A new audit report has uncovered over N61bn in questionable payments, undocumented expenditures, and regulatory breaches across the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, revealing 28 serious infractions and prompting demands for recovery and sanctions.
The Office of the Auditor-General for the Federation has uncovered 28 major financial irregularities totalling about N61.1bn in the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, citing weak internal controls, undocumented payments, procurement violations, tax infractions, abandoned projects, and unsupported foreign transactions.
According to the 2022 Annual Report on Non-Compliance, red flags include £14.3m spent without documentation at NNPCL’s London office, €5.17m paid to a contractor with no evidence of engagement, and $51.6m in questionable dollar-denominated settlements, alongside N30.1bn in domestic infractions such as unauthorised virements, unremitted surpluses, and irregular staff payments.
While NNPCL management claimed its spending followed approved budgets, the Auditor-General rejected the explanation and recommended that the GCEO appear before the National Assembly, recover all unsupported funds, and apply sanctions in line with financial regulations.