A fresh audit report from the Office of the Auditor-General of the Federation (OAuGF) has implicated the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) in the diversion and mismanagement of over N514 billion in public funds.
The report, released in November 2024, outlined financial irregularities spanning unauthorized deductions, unaccounted revenues, and delayed remittances to the federation account in 2021.
The audit flagged unauthorized deductions of N82.9 billion allegedly allocated for refinery rehabilitation, alongside irregular deductions of N343 billion from domestic crude sales.
According to the report, these funds were deducted at source without adequate justification or proper documentation, violating the 2009 Financial Regulations.
Specifically, N343.6 billion was deducted for value shortfalls, pipeline maintenance, and crude oil losses. However, the NNPCL failed to provide detailed breakdowns or justifications for these deductions.
Additionally, in May 2021, NNPCL was required to remit N127 billion to the federation account but only transferred N77 billion, leaving N50 billion unaccounted for.
The audit also unearthed a contentious payment of N3.7 billion made to a private company to cover a shortfall in Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) sales.
The funds, sourced from naira sales proceeds, were used to purchase foreign exchange through the NNPCL Group Treasury without providing supporting documents like purchase orders or invoices.
This violated Paragraph 603(i) of the Financial Regulations, which mandates comprehensive details on all payment vouchers.
The report called on NNPCL Group Chief Executive Officer, Mele Kyari, to explain these irregularities, remit the outstanding funds, and provide proof of payment to the federation account.
It warned that failure to comply would result in sanctions, including recovery of the funds and possible removal from office.
The audit further recommended the recovery of the N3.7 billion and its immediate remittance to the treasury. It highlighted concerns that NNPCL’s actions could have led to significant public fund losses.
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