Civil Society Demands Probe Over Alleged N210 Trillion Discrepancy in NNPCL Accounts

A civil society organisation, Vanguard for Probity and Accountability, has raised serious concerns over alleged financial irregularities in the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), calling for urgent accountability and a halt to wasteful spending.

In a strongly worded statement issued in Port Harcourt on Thursday, the group’s National Coordinator, Dr. Joel Abba, backed the Senate’s recent discovery of what it described as “mind-boggling” financial discrepancies totaling over N210 trillion in NNPCL’s audited financial reports between 2017 and 2023.

The Senate had, earlier this week, given NNPCL one week to explain the inconsistencies in its accounts. Committee Chairman, Senator Aliyu Wadada, described the figures under accrued expenses and receivables as “unacceptable,” stressing that the Senate would fully exercise its oversight powers to investigate the matter.

Dr. Abba, aligning with the Senate’s position, accused NNPCL of showing “crass insensitivity, arrogance, and lack of accountability.” He lamented that while millions of Nigerians continue to suffer from economic hardship, a few privileged individuals appear to be “feasting on our common patrimony.”“The discovery leaves more to be desired,” Dr. Abba stated.

“To add salt to injury, the Board has planned an extravagant trip to Kigali, Rwanda this Friday on five private jets, which amount to over a billion Naira. This is absurdity taken too far.”The group alleged that the Kigali trip was being arranged by a son-in-law of a highly influential politically exposed person, calling the move a gross display of insensitivity during a time of national economic difficulty.

“We are obviously being taken for granted by this crop of leaders manning our oil sector,” Abba added. “Little wonder Nigerians have been paying heavily on petrol just for a few individuals to finance an obscene lifestyle.”Vanguard for Probity and Accountability urged the Nigerian Senate to remain resolute in its investigation and to ensure that all individuals involved in any mismanagement or misappropriation of public funds are held accountable.“The Senate must not back down. Nigerians deserve full transparency and justice in this matter,” the statement concluded.