The Senate has dismissed the justifications offered by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) concerning the ₦210 trillion owed by the oil company.
It was concluded yesterday that the unaccounted funds must be refunded to the Federation Account by the company, according to reports from Channels TV.
The Senate Committee on Public Accounts, led by Aliyu Wadada, made a decision yesterday following the absence of Bayo Ojulari, the Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) of the NNPCL, at its resumed session at the National Assembly, after months of investigation.
The session was convened to allow NNPCL the chance to clarify the responses provided to the 19 inquiries posed by the panel regarding the ₦210 trillion.
After conducting a review of NNPCL’s operations from 2017 to 2023, the committee identified unexplained transactions amounting to ₦103 trillion in accrued expenses and ₦107 trillion in receivables within the firm’s audited financial statements, leading to the issuance of queries.
Following several weeks of discussions between the committee and the NNPCL, a response to the 19 questions was ultimately provided by the NNPCL.
During a resumed session, Senator Wadada expressed disapproval regarding Ojulari’s absence, as the committee noted that no reasons were provided for the lack of attendance, leading to a dismissal of the explanations offered.
Senator Aliyu Wadada, the Chairman of the committee, addressed the panel’s findings, stating that the responses were both unsatisfactory and contradictory.
“NNPC reported ₦103 trillion in accrued expenses and ₦107 trillion in receivables, totaling ₦210 trillion.” In regard to question eight, the explanation provided by NNPC concerning the ₦107 trillion receivables, which is approximately $117 billion, is inconsistent with the facts and evidence that NNPC has presented. He stated, “The committee is obligated to reject this.”
Wadada raised concerns regarding the firm’s ability to disburse ₦103 trillion in Cash Calls to Joint Venture (JV) partners in 2023, given that it generated merely ₦24 trillion in crude revenue from 2017 to 2022.
“The Cash Call arrangements were discontinued in 2016 during the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari. How can NNPC assert that it has disbursed ₦103trn in a single year, when its total revenue over five years amounts to only ₦24trn? What is the source of funding for NNPC?
“In the view of this committee, that figure is neither justifiable nor acceptable.” The ₦103 trillion should be returned to the Treasury. He stated, “This will be concluded when the NNPCL appears before us.”
The committee stated that it would have been more appropriate for the current management of the NNPCL to acknowledge the challenges faced in clarifying the situation regarding the funds, rather than providing inconsistent responses to inquiries.
“If the current management of NNPCL is struggling to provide satisfactory responses, it would be more appropriate for them to acknowledge this.” The committee is prepared to issue subpoenas to former officials of NNPCL and NAPIMS,” Wadada stated.
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