost associated with the transition from the former Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation to the current limited liability company structure under the Petroleum Industry Act. The panel noted that about ₦5 billion was reportedly spent on rebranding the organisation, a figure it said requires further clarification.
The Senate committee maintained that public institutions managing national resources must uphold the highest standards of financial transparency and accountability. Members of the panel emphasized that the scale of the figures involved makes it necessary for former officials responsible for the records to personally address the audit queries.
In addition to summoning the former executives, the committee also indicated that the current management of NNPCL, as well as external auditors who handled the company’s financial statements during the years under review, may be required to appear before the panel to provide further explanations.
The Senate further signalled the possibility of recommending a more detailed forensic audit of the company’s accounts by the Office of the Auditor-General for the Federation if the explanations provided by the invited officials fail to satisfactorily resolve the concerns raised in the audit reports.
