Senate Summons Ex NNPCL Chairman Mele Kyari, Others Over Missing ₦210 Trillion

Nigeria’s Senate has summoned the former leadership of the national oil company over a staggering N210 trillion, the lawmakers say, which was not properly accounted for in financial records covering several years.

Among those invited to appear before the Senate is Mele Kyari, the immediate past Group Chief Executive Officer of Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL). Also summoned are the company’s former Chief Financial Officer, Umar Ajia Isa, and former head of the National Petroleum Investment Management Services (NAPIMS), Bala Wunti.

The Senate committee handling the matter says the officials must appear before it to explain financial figures contained in audit reports covering 2017 to 2023.

And lawmakers are not taking the matter lightly. The committee has already warned that arrest warrants could be issued if the former executives fail to show up when formally invited.

At the centre of the controversy is a combined figure of N210 trillion flagged in financial reviews.

According to the Senate committee, the amount is made up of two major figures:

• ₦103 trillion linked to expenditures associated with joint venture cash calls

• ₦107 trillion recorded in NNPCL’s audited financial statements as subsidy-related receivables and other debts owed to the company

Together, the committee says, these figures require a clear explanation. The chairman of the Senate committee, Aliyu Wadada Ahmed, who represents Nasarawa West, said the company must account for the funds.

“NNPCL should refund the sum of N210 trillion… which were not properly accounted for as contained in the audit reports,” he stated while announcing the committee’s resolutions.

In simple terms, lawmakers believe the numbers presented in the financial documents raise more questions than answers.

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Another issue raised during the committee’s deliberations is the N5 billion reportedly spent to change the company’s name from the former Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) to the current Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited.

The rebranding happened after Nigeria’s oil sector reforms under the Petroleum Industry Act, which transformed the state-owned corporation into a limited liability company.

But the Senate committee says the cost attached to the name change needs justification.

“To us in the committee, this is unacceptable,” Senator Wadada said, adding that satisfactory explanations must be provided.

The committee’s decision to summon the former NNPCL leadership followed a review of audit reports that raised multiple financial queries. Lawmakers said they asked the company 19 different questions relating to the issues highlighted in those reports.

According to the committee, the responses provided by the company were not convincing. One explanation from NNPCL suggested that the N103 trillion figure represented cumulative spending by joint venture partners related to oil production operations.

But the Senate said that response did not fully resolve the matter. “The figure is still lingering and hanging on NNPC,” Senator Wadada said.

The committee also questioned the N107 trillion listed as subsidy receivables, which the company claimed was owed by banks and other entities. Lawmakers say the numbers must be properly clarified.

Beyond summoning former executives, the Senate committee has also recommended a deeper financial investigation.

It asked the Office of the Auditor-General for the Federation to conduct a forensic audit of NNPCL’s financial statements covering the years under review.

The request is based on Section 85 of the Nigerian Constitution, which gives the Auditor-General authority to examine government accounts.

A forensic audit would involve a detailed examination of financial records, transactions, and accounting procedures to determine whether funds were properly recorded and used.

Interestingly, the Senate has asked the current leadership of NNPCL to accompany the former executives when they appear before the committee.

The present Group Chief Executive Officer, Bayo Ojulari, is expected to lead the delegation when the summoned officials appear before lawmakers.

The committee also asked that external auditors who worked with the company during the period in question be present at the hearing.

Their role will likely be to explain the audit findings that triggered the Senate’s concerns.

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While raising concerns about the NNPCL accounts, the committee also expressed support for the administration of Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

Lawmakers said the investigation aligns with the government’s efforts to ensure transparency, accountability, and proper management of public funds.

For now, the next step is clear. The former NNPCL leadership must appear before the Senate committee and explain the figures that have triggered one of the most significant financial questions in Nigeria’s oil sector in recent years.

Until then, the N210 trillion question remains unanswered.