Senate Threatens Arrest Warrants Over Disputed N210tn Oil Revenue

The Nigerian Senate has threatened to issue arrest warrants for former and current officials of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) over ₦210 trillion in unexplained financial records. The Senate Public Accounts Committee (SPAC) has directed the national oil giant to refund the staggering sum, which lawmakers claim was “not properly accounted for” in audit reports spanning 2017 to 2023. The standoff represents a critical test of legislative oversight as the 10th Senate intensifies its scrutiny of Nigeria’s primary revenue generator.

At the heart of the probe are two massive figures: ₦103 trillion in accrued joint venture cash calls and ₦107 trillion in “sundry receivables” purportedly owed by banks and other entities. Senator Aliyu Wadada, chairman of the committee, rejected the NNPCL’s written explanations, noting that the aggregate sums cannot be “netted off” under standard accounting principles. The committee has now summoned the immediate past Group CEO, Mele Kyari, former CFO Umar Ajia Isa, and former NAPIMS head Dr. Bala Wunti to testify in person.

Lawmakers also expressed outrage over ₦5.9 trillion reportedly spent on the company’s transition from a corporation to a limited liability entity. Audit documents revealed a suspicious duplication of expenses, with both the NNPC and its subsidiary, NAPIMS, charging ₦2.9 billion each for “incorporation expenses.” Wadada described the multi-billion-naira cost for a name change as “unacceptable” in a country facing severe fiscal pressures. The committee has demanded a full refund of these “inflated” production and rebranding costs.

The current NNPCL management, led by Group CEO Engr. Bayo Ojulari has also drawn the Senate’s ire. Ojulari has reportedly failed to honour four consecutive invitations, leading lawmakers to interpret his absence as a deliberate attempt to evade scrutiny. Although a representative claimed the CEO was attending a meeting with President Bola Tinubu, the committee warned that the National Assembly is not an institution to be taken lightly. Future invitations will now require his physical presence to avert a subpoena.

Structural irregularities have also come under the spotlight. The Senate directed the NNPCL to remit all production costs charged against crude oil revenue back to the treasury, arguing that the company does not directly produce crude. Furthermore, the Auditor-General for the Federation has been ordered to conduct a forensic audit of the NNPCL’s financial statements. This constitutional intervention seeks to clarify how the company could claim ₦103 trillion in cash call payments in a single year when its total reported revenue over five years was significantly lower.

While Senator Wadada clarified that the committee is seeking “accountability rather than accusing anyone of theft,” the scale of the discrepancy has sparked a national debate. Critics have questioned the realism of a ₦210 trillion figure, noting it dwarfs Nigeria’s cumulative national budgets for the period. However, the Senate insists that until the NNPCL provides a reconciled response that aligns with standard accounting, the figures remain “hanging” and must be treated as public funds requiring recovery.

The confrontation marks a defining moment in Nigeria’s oil governance. For decades, the national oil company has operated behind a veil of perceived opacity despite various reforms. This investigation, occurring under President Tinubu’s “Renewed Hope” agenda, will determine if legislative authority can truly penetrate the NNPCL’s complex financial web. As the Senate prepares for the next phase of the hearing, the nation awaits a resolution to what is likely the largest financial probe in Nigerian history.