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, after he failed to appear before lawmakers investigating alleged financial discrepancies running into ₦210 trillion.
The committee issued the directive during a hearing on Wednesday, citing Kyari’s repeated absence from proceedings examining queries raised by the Office of the Auditor-General of the Federation concerning NNPCL’s operations between 2017 and 2023.
The move followed a heated debate among committee members, with some lawmakers urging the panel to grant the former NNPCL boss another opportunity to appear, reportedly on account of medical treatment abroad.
However, several senators rejected the plea, insisting that any claim regarding Kyari’s health status should be backed by official documentation.
Senator Abdul Ningi maintained that verbal explanations were insufficient, while Senator Victor Umeh subsequently moved a motion for the issuance of a warrant of arrest against the former NNPCL chief.
Backing the motion, Deputy Chairman of the committee, Senator Peter Nwaebonyi, argued that the panel could no longer afford delays in its assignment.
“This is the ninth time this committee is meeting on the 19 queries raised against NNPCL by the Office of the Auditor-General of the Federation. Mr Chairman, the time to issue a warrant of arrest against Mele Kyari is now because the committee must conclude its assignment and report back to the Senate,” Nwaebonyi said.
The motion was adopted through a voice vote, prompting Committee Chairman Senator Ibrahim Dankwambo to direct that Kyari be apprehended and brought before the panel.
While the committee intensified pressure on the former NNPCL chief, former Chief Financial Officer of the company, Umar Ajiya Isa, challenged claims that ₦210 trillion was unaccounted for during the period under review.
Ajiya argued that the figure being cited exceeded NNPCL’s total earnings between 2017 and 2023.
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“NNPC’s total revenue during the period under review was about ₦54.5 trillion, even before deducting production costs. It is therefore impossible for ₦210 trillion to be missing or unaccounted for,” he told the committee.
He further defended the company’s record, noting that audited financial statements were published during their tenure, a departure from decades of non-disclosure.
“To be clear, if money had gone missing at NNPC during our tenure, we would not have had the confidence to publish audited accounts,” Ajiya said.
The former CFO also dismissed allegations that ₦5.8 billion was spent on the registration of NNPC Limited, describing the claim as misleading and harmful to both the company and the country’s reputation.
According to him, unsubstantiated allegations could undermine investor confidence and negatively affect Nigeria’s international standing.
As the probe continues, the committee directed Ajiya and former Chief Upstream Investment Officer, Bala Wunti, to return for further questioning in two weeks as lawmakers seek to resolve the issues raised in the Auditor-General’s report.