The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) on Thursday failed to appear before the Senate Committee on Public Accounts, which is probing alleged financial discrepancies amounting to over N210 trillion in the company’s audited reports spanning 2017 to 2023. While NNPCL officials and its external auditors were absent, representatives from the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), and the Department of State Services (DSS) were in attendance.
In response to the summons, a letter from NNPCL’s Chief Financial Officer, Dapo Segun, was read during the session. The letter cited an ongoing management retreat and requested a two-month extension to enable the company to prepare its responses and gather the necessary documents. “Having carefully reviewed your request, we hereby request your kind consideration to reschedule the engagement for two months from now to enable us to collate the requested information and documentation,” Segun wrote. He added, “Furthermore, members of the board and the senior management team of NNPC Limited are currently out of the office for a retreat, which makes it difficult to attend the rescheduled session of Thursday, 26th June 2025.”
Segun further reassured the lawmakers of NNPCL’s commitment to the process, stating, “While appreciating the opportunity provided and the importance of this engagement, we reassure you of our commitment to the success of this exercise. Please accept the assurances of our highest regards.” However, the committee rejected the extension request and insisted that NNPCL executives must appear in person before the panel to address key issues.
Committee chairman, Senator Aliyu Wadada, stressed that the engagement required no document submission but rather verbal responses to 11 specific questions already sent to the company. “For an institution like NNPCL to ask for two months to respond to questions from its own audited records is unacceptable,” Wadada said. He issued a 10-day ultimatum, warning, “If they fail to show up by July 10, we will invoke our constitutional powers. The Nigerian people deserve answers.”
