On Thursday, the Senate Committee on Public Accounts said the N210 Trillion financial infraction it raised against the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) in the audit reports of 2017 to 2023, was unaccounted for by the oil company.
The Committee led by Senator Aliyu Ahmed Wadada (Nasarawa West), also insisted that the Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) of NNPCL, Engineer Bayo Ojulari, must appear before it to explain the financial infractions and other queries raised against the company.
Chairman and members of the committee made the clarification at an investigative hearing it had with top management staff of NNPCL in Abuja.
The committee had at the end of the investigative session it had with management of NNPCL on June 26th, 2025, directed that the GCEO of the company must appear before it along with relevant officers on 10th of July, 2025 to account for the N210 Trillion financial infraction and defend other queries raised against NNPCL in the audit reports.
In line with its earlier directive, the committee at the investigative session with NNPCL, refused to allow the Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Mr Dapo Segun to make any submission or presentation to it on behalf of the GCEO, Engineer Bayo Ojulari.
Ojulari was said to have travelled for a meeting of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) held in Vienna in Austria.
First to kick against allowing NNPCL CFO to make a presentation, was Senator Abdul Ningi ( Bauchi Central), who accused NNPL of taking the committee for granted with persistent absence of its GCEO from critical sessions requiring his presence.
“It is very disturbing and unacceptable for the GCEO of NNPCL to dishonour this committee’s invitation for his appearance again.
“He has never appeared before this committee since his appointment, which is really disturbing.
“Invitation for his appearance before the committee was sent to him before the OPEC meeting which as far as we are concerned, he was supposed to use his discretion on where to be today which should be before this committee and by extension, the Senate of the federal republic of Nigeria .
“He must appear before this committee as directed,” he said.
Another member of the Committee, Senator Adams Oshiomhole (Edo North), also slammed NNPCL GCEO for his persistent failure to appear before the committee.
“Nobody is bigger than the country and anybody who feels so, has no business in government. NNPCL GCEO should make good use of the window of invitation for appearance being offered to him now before the door is shut against him.
“The committee is not appealing but ordering him to appear before it, which in his own interest , must be obeyed,” he said.
