Senate to Invoke Constitutional Power On NNPCL for Failure to Appear Over N210tn Alleged Audit Probe
The Senator Aliyu Wadada Senate Committee on Public Account has called on the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) to appear before the committee within the timeframe scheduled or suffer the invocation of the constitutional power of the Senate.
This follows the issuance of a 10-day ultimatum to the company to appear before the Committee over alleged financial discrepancies amounting to more than N210 trillion in its audited reports from 2017 to 2023 after failure to honour a scheduled appearance on Thursday, June 26, 2025, where its executives were expected to answer 11 critical audit queries already communicated to the company.
It all started when the company sent a letter signed by its Chief Financial Officer, Dapo Segun, requesting a two-month extension, citing an ongoing senior management retreat and the need to collate relevant documents instead of appearing to defend or react to the alleged financial discrepancies.
However, the committee in it entirety rejected the request outrightly, says the hearing was not for submission of fresh documents but for oral clarification on existing audit records. Hence the request for two months window can not given.
“For an institution like NNPCL to ask for two months to respond to questions from its own audited records is unacceptable,” Senator Wadada said. “If they fail to show up by July 10, we will invoke our constitutional powers. The Nigerian people deserve answers.”
White the hearing was attended by representatives from the EFCC, ICPC, and DSS, NNPCL official or external auditor was not present, a move lawmakers described as a deliberate evasion of accountability
Senator Abdul Ningi (Bauchi Central) insisted that the Group Chief Executive Officer, Bayo Ojulari, who replaced Mele Kyari in April, must personally lead the NNPCL delegation at the next hearing.
Senator Onyekachi Nwebonyi (Ebonyi North) described the extension request as an admission of unpreparedness.
Senator Victor Umeh (Anambra Central) warned the company not to test the resolve of the Senate.
“If they fail to appear again, Nigerians will know the Senate is not a toothless bulldog,” Umeh said.
Recall that last week, the Senate grilled the company Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Segun and other top executives over “mind-boggling” entries in the company’s books, including N103 trillion in accrued expenses and another N103 trillion under receivables figures that were later altered in a revised submission.
Among the flagged expenses were over N600 billion in retention fees, legal charges, and auditing costs, none of which were backed by documentation.
The committee reiterated that failure to appear by July 10 would attract legislative sanctions, including arrest warrants or plenary resolutions recommending punitive action.
