The Senate Committee on Public Accounts has ordered the arrest of former Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Mele Kyari, for failing to appear before lawmakers investigating an alleged N210 trillion discrepancy in the company’s accounts between 2017 and 2023.
The directive was issued on Wednesday after committee members rejected appeals by some senators to grant Kyari another chance to appear before the panel, despite reports that he is currently in Germany receiving medical treatment.
Following a voice vote, the committee chairman, Senator Ibrahim Dankwabo, declared that Kyari must be arrested and brought before the committee, stating: “Anywhere Mele Kyari is, he should be arrested and brought before this committee.”
At the same hearing, former NNPCL Chief Financial Officer, Umar Ajiya Isa, dismissed claims that N210 trillion was missing from the company’s accounts, describing the allegation as mathematically impossible based on the firm’s revenue during the period under review.
Ajiya explained that NNPCL generated about N54.5 trillion in total revenue between 2017 and 2023, adding that suggestions of N210 trillion being unaccounted for did not add up. He also disputed claims that N5.8 billion was spent to register NNPCL Limited, insisting the correct figure was N2.9 billion paid to the Corporate Affairs Commission and the Federal Inland Revenue Service, with no third-party payments involved.
He further maintained that there was no missing money in the company’s records, noting that NNPCL’s audited financial statements were already public. The committee subsequently directed Ajiya and former Chief Upstream Investment Officer, Bala Wunti, to return in two weeks as the investigation continues.
Elijah Adeyemi
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