Mele Kyari, former group chief executive officer (CEO) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), appeared before the senate committee on public accounts on Tuesday over alleged financial irregularities in the company’s accounts.
Kyari arrived at hearing room four of the national assembly complex with a delegation, months after lawmakers threatened to compel his appearance over unresolved audit queries.
The senate is investigating alleged financial discrepancies in NNPCL’s accounts between 2017 and 2023, reportedly involving more than N210 trillion.
The senate committee is probing contradictions in NNPC’s audited accounts — specifically N103 trillion in accrued expenses and N107 trillion in receivables.
In June, the committee ordered the arrest of Kyari over his repeated failure to honour invitations in an ongoing probe of the company’s finances.
The committee, chaired by Ibrahim Dankwambo, senator representing Gombe north, resolved to invoke its constitutional powers to order Kyari’s arrest after he allegedly failed to honour several invitations.
The decision followed the adoption of a motion moved by Victor Umeh, senator representing Anambra central.
The motion was seconded by Onyekachi Nwebonyi, senator representing Ebonyi north.
The audit queries, forwarded to the committee by the office of the auditor-general for the federation, prompted lawmakers to demand explanations from Kyari and other officials of the national oil company.
