In a dramatic escalation of its probe into the finances of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), the Senate Committee on Public Accounts has ordered the arrest of immediate past Group Chief Executive Officer, Mele Kyari, over unresolved audit queries involving ₦210 trillion in unaccounted funds spanning 2017 to 2023.
The Committee issued the arrest warrant after Kyari failed to honour multiple summons, including a ninth invitation, to explain 19 major audit queries flagged in the company’s audited financial statements. Despite repeated assurances and appearances by current NNPCL management, the committee expressed frustration over the lack of satisfactory explanations from the former leadership.
Chairman of the Senate Committee on Public Accounts, Senator Aliyu Wadada, and other members, including Senator Adams Oshiomhole who moved the motion, adopted the resolution through a voice vote. The committee rejected submissions that the figure represented liabilities rather than missing funds, noting that NNPCL’s total revenue for the period stood at approximately ₦54.5 trillion before production costs.
“The committee has exhausted all reasonable efforts to secure the appearance of Mele Kyari. We are therefore ordering his arrest wherever he may be found,” the lawmakers stated.
The probe centres on significant discrepancies in the NNPCL’s books, including subsidy-related receivables and joint venture accounts that have raised serious questions about transparency and accountability in the management of Nigeria’s oil resources.
The Senate Committee has also directed former executives, including Bala Wunti and Umar Isa Ajiya, to appear before it in two weeks, while urging relevant anti-graft agencies to take necessary actions.
This development underscores the National Assembly’s determination to ensure accountability in the management of public resources and restore public confidence in the oil sector, which remains the backbone of Nigeria’s economy.