The Nigerian Senate has issued Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited a seven-day ultimatum to account for N210 trillion in missing funds in its coffers as contained in audited financial statements spanning 2017 to 2023.
This was made known on Wednesday during a session of the Senate Committee on Public Accounts, where NNPCL’s Chief Financial Officer, Dapo Segun, and other executives of the state-owned oil firm were present.
According to the Chairman of the committee, Senator Aliyu Wadada, he described the inconsistencies in NNPCL’s financial records as “unacceptable”; and warned that the Senate would pursue the matter to the full extent of its oversight powers.
“We are looking at over ,210 trillion in just two categories—accrued expenses and receivables. These are not mere rounding errors; they raise fundamental questions about transparency and financial integrity,”; Wadada said.
He lamented how accrued expenses of N103 trillion, which included N600bn in retention fees, unspecified legal fees, and auditor charges—all without any accompanying documentation or referenced contracts.
“How do you quote N600bn in retention fees with no contract to back it up?”; Wadada queried. “There are legal fees with no record of the legal services rendered. It’s completely unjustifiable,”; he added.
