Chairman of the Senate Committee on Public Accounts, Senator Aliyu Wadada (Nasarawa West), made the disclosure in Abuja, explaining that although NNPCL had forwarded its responses, the Senate was yet to conduct a detailed examination of the submissions.
“The management of NNPCL wrote to the committee during the recess, requesting more time to compile data and respond comprehensively to our questions. We granted the extension. They have now responded to all 19 queries, but the report is yet to be presented before the full committee,” Wadada stated.
The audit queries stemmed from discrepancies uncovered in NNPCL’s financial statements, which the Senate had previously flagged for lack of transparency.
In July, the committee had issued a three-week ultimatum to NNPCL’s Chief Executive Officer, Engr. Bayo Ojulari, to provide explanations concerning the ₦210 trillion referenced in audit reports.
Senator Wadada assured Nigerians that the committee would conduct a thorough and impartial review before making any public pronouncements.
“I have refrained from making any public statement on the matter until the committee has formally reviewed the report. But as I promised earlier, we will do justice to the matter,” he said.
Beyond the audit concerns, the senator also disclosed that new issues had surfaced regarding NNPCL’s operations, particularly its production sharing contracts (PSCs) and the revelation that NNPC Retail, a subsidiary of the corporation, recorded financial losses.
“We’ve been told NNPC Retail is running at a loss, which is very concerning. It’s difficult to understand how a retail arm of the national oil company could operate at a loss in the current market environment. This, too, will be examined,” Wadada said.
He assured Nigerians that the committee would make its findings public once the review of NNPCL’s submissions is complete.
