The Senate Committee on Public Accounts has threatened to issue an arrest warrant against a former Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd), Mele Kyari, to compel his appearance before the committee.
The committee issued the threat following Mr Kyari’s failure to honour several invitations to explain the alleged ₦210 trillion discrepancy flagged in reports submitted by the Auditor-General of the Federation covering the period between 2017 and 2023.
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Mr Kyari was removed from office by President Bola Tinubu in April 2025 amid several corruption-related petitions filed against him.
Chairman of the committee, Ibrahim Dankwambo, issued the warning during the committee’s meeting at the National Assembly on Wednesday.
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Mr Dankwambo, a former governor of Gombe State, said the committee was left with little choice because Mr Kyari had repeatedly failed to appear before it despite being invited on several occasions.
Background
The controversy surrounding the alleged ₦210 trillion discrepancy began in June 2025 after details of NNPC Ltd’s audited financial records attracted public attention.
At the time, the Senate committee gave the company a seven-day ultimatum to explain the discrepancies. However, NNPC Ltd, now led by Bayo Ojulari, failed to meet the deadline, because its top officials were attending a retreat.
The company’s inability to respond directly to the Senate’s queries fuelled public concerns over transparency and accountability within the national oil company.
In November 2025, NNPC Ltd submitted a written explanation to the committee, stating that ₦103 trillion represented accrued expenses while ₦107 trillion was recorded as receivables.
The committee, then chaired by Aliyu Wadada of Nasarawa West, rejected the explanation and insisted that the company’s leadership appear in person to provide further clarification.
The matter remained unresolved until Mr Dankwambo, a former Accountant-General of the Federation, replaced Mr Wadada as chairman of the committee and resumed the investigation.
Lawmakers demand action
Before the committee chairman ruled on the arrest warrant, several lawmakers expressed frustration over Mr Kyari’s continued absence.
Bauchi Central Senator, Abdul Ningi, argued that the committee could no longer afford further delays and insisted that Mr Kyari must appear before it.
Similarly, Anambra Central Senator, Victor Umeh said the committee had learnt that Mr Kyari was outside the country despite expectations that he would attend the hearing.
Mr Umeh, a member of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), said Mr Kyari’s gesture showed he was not taking the hearing seriously.
“This matter has been on for sometime. We have been expecting Mr Mele Kyari to appear before us for one year or more and for us to receive information that he’s abroad. It shows that he’s not taking us seriously,” he said.
He urged the committee to direct the former NNPC chief to cut short his trip and return to Nigeria immediately to answer questions relating to the probe.
“We cannot wait for him to appear before us at his convenience. It’s a national emergency.
Mele Kyari should cut short his trip anywhere in the world and return home and come before this committee to answer the questions,” he added.
Anambra North Senator, Tony Nwoye, however, offered a different account, saying he had spoken with Mr Kyari and was informed that the former NNPC chief was receiving medical treatment in Germany.
Jigawa North-west Senator, Babangida Hussaini, suggested that the matter be discussed in a closed-door session, but other committee members opposed the proposal.
Edo North Senator, Adams Oshiomhole, urged the committee to exercise its powers to compel Mr Kyari’s appearance.
“There are some people seeing themselves as bigger than Nigeria. This committee must have the courage and the will to deploy its powers and issue a warrant to bring Mele Kyrai even though he’s dead, we want to see his body and he’ll account,” he said.
Where is the money?
Also appearing before the committee was Umar Ajiya, a former chief financial officer of NNPC Ltd, who disputed claims that ₦210 trillion was missing.
Mr Ajiya described the figure as a misconception, arguing that the company’s total revenue during the period under review stood at approximately ₦54.5 trillion.
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“N210 trillion is big money gentlemen. The reality is that the whole revenue earned in the period under review…… For the whole NNPC assuming no kobo was spent to produce the oil was N54.5 trillion, so how can N210 trillion be missing,” he asked.
He suggested that if any funds were indeed unaccounted for, anti-corruption agencies such as the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU) should conduct a forensic investigation.
“And I have advised before even the Auditor-General and the last minister of finance that please for the sake of good order, do a forensic auditor in NNPC so that you’ll find the truth. Whoever has stolen money, go and look after him and jail the person. We don’t steal, we’re patriotic, we block leakages.
“So, when you hear people saying N210 trillion is missing, where has it gone to? Ask EFCC, ask NFIU to go and look for it and then so that Nigerians can rest,” he added.
Mr Ajiya maintained that repeated claims about missing trillions of naira were damaging the reputation of both NNPC Ltd and Nigeria.
He argued that such allegations could negatively affect investor confidence and the country’s international reputation.
“The danger of this is that we are not only damaging the character of individuals and the company itself, even Nigeria. Remember what we dish out to the public is what the ranging agencies will use to rate Nigeria.
“A similar thing happened in the past when we were looking for 2.5 billion from the Chinese, a Nigerian unpatriotic person wrote a petition to the Chinese government and that thing was stopped after issuing sovereign warranty and that is why the project still has not finished.
“So, these kinds of issues, sometimes they hurt people who work for the government. Sometimes, you feel regret working for government but being a Nigerian you cannot regret working for Nigeria,” Mr Ajiya said.
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