Senate insists NNPCL must account for N210 trillion by April 29

From Adesuwa Tsan, Abuja

The Senate has issued a firm directive to the management of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Limited) to appear before its Committee on Public Accounts on April 29, 2026, to account for an alleged N210 trillion flagged in audit reports spanning 2017 to 2023.

The committee also ordered the Group Chief Executive Officer, Bayo Ojulari, to appear alongside the immediate past GCEO, Mele Kyari, former Chief Financial Officer Umar Ajia, and Bala Wunti, as well as the company’s external auditors, stressing that their attendance is mandatory.

The resolution followed a motion moved by Senator Osita Izunaso and seconded by Senator Adams Oshiomhole on Wednesday.

The Chairman of the committee, Aliyu Wadada, stated that the Senate was dissatisfied with the explanations provided by the national oil company regarding the queried sum. He insisted that the N210 trillion flagged in the audit reports must be fully accounted for, particularly by the immediate past management.

According to Wadada, the responses given by the NNPCL to 19 audit queries were inadequate and failed to meet public expectations for transparency and accountability.

“This committee and by extension, the Senate, is not satisfied with blanket explanation given by NNPCL on N103 trillion which it said stands for liabilities because liabilities are in three components which are retention fee, legal fee and audit fee,” he said.

“Specific amount of money spent on each of the three components must be stated and explained. Detailed explanation is also expected to be given on the N107 trillion NNPCL said it expended on JVC cash call and part of the money allegedly owed by some defunct banks whose names were not mentioned.”

Consequently, Wadada announced: “Consequently, it is hereby resolved that the NNPCL is given an additional two weeks to unfailingly appear before this committee. The deadline for compliance is set for Wednesday, April 29, 2026.”

Earlier, a member of the committee, Abdul Ningi, urged the Senate to invoke its constitutional powers to compel the appearance of the NNPCL management, citing repeated failures to honour invitations.

“We must treat this matter with the utmost seriousness. The essence of democracy rests significantly on the strength and authority of the legislature. Unfortunately, in recent times, there appears to be a growing reluctance by individuals to honour invitations from the National Assembly, leaving members feeling helpless in compelling appearances before committees,” Ningi stated.