Former Group General Manager of the National Petroleum Investment Management Services (NAPIMS), Alhaji Bala Wunti, has told the Senate that there is no evidence in the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd.)’s 2023 audited financial statements to support claims that ₦210 trillion is missing from the company’s accounts, while the Chairman of the Senate Committee reviewing the accounts, Senator Ibrahim Dankwambo, affirmed that the committee had not established that any money was missing.

Appearing before the Senate Committee reviewing NNPC Ltd.’s 2023 audited financial statements, Wunti said he had undertaken a page-by-page examination of the accounts at the committee’s request and found no reference to any missing ₦210 trillion.

According to him, the controversial figure resulted from a misinterpretation of accounting entries rather than evidence of missing funds.

He explained that the ₦210 trillion figure was derived by wrongly adding together two separate balance sheet items—about ₦107 trillion recorded as sundry receivables, representing funds owed to the company, and approximately ₦103 trillion recorded as accrued expenses, representing liabilities owed by the company.

“Receivables are money other people owe you, while accrued expenses are money you owe other people. Accounting standards require that these items be reported separately. They cannot simply be added together and described as missing money,” Wunti told lawmakers.

Declaring under oath, the former NAPIMS boss maintained that there was no basis for the allegation that ₦210 trillion had disappeared from the NNPC’s books, insisting that the audited financial statements contained no evidence of missing funds.

Wunti, who headed NAPIMS from March 2020 before serving as Chief Offshore Investment Officer of the NNPC Upstream Investment Management Services (NUIMS) until December 2024, said although his tenure did not cover the entire period under review, it fell substantially within the timeframe being examined, placing him in a position to explain the accounting issues before the committee.

He told lawmakers that NNPC Ltd.’s financial reporting is more complex than that of conventional commercial enterprises because the company simultaneously operates as a commercial entity, manages petroleum assets on behalf of the Federation and performs strategic responsibilities aimed at safeguarding Nigeria’s energy security.

According to him, although the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) separated many of the former NNPC’s commercial and regulatory functions, the company still maintains distinct accounting records to reflect its commercial activities and its management of assets held on behalf of the Federation.

Wunti also dismissed reports that ₦5.8 billion was spent on incorporating NNPC Ltd. following the implementation of the PIA. He clarified that the actual statutory payments made to the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) and the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) for filing fees and stamp duties amounted to about ₦2.45 billion.

He explained that the higher figure being circulated resulted from accounting entries recorded in separate books because one arm of the organisation executed the payment on behalf of government shareholders while another recorded the same transaction for statutory reporting purposes.

“The only money paid was about ₦2.45 billion and it went directly to government institutions. No third party received any payment,” he said.

Wunti urged closer collaboration between NNPC Ltd., the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation and the Office of the Auditor-General of the Federation to improve understanding of the company’s accounting framework. He also called for a broader appreciation of the Constitution, the Petroleum Industry Act and other relevant statutes governing the company’s operations.

In his remarks, Senator Dankwambo affirmed that the committee had not found evidence that any money was missing from NNPC Ltd.’s accounts, stressing that the ongoing review was intended to ensure transparency and achieve a proper understanding of the company’s audited financial statements rather than validate claims of missing funds.

He said the committee would study Wunti’s written submission alongside the 2023 audited financial statements before determining whether any further clarification would be required.

The Senate’s ongoing scrutiny of NNPC Ltd.’s 2023 audited accounts has attracted widespread public attention following allegations of financial irregularities and competing interpretations of figures contained in the company’s financial statements.

Eze Chidiebere Paul

Eze Chidiebere Paul

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