Senate Summons Mele Kyari Over Alleged N210tn Unaccounted Expenditure, Threatens Arrest Warrant
The Nigerian Senate on Thursday summoned former Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Mele Kyari, over an alleged N210 trillion expenditure by the national oil company between 2017 and 2023 that lawmakers say has not been properly accounted for.
Also invited to appear before the Senate probe panel are the former Chief Financial Officer of the company, Umar Isa, and the former Group General Manager of the National Petroleum Investment Management Services (NAPIMS), Bala Wunti.
The Senate committee warned that it may issue warrants of arrest against the former management officials if they fail to honour the invitation on a date to be communicated.
Chairman of the committee, Aliyu Wadada, disclosed the panel’s resolutions while briefing journalists after the session.
According to him, the former management team is expected to appear before the committee alongside the incumbent Group Chief Executive Officer of NNPCL, Bayo Ojulari.
Wadada said the committee had resolved that the oil company must account for the alleged missing funds.
> “NNPCL should refund the sum of N210 trillion, being the combined sum of N103 trillion and N107 trillion, which were not properly accounted for as contained in the audit reports. The NNPCL should and must account for the two figures,” he said.
The senator explained that the committee had also directed the Auditor-General for the Federation to conduct a forensic audit of the company’s financial statements covering the period under review, in line with Section 85 of the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria (as amended).
Lawmakers also questioned an alleged N5 billion spent on the rebranding of the oil corporation, when the defunct Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation was transformed into the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited.
Wadada described the expenditure as unacceptable and demanded a satisfactory explanation from the company.
The committee’s concerns followed NNPCL’s inability to provide convincing responses to 19 questions raised by lawmakers based on audit reports reviewed during the probe.
According to the senator, the company claimed that N103 trillion represented cumulative funds expended by its joint venture partners through JV cash calls since 2017. However, the committee rejected the explanation, insisting that the figure remained unresolved.
He further noted that NNPCL’s audited financial statement showed subsidy receivables of N107 trillion as of December 2023, recorded as sundry receivables allegedly owed by various banks and other entities.
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“When combined, NNPCL needs to properly account for N210 trillion,” Wadada said.
Despite the concerns raised during the investigation, the committee reaffirmed its support for the administration of Bola Ahmed Tinubu, noting that the Federal Government remains committed to transparency, accountability and probity in the management of public funds.
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