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NIGERIA’S OIL SECTOR IN CRISIS: CNPP AND CSOs DEMAND FORENSIC AUDIT AND PUBLIC PROBE OF NNPCL OVER ₦210 TRILLION SCANDAL

The Conference of Nigeria Political Parties (CNPP) and over 75 Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) have demanded an urgent independent forensic audit and a public judicial inquiry into the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) over multiple allegations of large-scale corruption and mismanagement under the leadership of Engr. Mele Kyari.

In a statement, Dr. Agaba Iduh Fidel, National Publicity Secretary of the Coalition of National Civil Society Organisations (CNCSOs), described the state of affairs in Nigeria’s oil sector during Kyari’s tenure as a financial calamity that threatens the economic survival of the nation. “This is not a minor discrepancy, and it is not a mere accounting oversight as they want us to believe. This is a financial calamity that must be accounted for by NNPCL,” Fidel declared.

The groups highlighted several scandals, including the controversial recruitment of 487 staff at the Port Harcourt Refinery in 2021, which recorded zero income but spent ₦19.2 billion in administrative expenses and ₦22.5 billion in salaries. “We warned then that this was a fraudulent payroll expansion scheme designed to siphon public funds, but it fell on deaf ears,” Fidel said.

The coalition also accused the Kyari-led management of complicity in fuel subsidy scams, the importation of adulterated fuel, and the deliberate sabotage of Nigeria’s local refining capacity. “We accused a powerful cabal within NNPCL of enriching fuel importation cartels at the expense of national economic sovereignty. Again, nothing was done by the government, the National Assembly, and anti-corruption agencies,” Dr. Fidel stated.

The most damning revelation, in the coalition’s view, is the ₦210 trillion in unreconciled transactions revealed in the latest NNPCL audited financial statements covering 2017 to 2023. Fidel condemned NNPCL management’s recent refusal to appear before the Senate Committee on Public Accounts to answer questions about the missing funds, describing the action as “an insult to the intelligence and suffering of over 200 million Nigerians.”

The CNPP and CSOs outlined a seven-point demand to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration, including an independent forensic audit of NNPCL, a public judicial panel of inquiry, and the immediate arrest and interrogation of Mele Kyari and the sacked NNPCL management team. Dr. Fidel warned that failure to meet these demands within 21 days would trigger nationwide mass mobilization, international petitions, court actions, and global media campaigns targeting the Tinubu administration and the NNPCL.

“Mr. President, we urge you to match your anti-corruption rhetoric with decisive action. The forensic audit, a public judicial probe, and a complete purge of the oil sector cabal are what Nigeria needs for true economic recovery and to achieve your $1 trillion economy target by 2030,” Dr. Fidel said. “We’re not fighting personalities; we’re fighting a system of impunity. The world is watching, Nigerians are watching, and history will be the judge,” he concluded.

NIGERIA’S OIL SECTOR IN CRISIS: CNPP AND CSOs DEMAND FORENSIC AUDIT AND PUBLIC PROBE OF NNPCL OVER ₦210 TRILLION SCANDAL

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